contrabassoon

American  

[kon-truh-ba-soon, -buh-] / ˈkɒn trə bæˈsun, -bə- /

noun

1. a bassoon larger in size and an octave lower in pitch than the ordinary bassoon; a double bassoon.

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contrabassoon British  

/ ˌkɒntrəbəˈsuːn /

noun

1. the largest instrument in the oboe family, pitched an octave below the bassoon; double bassoon

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Other Word Forms

• contrabassoonist noun

Etymology

Origin of contrabassoon

First recorded in 1890–95; contra- ² ( def. ) + bassoon

Example Sentences

John Goodman, left, and Christopher Lloyd as Lou, Mark’s contrabassoon teacher, in Season 4.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2025

The second movement features boisterous, fast moving lines for contrabassoon.

From New York Times • Jan. 5, 2023

The track opens with a contrabassoon playing the lowest note in the orchestra and swooping upward.

From New York Times • Apr. 19, 2022

The deep-sea contrabass clarinet and contrabassoon that Salonen love contribute a strange bottom to the orchestral sound.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2018

Contra — Means lower: for example a contrabassoon sounds lower than a regular bassoon43 , and a contrabass clarinet is even lower than a bass clarinet.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones