I wandered into House of Musical Traditions near my home in D.C. yesterday and, on impulse, picked up a Shaw Bb at a pretty good price … It had been sitting behind the counter for a while, and the good folks let me have it for the lower price on the faded old price tag.
After playing it for a while, I picked up my old Clarke Original D, sort of by way of comparison, and thought again how much I love this little cheap whistle.
And that got me wondering idly why the folks at Clarke, after all these many years in business, have never produced anything other than D and C whistles, like a Bb, say. Anyone know?
BTW: HMT also had a brass Copeland in A behind the counter, if anyone’s in the market. I got a chance to play it, but the price ($350, I think) was too much for me.
I hope you get a good answer to this, as I’ve wondered that myself many times. I’d always assumed it was that Clarke is steeped in tradition and possibly that they don’t see enough business with other competitors. But I hope there’s a more interesting explanation than that.
So, Clarke’s have made whistles in various keys. I recall only seeing Clarke’s C whistles when I was young. Maybe I travelled with the wrong crowd - folkies. I guess the world market dictates what they produce. Kids these days seem to prefer playing iPods to tinwhistles. There of course have been rumors in recent years that a Clarke’s low D was coming to market but that has yet to materialize and I doubt it will ever come about given the current economy worldwide.
HMT also had two other Copeland whistles listed on eBay a week ago. Those are “Clarkes Perfected” whistles IMO. Fine whistles!
I think that’s right. For many years the Clarke line seems to have contracted to just the C whistle, IIRC. Including through the Irish folk revival of the 70s, when a D whistle would have put them more in the running. So who knows what was behind that.
John, it’s nice to see you’re continuing your whistle adventure. It’s funny where a chance encounter like yours with a “poisonous” souvenir whistle may lead. I guess HMT is an institution nowadays. I visited them when they were still located in Berkeley Springs, WV, and felt like the proverbial kid in a candy store.
Thanks for the link and the interesting info, guys. Maybe I’ll start a letter-writing campaign to get the Clarke folks to add to their line …
And yep, HMT is an institution. They’ve been open a year in their new digs in Takoma Park, Md., and having a sale to celebrate, I believe. Well worth a visit …
I emailed the folks at Clarke to ask whether they would ever consider making other keys.
Here’s the reply from Norman Dannatt at Clarke:
Dear John,
Thank you for your email.
We occasionally get the same question put to us. Tinwhistle enthusiasts would like to have our instruments in other, especially lower, keys. Like you they enjoy the tonal qualities of our Cs and Ds. Lower Clarkes would be highly desirable.
We do have a few very old low Clarkes made in a heavier grade of metal but they are only museum pieces. They are in the Victorian concert pitch. Unfortunately Robert Clarke and his successors left no written specifications or factory equipment - in fact Robert Clarke himself could not read or write. When the present management of the Company took over from the last member of the Clarke Family, there was only the basic equipmnent for C Tinwhistles. If Robert had the mandrels for making the larger Tinwhistles, they were never found. Mandrels for continual manufacture have to be made of a very strong steel that can stand the continual rolling of the tinplate. I suppose it may have been possible that Robert made mandrels out of wood and just made a few of the larger whistles, as a sort of jeu d’esprit.
Since we took over the Company we have done the R. & D. for the D whistle which continues to be very popular. And now the factory is fully occupied in supplying the demand for our Cs and Ds. Much as we would like to make those larger Tinwhistles, I’m afraid it must remain a dream, possibly for the future. If only it were as easy to make as the cylindrical low whistles that other compoanies make. They don’t need mandrels.
