Anglais, colors the painful situation.

The bassoon is the legitimate bass to the oboe and to the wood wind in
general. It was evolved in the sixteenth century from the pommers and
bombards: the tenors and basses of the shawm or oboe family. With the
older instruments, the reeds were not taken hold of immediately by the
lips, but were held in a kind of cup, called _pirouette_, which only
allowed a very small part of the reed to project. In the oboe and
bassoon the player has the full control of the reed with the lips,
which is of great importance, both in expression and intonation. The
bassoon economizes length, by being turned back upon itself, and, from
its appearance, obtains in Italy and Germany the satirical appellation
of "fagotto" or "fagott." It is made of wood, and has not, owing to
many difficulties as yet unsurmounted, undergone those changes of
construction that have partly transformed other wood wind instruments.
From this reason--and perhaps the necessity of a bassoon player
becoming intimately familiar with his instrument--bassoons by some of
the older makers--notably, Savory--are still sought after, in
preference to more modern ones. The instrument, although with
extraordinary advantages in tone, character, and adaptability, that
render it valuable to the composer, is yet complicated and capricious
for the performer; but its very imperfections remove it from the
mechanical tendencies of the age, often damaging to art; and, as the
player has to rely very much upon his ear for correct intonation, he
gets, in reality, near to the manipulation of the stringed
instruments. The bassoons play readily with the violoncellos, their
united tone being often advantageous for effect. When not so used, it
falls back into its natural relationship with the wood wind division
of the orchestra. The compass of the bassoon is from B flat, an octave
below that in the bass clef, to B flat in the treble clef, a range of
three octaves, produced by normal pressure, as far as the bass clef F.
The F below the bass clef is the true lowest note, the other seven
semitones descending to the B flat being obtained by holes and keys in
the long joint and bell. These extra notes are not overblown. The
fundamental notes are extended as in the oboes and flutes by
overflowing to another octave, and afterward to the twelfth. In modern
instruments yet higher notes, by the contrivance of small harmonic
holes and cross fingerings, can be secured