I was at the Celtic Classic this past weekend in Bethlehem PA. For any who don’t know of it but live in the area - next year, GO. =^.^= I’ve been attending for several years and it’s wonderful. Big. Lots of music. My favorite band played, Clandestine (plug!http://www.io.com/clandestine/unplug!) They do lovely traditional music, mostly Scottish. And have a cute whistle player. (Oops!)
Best of all, I got new toys! And now I want to boast about them. =^.~=
I bought a little Tony Dixon whistle that doubles as a flute with an interchangable mouthpiece. I have no clue how to play the flute, but I guess now’s a good time to learn. The whistle, first I’ve paid more than $10 for, is replacing my Oak as my favorite. Poor little Oak! This 'un’s notes are more reliable, even less air (I didn’t think it was possible!) to play, and it sounds so clear… pretty.
I also bought a Low D. Oooooh. I don’t know what sort, it’s unmarked. It plays fairly well, the rare note I get out properly, it’s a bear for me to play! I got the finger-wrapping down, but the pressure that puts on my thumbs is downright painful, am I doing something wrong? It seems to get condensation in it a lot easier than my smaller ones too, is this typical of lower whistles? A bit of toying and one song later and it was cloggy. If anyone has any advice for me, please respond! I’ve loved the sound of the lower whistles for a long time, I can barely wait 'til I can achieve those haunting melodies I’ve listened to for so long. Thankees in advance!
Coat the inside of the windway with Jet-Dry, it works better and lasts longer than anything I’ve tried.
I thread a narrow strip cut from a paper towel through the windway and then put a drop of Jet-Dry on it, then a little gentle “flossing” is all that is necessary to distribute it throughout the windway.
Don’t use anything that could scratch the surface of the windway!
It’s a little trickier to thread a strip of paper towel through a soprano whistle windway than it is through that of a low whistle, but it works wonders to eliminate condensation build-up on any whistle.
About the sore thumbs problem: I can speak to that, having bought a used Howard Low D about 3 weeks ago. I use the piper’s grip as well (don’t see how you could use anything else - the middle finger holes are about 1/2 inch in diameter!) and had sore thumbs at first. Still do, if I don’t catch myself and correct my technique. So I’ll speak to this from my lofty perspective as a low whistler with a whole 3 weeks of experience (not to mention my 2 - 3 months of total whistling experience). In other words, take this with a grain of salt, and any corrections are welcome.
The sore thumbs are coming from squeezing too hard. You’re squeezing too hard for 2 reasons: 1. You’re not used to holding a humongous whistle and are gripping it tightly so you won’t drop it, and 2. You’re squeezing to seal the holes better as you’re fingering.
As to the first item, experimenting will show you that you can keep from dropping the thing without bearing down on the thumbs. As you hold it, consciously relax the thumbs. Work at it to make it a habit.
As to the second item, I’ve found that you get the best seal of the holes by slapping them fairly hard with the fingers. This is a little different than with a high whistle; when I slap as hard on a high whistle, the whistle bounces all over the place. The mass of the low whistle tends to damp the bouncing. The slap should be done with the fingers fairly straight, and should come from the muscles in the hand that operate the joint between the hand and the fingers. This way, the thumbs aren’t used and don’t get tired. There is an additional benefit; in makes the notes pop out quickly; otherwise they sometimes come out pretty mushy. It also sounds great on rolls, in fact, my rolls sound better on my low whistle than on my high whistles. This is because when you slap your finger will bounce off of the hole if you let it, making a perfect tap.
I’ve found that one aid to sore thumbs is clipping on a thumbrest. Since putting them on my Kerry low D, it’s taken a lot of the weight off. I got used to them on my recorders and my Susato whistles, and find they really help… I know Thom at the Whistle Shop can get the snap-on thumbrests, or you could order them from Susato…