As time passed, musicians desired an instrument with a wider range and more control over pitches. During the middle of the 17th century, the first baroque oboe (called hautbois, meaning high-wood) was created in France, where it was used to entertain the French court. Made of boxwood with several holes but only two or three keys, it gained immediate popularity in many countries. During this time, the oboe da caccia (hunting oboe) was also created. This instrument had a curved body and was used in many of Bach's cantatas and masses. The classical period brought on several more changes to the oboe—a narrower body (called the bore) and more keys, giving the instrument a much wider range. From these earlier forms came the modern oboe, which has a range of more than two and a half octaves in the treble range.  The oboe is slightly lower in pitch than the flute and can be thought to occupy the alto register in the woodwind section of the orchestra.

Some well-known oboe players in the 19^th and 20^th centuries include Felix-Charles Berthelemy, Ralph Gomberg, Leon Goosens, Haakon Stotjin, Eugene Izotov, John Mack, and Alex Klein.