This is a good article about John Minsker who played English horn and oboe with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski and Eugene Ormandy. He died just over a week ago, on August 5.

And isn’t this the way all oboe sections should operate:

Mr. Minsker wangled an introduction to Tabuteau and moved to Philadelphia in the early 1930s to be his assistant and whittle reeds for him.

Yes, indeed, let’s have that assistant make reeds. (Of course first Opera San José and Symphony Silicon Valley would have to create the position!)