# Is there a musical instrument you can't stand? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 26, 2002, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006 "2002-06-26T08:18:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/1 "2002-06-26T08:18:06Z")
After some thought, I must say, NO. Even the Bag Pipes sound good to me, in the right context. I love the sax, more than anything. It can be played in any type of music. I’ve even heard the French Horn in some acid rock songs. So, I have to say, there is no instrument that I can’t stand, no matter what. What say YOU? ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/2 "2002-06-26T08:19:32Z")
Pan pipes. ---
**Author:** ![Caught\_Work](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/919ad9/32.png) [@Caught\_Work](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caught_Work)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/3 "2002-06-26T11:17:17Z")
Piano Accordian, without doubt, even when played well. ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/4 "2002-06-26T11:25:06Z")
I HATE bagpipes. Slaughtering pigs produces a far more melodic sound. ---
**Author:** ![MrO](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/50afbb/32.png) [@MrO](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrO)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/5 "2002-06-26T11:59:23Z")
It would be hard to find piccolo music that I like. I do like flute, especially alto and bass flute. Generally speaking, I like lower pitched instruments better than shrill ones. They have their place, of course, but I tune in better to the bass. And why is everyone dissing bagpipes? I don’t listen to a lot of bagpipe music, but I like it. I do suspect that some instruments sound worse when played by an unskilled player than others, and the bagpipe may be in that category. (I had a friend who tried to learn, and I was privileged to hear his early efforts. Oh My God.) For example, after practicing for a couple of weeks, most anyone can strum a few simple chords on a guitar and sound pleasant enough. Not that it’s easy to master, but it’s pretty easy to get started. Maybe the pipes are just harder to get going on. ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/6 "2002-06-26T12:51:36Z")
Call me odd, but I cannot stand the violin section of the orchestra. For some reason, when I am listening to a live performance (right there in the concert hall, not over the radio), the section sounds slightly out of tune, just enough to set my teeth on edge. Doesn’t happen with recorded music or a live performance over the radio. ---
**Author:** ![FisherQueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/58f4c7/32.png) [@FisherQueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FisherQueen)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/7 "2002-06-26T12:57:55Z")
Unless played spectacularly well, the oboe sounds like someone strangling a cat with a duck. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/8 "2002-06-26T13:17:48Z")
There was a piano at this one church that I used to attend that I kinda resented. ---
**Author:** ![Kegg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Kegg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kegg)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/9 "2002-06-26T14:09:12Z")
I think I’m being picked on, I play accordion, piccolo, bag pipes and oboe !!! ---
**Author:** ![Kegg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Kegg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kegg)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/10 "2002-06-26T14:18:31Z")
I think I’m being picked on, I play accordion, piccolo, bag pipes and oboe !!! (but not in that order) ---
**Author:** ![Simetra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Simetra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simetra)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/11 "2002-06-26T14:44:01Z")
I really don’t like the sax. I don’t much like any reeded instrument, but the sax, and especially the tenor sax, just irritates the hell out of me. As far as what I like the sound of? In order of preference: Cello, French Horn, Classical Guitar, and Piano. ---
**Author:** ![Skelji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Skelji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skelji)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/12 "2002-06-26T14:50:52Z")
Pan flute. Can’t stand the pan flute. Zafir, you creep me out. Go away. Bagpipes are borderline for me. It’s not that I dislike the sound (well, I do, sort of), but most of the time when I heard bagpipes as a kid, it was for the funeral of a cop or fireman. Depressing. ---
**Author:** ![OldBroad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ed655f/32.png) [@OldBroad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldBroad)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/13 "2002-06-26T15:02:51Z")
Not an instrument, but its application: I can’t stand jazz violin. ---
**Author:** ![partly\_warmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bc8723/32.png) [@partly\_warmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/partly_warmer)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/14 "2002-06-26T15:26:27Z")
Modern violins, with their steel strings, used to cause me minor physical pain as a boy. (Not so for older gut string types.) I had to put my fingers in my ears at one concert when a soprano sang because it caused considerable pain. I can take about five minutes of solo piccolo or flute, live, for me to find something else to do. Some organ music, depending on what stops are chosen, can be very unmusical to me. ---
**Author:** ![EchoKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@EchoKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EchoKitty)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/15 "2002-06-26T15:57:50Z")
I hate accordion, most organ, and I’m not nuts about the pan flute, either. Bag pipes can blow me. ---
**Author:** ![Jenner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ac8455/32.png) [@Jenner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenner)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/16 "2002-06-26T18:51:09Z")
I Love bag pipes. I don’t particularly care for most brass instruments, especially the trumpet and saxophone (yeah, I know it’s technically a woodwind). I’m not sure I like the sound of solo string instruments, with the exception of the cello. I like string ensembles better. ---
**Author:** ![JessEnigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/cdc98d/32.png) [@JessEnigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JessEnigma)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/17 "2002-06-26T20:30:10Z")
At the moment, I’m really not too fond of the tenor saxophone. The only people I know who can play it aren’t all that fantastic. They sound like dying geese. Loud dying geese. It probably sounds wonderful if played well, but I’ve never heard it. Generally speaking, I’m not too fond of flutes, piccolos, or trumpets. The sound, even from a really good player, usually just grates on my ears (especially with the piccolo). I love trombone, french horn, and clarinet, though. jessica ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/18 "2002-06-26T20:57:46Z")
Harpsichord. Hate it. ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/19 "2002-06-26T23:12:50Z")
Piano accordion is borderline for me. Sometimes it’s acceptable, but usually it comes second to jabbing a pencil in my ears. The instrument I can’t stand is one I also can’t name. When Sting first went solo and ‘jazzy’, Branford Marsalis played various kinds of sax and clarinetty-type things. I think sme of the time he may have been playing a ‘soprano sax’ or some special sort of clarinet. Anyway, whatever he’s playing, I can’t stand that instrument or that style. It’s like having someone paid to whine and whinge at random all through the track. If ever there’s a contest to produce a sound close to a baby trying to say it’s hungry, Marsalis will win hands down. ---
**Author:** ![Minor\_Irritant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Minor\_Irritant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Minor_Irritant)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2002, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006/20 "2002-06-26T23:38:37Z")
The recorder. They made us play those satanic plastic flutes in Grade 7-8 music class. I can still remember their horrific screeching, like Fran Drescher singing opera. Even the more musical students (of which I was not one) couldn’t produce anything approximating music from the recorder’s saliva-encrusted maw. To this day, I’d rather blow through the dried-out colon of a syphillitic monkey before playing that musical crackpipe again. And what the hell does it record, anyway? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-musical-instrument-you-cant-stand/116006.md?page=2)