Recently I bought a Goldie Low D, a lovely instrument but, I´m having a small problem with it: I find very demanding (in air pressure terms) to sustain a clear high B, and I have real problems doing it with a high C#, I feel I need more air pressure, otherwise the tone starts to go down and crack.
I don´t know if this is a problem of lack of practice with the instrument (also I was used to the minimum air requeriments of a Low Dixon)or maybe a characteristic of the Goldie whistles or my particular one.
Anyway, if anyone could throw a bit of light upon it that would be great
How recently did you get it, how often have you played it, and have you played other low d whistles? Overtons require getting used to and some warming up generally. You need to get comfortable with it (e.g., supporting breathe from the diaphragm)and then should be able to lean into it somewhat. If you’re not used to Overtons, you may at first get some awful sounds when switching octaves. This could be compounded if you’re also just getting used to the low whistle generally. Good luck. Philo
I agree entirely with PhilO, which I always seem to do each and everytime he opens his mouth, figuratively speaking.
When I first got mine, I was blown away by the great bottom end but worried about the high end. Overtime, you adjust and the results are pretty rewarding. Although, I do admit, that if I had to find a single fault in the instrument it is that the high end, even when you learn to blow it, sounds a bit strained and tense. So it goes.
I can speak to this a little, since I just got my CG Overton low D a few weeks ago, having played a Dixon for some time. The breath requirements are VERY different. It doesn’t take long to train yourself to “lean into it” cleanly. I have learned to love the sound of the Goldie at the top of its register. You have to plan breaths a little more carefully than with the Dixon, to make sure you have enough puff to get through a phrase, but the forced “jazz sax” sound can be very expressive. It complements nicely the wonderful low range.
One thing, though. Make sure that you’re not fighting clogging. There have been lots of threads on this topic, with very effective solutions.
Ian
I had precisely the same experience with an Overton (Goldie) Hi D. I fooled around with it for a few days and was about to send it to Colin to “fix” it. I own a lot of whistles and have never had trouble playing so I KNEW it wasn’t me.
Then one day I decided that you don’t get as famous and sought after as Mr. Goldie if you make lousy whistles so maybe it WAS me. I did the soap treatment. Warmed up the whistle and really layed into it.
A funny thing happened. I could almost hear the whistle say “well if you’re done playing like a sissy I guess I’ll make some music for you”…and what music!
Hang in there. They are magnificent instruments but they do take some getting used to. The high back pressure is the very thing that permits such enormous sound and overtones.