I’ve got two completely unrelated whistle questions, but thought I might as well put them in the same thread… any answers appreciated!
- I’m wondering how exactly you would do a sort of downwards slide, if such a thing exists? I’m guessing it’s something to do with breath control but not sure. To explain what I mean, there’s one in this video at approximately 0:31:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVztCC37wlc
- Does anyone ever tape the holes on their whistles to get different scales/modes (instead of half-holing)? Or is this considered cheating?
Just wondering cause I saw a Spanish band on TV the other night, there was a guy playing something that looked very much like a bamboo-type low whistle and I noticed some of the holes had been taped over…
Thanks in advance!
Slides are done by sliding your finger onto or off of a hole. Breath control plays a role, but the fingers do the work. Grey Larsen’s book has an extremely detailed section on slides.
hey! this is my first post on this site. sure not to be my last though. here’s just a few thoughts.
the slide down is one of my favorite sounding ornaments but it’s very hard to make it fit in the right spot. it’s a very mood-sensitive sound. But it can be VERY effective. the technique that I use is slide the note in from the side (if that makes any sense=P) start covering the hole with the pad of your finger and cover the rest toward the tip. the motion looks like you’re wrapping your finger around the hole. I’ll try to find an example of this ornament played fast…hold on… here. it’s at about 2:51 and again at about 3:53. It’s annoying that the video doesn’t match the music but you can hear the ornament.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SamD72aEfUM
Hope that helps=)
Bless
I’ve never taped holes to alter a scale but have done my share of placing tape over part of a hole to correct sharp intonation.