Oboe

Although this pearwood Baroque oboe by Jacob Denner (Nuremberg, Germany, ca. 1725) is fitted with three brass keys, the two side keys are actually duplicates that allow the player to choose whether or not to play the instrument right-handed or left-handed. Likewise, the longest key, called the great key (or swallow-tail key), has two touchpieces that enable the instrument to be played with either the right hand above the left, or vice versa. Jacob Denner, a member of a family of woodwind instrument makers, was one of the best known German makers of oboes during the Baroque.