development of the oboe's valves

It was not until the second half of the 20th century that the oboe began to attract increasing attention and gain in significance, although its use in the orchestra had begun much earlier. Between 1914 and 1981, apart from entries in encyclopaedias, there were very few German-language books dealing specifically with this instrument. For several centuries, the oboe was generally confined to its role in the orchestra and it was only under contemporary composers that it gained increasing recognition and came to be used more extensively as a solo instrument. 'It was not until the construction of musical instruments had been further perfected, however, that they attained their full significance for the art of music; this development has kept pace with the evolution of music itself and its changing requirements right up to the present day. In the course of my work, I wish above all to examine in more detail the development of the oboe's key mechanism, particularly its early stages. I have by no means set out to write a history of the oboe's development, but rather to gain a better understanding of the instrument's evolution from a different perspective.