Well ive been playing the oboe for a year now and i've been noticing that my middle C comes out very wierd so i've been using a different fingering that most people dont use. i use half- hole 23for left hand and i use 123 and the c key for my right hand. that comes out but its seems airy. please help because i dont know what i am doing wrong.

Has your instrument been into the shop recently? I would suspect that something is wrong with the instrument. The first thing I always do with a new oboe student is try their instrument, and you'd be surprised at some of the problems I've found with them. Having said that, the middle C is a funky note on any oboe. It's more nasal than the other notes, and it's rarely in tune without a change in the embouchure (the way your lips and mouth form around your reed). Whatever you do, don't get in the habit of using a different fingering. If it's not working properly, you need to get it fixed. If it's just sounding horribly nasal, play it a little more quietly until you get the embouchure control to make it sound better. Check out your reed too--sometimes a good reed can make all the difference. Good luck!

thanks and can you tell me what types of reeds would work best for a 1 year player.
From the best of my knowledge the oboe from my school was new. The parts were also in plastic, covered.

I started out on a hard reed that was in the case when i got it from my school. but i couldnt get my low notes out so i switched to a Lauren reed and that didnt help at all. so i have been using a gower reed.

From my experience Jones reeds usually work pretty well, probably medium soft or medium for a beginner. They're least expensive on www.advantage-usa.com. I also had good results with Allan Concert reeds. If you can afford it, get handmade reeds right from the beginning. www.mmimports.com is a good place, along with www.charlesmusic.com and www.forrestsmusic.com. The best thing you could do is get a private teacher.

Just because your oboe was brand new doesn't mean it isn't leaking. Oboes are notorious for going out of adjustment quickly and easily...and usually at the most inconvenient times . You should probably get it checked out to make sure. It could be something as simple as a slight turn of an adjustment screw. If it belongs to your school, they should be responsible for any repairs.

Regarding the original question about the fingering for the "middle C"-- I believe we have a terminology problem. On the oboe, "middle C" is not the same thing as it is on a piano. Yes, it's in the middle of the oboe's range, but the "2 finger C" would be a safer description. Middle C means something else to most musicians!!

So the correct fingering to use for a "2 finger C" is the 1st finger of each hand!! Using the low C fingering with the half-hole key is NEVER the right thing to do to play a C on the 3rd space of the treble clef!! Then you will have to work on your embouchure and centering your airstream to make that C somewhat match the notes around it.

Here is a pretty good fingering chart for reference:
http://www.mayfieldhsband.org/educational/fingering_oboe.pdf

Good luck!!

If you dare to adjust the oboe by yourself:

http://www.oboehouse.com/images/OboeAdjustmentGuidebySeaton.pdf

could possible of help for you.