What modern Europe did to the oboe is pretty much what it did to pugs and french bulldogs.

Took a strong heterogenous instrument that is happy outside going for long walks (shawms) and standardised into something insipid that can't keep up.

@catch56 I hadn’t heard of the shawm, and this sent me down a good rabbit hole—thanks!
@NoahStAmand if you want to go a bit further down the rabbit hole there are some nice Suona (called Musette in the liner notes, it's a Chinese shawm) bits on Keith Jarrett's Fort Yawuh (mostly from Dewey Redman).
@catch56 Excellent, I’ll check it out. Thanks again!