About Us

Matthew Petrie, Bassoonist & Owner of Crook and Staple

Crook and Staple is a leading retailer of double reed instruments and accessories. Our founder, professional bassoonist Matthew Petrie, plays with major orchestras including Co-Principal Bassoon in the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra of London, guest principal seat with Filarmonica Oltenia (Romania), Welsh Session Orchestra, Bristol Ensemble, The National Symphony Orchestra, Southern Sinfonia, Welsh Camerata, British Sinfonietta, studio recording with Sony Music, Centaur Records USA, and many others. Matthew is also the proud owner of a Mollenhauer contrabassoon, with which he regularly performs, including performances of the Schoenberg Chamber Symphony.

Matthew Petrie performing Elgar's Romance for Bassoon & Orchestra with the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra of London

In addition to Matthew, our team includes highly knowledgeable and experienced double reed specialists, such as Eliza. Eliza is an accomplished musician who plays professionally on tours, musicals, and with the army reserve. All of our team are highly knowledgeable about double reed instruments and accessories and are always more than happy to help.

We introduced a Live Chat service on our website to provide rapid support and advice to customers around the world. This service has proven very successful, helping us to establish ourselves as one of the most knowledgeable and comprehensive support services in the world. We have received over 2,100 five-star reviews and have despatched towards 40,000 orders.

In addition to our prompt and helpful service, we offer a range of high-quality products and highly specialized double reed advice. Our website has a free resource section, including guides on oboe and bassoon reed adjustment, including a highly regarded oboe reed adjusting guide & bassoon reed adjusting guide. If there is a guide you would like to be written please get in touch with us!

Eliza manning the stool at the BIG Double Reed Day 2017

We look forward to helping every double reed player, whether you just need some friendly informed advice or need a double reed accessory delivering quickly to your door!

We have been featured on the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama's blog - have a read here!

BIG Double Reed Day 2016 - Crook and Staple Stand

Welsh Government Young Entrepreneur Award 2012

Crook and Staple has been recognized for its business excellence. In 2012, we were awarded a Welsh Government Young Entrepreneur Award. This prestigious award was presented by the Welsh Assembly Government, the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, and the University of Glamorgan Centre for Enterprise. The award has enabled us to establish unique and powerful partnership opportunities, and has helped us to become one of the most successful businesses of its kind in Europe.

The image on left: Crook and Staple attending the BIG Double Reed Day at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London

Ok product, useless service

Reed making kit was ok, though they only supplied 5m of wire instead of the advertised 10m. Emailed them and got no response. I now have another order outstanding and overdue and they never answer the phone so i have no way of contacting them to find out what’s happening.

Lightweight and compact

Excellent contrabassoon stand! Really lightweight and compact. The instructions don't make sense, but it's pretty obvious how it all fits together. The stand now lives in the pocket of my gig bag. Sent very promptly by Crook and Staple.

Marsden Bassoon Reeds

Surprisingly Free and easy to play, and very stable! Definitely will order again.

Great pencil

Great pencil, so handy having it magnetic so it's easy to find during rehearsals.

Cork Grease Stick

0 stars is more accurate

This bassoon case arrived after a longer wait than what was expected, per the website and order confirmation email. Within a week of use the strap broke. Ridiculous. Add to that the fact that I have emailed the company detailing the situation including photos of the broken strap and have not been contacted other then to say that it could be a week to 10 days or something ridiculous until I get a response. That time has since passed. Completely disgusted with this useless product!!! Don’t be duped like I was. Shop somewhere else.

Very good

Very good quality and have lasted a while

Good but

Although the reed is just perfect, I would have thought the shipping would have been with a sort of holder to protect it, like for clarinet for exemple. But I am new to oboe, so I wont complain any further.

3-stars…it ain’t bad! (but it is big…)

I recently purchased the 6-bassoon/3-contrabassoon wooden reed case from Crook and Staple, and I have mixed feelings about it. First off, the case is a bit larger than I expected, but fortunately, it fits into my Pro-Tec Bassoon Case "ok" above the boot joint on the inner lid-protected storage.

One of the things I really love about this case is the ample room it provides for each reed. It’s great to have dedicated space for my reeds, ensuring they stay secure and protected. However, I did have to re-glue two of the bracing ends that hold down the contrabassoon and bassoon reed holder rods, which was a bit disappointing.

Overall, I’m happy with my purchase and would suggest it to other bassoonists. Just keep in mind that this reed case is larger than expected, so plan accordingly. Also, be aware that it doesn't have a latch; it closes with magnets, which means it could fall open if left loose in a bag.

In summary, I’m giving it 3 out of 5 stars, but I would still recommend it to fellow bassoonists!

Brass staple

I will get back to you after our rehearsal....should be interesting... hopefully with this reed i will be heard over the bagpiper whos playing ....beautifully made reed...

Welsh Government Young Entrepreneur Award 2012

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Welsh Government Young Entrepreneur Award 2012

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