Sounds like a horror movie, doesn’t it? As Jeff Spurgeon tell us, for family and friends, perhaps it was. But his trombone tale is very much a happy one.

Oboist Alex Klein was struck at the height of his career by focal dystonia, a neurological affliction that impacted his left hand. Despite his struggle, he's remained a prominent name in the oboe world, as our Album of the Week demonstrates.

Monica Ellis, the bassoonist in the Imani Winds quintet, shares five pieces that take the bassoon beyond its clichéd role as the jovial clown of the orchestra. "We do get to difficult things and it’s not just this big, clumsy, cumbersome instrument."

New York Public Radio's resident oboist picks his favorite works for the instrument.

There are many conversations that go on between an instrumentalist and their instrument. For the oboist and the oboe, a good face in public masks constant bickering and drama behind the scenes.

Hot Air, our month-long celebration of woodwind and brass sections on WQXR, might as well be called a fanfare for these instruments. Here are five notable fanfares, from Mouret to Verdi and Adams.

New recordings by flutist Robert Langevin and saxophonist Theodore Kerkezos show how their respective instruments were favored by French composers during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Weigh in and get a free download.

Blonde, slim and stylish, Alison Balsom is a far cry from the traditional image of brass players. As we feature her album of Italian Baroque concertos, we asked her about the culture of brass playing – and being more than a pretty CD cover.

Douglas Quint leads a double life. During the summer, he’s the face of the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck, making soft-serve concoctions with some unlikely ingredients. Come November, he's a professional bassoonist.

Alison Balsom is blonde, slim and stylish. But it's her performances of Italian Baroque concertos that make her an artist worth listening to. Check out her Album of the Week and get a free download.

Arguably the world's best-known clarinetist, Richard Stoltzman tells Jeff Spurgeon about his early days with the freewheeling chamber group TASHI, his idols including Benny Goodman, and some of his favorite works for the clarinet.

My elementary school required that its students sing in the school choir or play an instrument. I chose trumpet. It was loud, shiny and, I thought, how difficult could it be?

Midge Woolsey asks: Did you play in a marching band? Do you still play today? And, what makes being in one so much fun anyway? And are they different than they were – say – 20 or 30 years ago?

"No one seems exactly sure who turned that phrase about the oboe, but it does seem to have happened long before my assault on the instrument," says our Naomi Lewin.

The clarinet may forever be the mellow, melancholic instrument of Mozart and Brahms ­but a new recording featuring soloist Jon Manasse shows why it's just as adept at strutting its jazzier side. It's our Album of the Week.