# Rimski Korsakov Flight of the Bumble Bee by Teresa Tsai.. on a \*\*\*ing BASSOON! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 15, 2012, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575 "2012-01-15T05:24:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/1 "2012-01-15T05:24:27Z")
[Step back bitches, she’s got this!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZXippwOh8Q&feature=related) ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/2 "2012-01-15T05:42:54Z")
I played the bassoon one year in middle school - I started with the saxophone, but since there were lots of other saxophones but no bassoon in our “wind ensemble” (which also included electric basses), I figured I’d give the obscure instrument a shot. I was never as good with it as I was with the saxophone (which I continued to play all the way to the end of high school, and in a garage band after that), but I did learn some things about the bassoon. Although the bassoon is big, it is in no way a sluggish instrument like many other large instruments are. The keywork on it is very precise and responsive; it’s arguably just as capable in a solo capacity as a clarinet or flute. I got good enough at it to play a Mozart piece at the regional solo cometition and earn a second place medal. There are a lot of skilled bassoon players who can really rock the thing, and a number of jazz musicians utilized it - saxophonist Illinois Jacquet was one of them. I first listened to [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjdrBrAA49k) rendition of the Monk’s “Round Midnight” back in middle school, and it’s still one of my favorite re-workings of a jazz standard. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/3 "2012-01-15T06:06:45Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I played the bassoon one year in middle school - I started with the saxophone, but since there were lots of other saxophones but no bassoon in our “wind ensemble” (which also included electric basses), I figured I’d give the obscure instrument a shot. > > I was never as good with it as I was with the saxophone (which I continued to play all the way to the end of high school, and in a garage band after that), but I did learn some things about the bassoon. Although the bassoon is big, it is in no way a sluggish instrument like many other large instruments are. The keywork on it is very precise and responsive; it’s arguably just as capable in a solo capacity as a clarinet or flute. I got good enough at it to play a Mozart piece at the regional solo cometition and earn a second place medal. > > There are a lot of skilled bassoon players who can really rock the thing, and a number of jazz musicians utilized it - saxophonist Illinois Jacquet was one of them. I first listened to [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjdrBrAA49k) rendition of the Monk’s “Round Midnight” back in middle school, and it’s still one of my favorite re-workings of a jazz standard. I was in Prague listneing to some street musicians. It was a quartet; bassoon, violin, and I can’t remember who else. It was very casual, they were sitting on milk crates or something. They finish one song and then the violinist pulls out a cymbal on a little stand and starts tapping our a very familiar rhythm. Then the bassoonist plays the _Pink Panther Theme_. Fucking awesome. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/4 "2012-01-15T06:51:13Z")
Wow, that that kid has good breath control to finish that piece in just a couple inhales. You can hear her huffing I think 3 times. I don’t know if this is amazing, but I can’t help but think there’s some stamina involved. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/5 "2012-01-15T06:52:00Z")
A few years ago onn Chicago’s classical station, they played several versions of that piece consecutively for Rimsky Korsakov’s birthday. I don’t remember if a bassoon version was included. ---
**Author:** ![Kolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e56c9b/32.png) [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/6 "2012-01-15T07:13:17Z")
Whoa. I played that piece on the piano for my senior recital, and it almost killed me. I can’t imagine playing it on a wind instrument. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/7 "2012-01-15T10:59:02Z")
[Tuba](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-NVMsj6lXA). :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/8 "2012-01-15T12:45:04Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > [Tuba](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-NVMsj6lXA). :eek: I like the one comment, “That’s one fat bee.” Ayup. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rimski-korsakov-flight-of-the-bumble-bee-by-teresa-tsai-on-a-ing-bassoon/609575/9 "2012-01-15T13:11:46Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > I like the one comment, “That’s one fat bee.” Ayup. The comments can be the best part about youtube when you are checking out non-mainstream music =) I bet that guy could be a killer freediver!