<s>[INST] What is the hardest instrument to play? [/INST] Answering which instrument is hardest to play can be quite a complicated question, one that may have no objective answer. What first complicates the question is that different instruments have different "learning curves", such that some may be easy to make a sound, but difficult to become an expert at, while others are hard to get a sound out of, but easier to reach the highest levels of playing capability. Another complication is that the "highest levels of playing capability" are not set in stone, and musicians are constantly breaking barriers in what was thought to be possible on a particular instrument. 

With all of that aside, here are some instruments considered especially difficult and why:

- French Horn: The French horn stands out in the brass family for it's incredibly small mouthpiece that requires a more difficult than average embouchure in order to play. 
- Orchestral Strings: String instruments played with a bow can be fairly easy to become a novice, but to reach the sound quality of a professional can take a lifetime. This is due to both the lack of frets which makes pitch incredibly sensitive to finger position, and of the usage of a bow, which can be difficult to use properly without creating unwanted noise. 
- Double Reeds: The Oboe and Bassoon can be difficult to tame with their double reed designs that require an odd embouchure and stillness from the player </s>