Final answer:
The oboe was not the most featured instrument in the Baroque concerto; that distinction usually went to string and keyboard instruments. Improvements in instrument mechanics in the 19th century allowed wind instruments like the oboe to play more integral roles in compositions.
Step-by-step explanation:
While the oboe is a distinctive and important instrument in the orchestral repertoire, the statement that it was the most featured instrument in the Baroque concerto is generally false. During the Baroque period, strings and keyboard instruments were more central to the concerto genre. Instruments like the violin and the harpsichord often had more prominent roles. However, wind instruments, including the oboe, gained more importance and featured roles with the development of instrument mechanics during the Industrial Revolution and were often added for color in the Baroque period.
Playing the oboe does involve forcing air through a tiny opening between two small wooden reeds, which can be challenging. Throughout the nineteenth century, improvements in mechanical valves and keys made wind instruments, such as the oboe, easier to play and capable of a bigger, better-tuned sound. This led to a greater presence of wind instruments with more challenging parts in the orchestra, especially in the Romantic period that followed the Baroque and Classical eras.