Michael Copeland REview

By Dale Wisely

In May 1997, after about three years collecting and playing inexpensive whistles (I have about 30, I guess), I purchased a Michael Copeland D whistle in nickel. Before I bought a high-quality whistle, I really had only the vaguest idea of how an expensive whistle would really be different from a cheaper one. Thus, this commentary/review.

The Copeland whistle would be instantly recognizable by even an uninformed person as qualitatively different from even the best of the cheaper whistles. It is heavier, denser, and clearly made of better material. The nickel/silver alloy of which my Copeland is made looks like silver and feels like silver. The shaft is conical, but unlike inexpensive conicals, there is no seam. The fingerholes feel very different, the edges are carefully smoothed and rounded so one's fingers just fall right into place...and slide on and off with ease. The tuning side is created by making the mouthpiece fit inside the shaft, and this section of the shaft is thicker to accommodate this arrangement. Now, according to my electronic tuner, the accurate D bell tone is made when you pull out the mouthpiece about a 1/4" or so. The slide is so well made, however, that the danger of accidentally moving the slide while playing seems low. And, of course, making the accurate tuning in the middle of the slide makes it possible to both sharpen and flatten the tone. Most cheap whistles are arranged so one can flatten the pitch but not sharpen it.

The most obvious difference in this fine whistle and the inexpensive models, however, is in the design of the mouthpiece. The part that rests on one's lower lip is curved (as opposed to merely beveled) and, instead of the traditional wooden block, it is fitted with a smooth, dense black plastic piece that fits perfectly. The airway is very thin and arched. Ironically, this handmade instrument, in some sense, seems much more carefully engineered and machine-made than the ones that are machine-made.

The tone is pure and clear and it is downright difficult to make the whistle squeak. You really have to lean into it a bit to jump up to the higher octave, but when you do, it just pops up there perfectly. There's no raspy transition or squeakiness involved at all. The tone is lovely, the volume is solid and louder than most cheap whistles.

A Copeland D sells for about $200. So, from that perspective, it is clearly not for beginners. The obvious advice, then, which I express elsewhere in this site, is that a beginning whistle player has no business buying an expensive whistle. But, here is where the real irony rests. This expensive whistle is much easier to play and to play well, than a cheaper whistle. My three children are always picking up whistles that I have around the house and fooling around with playing them. I've allowed them to try out my Copeland (under threat of death, etc.) and all have been astounded at how quickly they can produce clear notes. Their fingers fill the holes better. The breath control is easier to manage. I'm still not ready to recommend Copelands to beginners, but I'm ready to recommend them to intermediate-level players.

--Dale Wisely 6/3/97 rev. 2/99.