Woodwind Instrument Sound Production

Some woodwinds use a reed or two reeds to produce their sound, while the flutes use no reed at all. When the players want to stop the sound on a woodwind instrument, they simply stop the air flow. A tone is produced on a woodwind instrument by making a column of air vibrate. The column of air is inside the instrument. Woodwind instruments have a series of holes drilled down the length of the instrument. As more and more of these holes are covered with fingers or pads, the column of air gets longer and the notes get lower.