Just discovered I can’t suck on an Altoid and whistle at the same time!
Oh Anna!
Shewt, I’m just a beginner and I coulda told you THAT!
T
I people who chrew gum while playing the whistle…not that it helps your situation 
[ This Message was edited by: lktz on 2001-08-31 16:50 ]
And that’s what they sound like 
On 2001-08-31 15:31, LKtz wrote:
I people who chrew gun a whistle…
:roll:
See, that’s what happens when you type with your mouth full.
- -Rich
You need to try a version of breathing used by Highland pipers but with a slight variation. It would be the modified circular breathing technique. You simply breathe…suck…and blow all at the same time! People have often mistaken my playing for just such methods!!
All seriousness aside, can you
(or anyone )do circular breathing while playing the whistle? I have tried and it wont work for me
Nick
Actually, I don’t see how it could possibly, successfully work on the whistle. With the Highland Pipes you’re blowing into the bag and then regulating the air pressure going through the chanter with your arm. With the whistle, you’re regulating all the pressure directly with your mouth. The least little bit of fluctuation could easily be heard.
I have heard a tune played on a set of Indian whistle-thingies (for lack of the real names). One person plays on a higher instrument while a second plays a lower drone instrument using circular breathing the entire tune.
I almost got it to work at one time on the recorder. I would gradually collect extra air in my mouth while playing, then breathe in through my nose while using the air in my mouth to sustain the instrument. It wasn’t a smooth transition at all though. Maybe if you could time it with a note change it wouldn’t be detected?
Circular breathing /should/ work; after all, it works on the saxophone, which has the same mouth-controlled problem (but maybe less of one?). That said, beats me how you do it!
- -Rich
Is that why pipers have such huge, barrel chests?
I think the reason why circular breathing is so difficult on a whistle as opposed to a sax (I used to be able to do it on a sax as well) is that there is no real back pressure to a whistle. Instuments like didjeridoo or reed instruments have a resistance to the airflow you are putting into the instrument that allows the player to build up the reserve air and allows a certain degree of “flexibility” in airflow that isn’t percieved in the tone. On a whistle, as mentioned earlier any variance in airpressure affects the tone. I hope that is relatively clear as mud, been a looong day at work and I’m probably delirious with boredom.
Have a good weekend all, be back on Tuesday.
Mark V.
Mark’s right. Circular breathing will not work on a whistle (or a flute, for that matter) because the technique requires back pressure.
I can do it on brass instruments, didge (which is sort of an orphan member of the brass family), and I’ve seen it done on Sax and clarinet.
It actually does work on exactly the same principle as a bagpipe, except your cheeks form the bag. What you do is puff up your cheeks while blowing into the instrument. Then, you puff the stored air out of your cheeks while taking a quick breath in through your nose. The easiest way to learn is with a straw in a glass of water–when you can keep those bubbles going non-stop, you’re got it.
The trouble with a whistle is that there’s no way to tighten your embouchure (a fancy way of saying your chops) to produce back pressure. In other words, blowing a whistle hard enough to puff out your cheeks would produce a sound that would probably get you arrested. It’s still a cool thought, though, and you’ve all got me thinking now. Where there’s a will…
Tom
Often hear that Overton’s give back pressure. Wonder if you can use those for Circular breathing?
BTW I am receiving my first Overton whistles this week! Hurray!
Circular breathing is indeed possible on whistles.
Tom and Mark are both correct that the standard technique used for pipes, trumpet, etc. won’t work without a good bit of backpressure. This means no go on most whistles, although I think someone very skilled in the technique could probably pull it off with your “Hard blowing” Overtons.
Anyway, Shakuhachi players have developed a different method of circular breathing that works without back presssue (and therefor would work with whistles). I won’t try to describe it here (and no, I certainly can’t do it), but you could read a little about it in a book called “Blowing Zen” by Ray Brooks. He’s a highly accomplished Shakuhachi player that has studied with many of the top Japanese masters. I highly recommend the book as a very entertaining read anyway, it can be purchased through amazon.
Loren
Hi everyone,
I just managed a fairly seamless ‘you take the high road’(not sure if this is the correct name but it sure aint Scotland the brave as I said before this edit!) on my Kerry low pro F using circular breathing.Anyone who has played didgeridoo should be able to do it and 6/8 rhythm helps with the breath cycle. Mike
[ This Message was edited by: mike.r on 2001-09-02 10:23 ]
[quote]
On 2001-09-01 16:35, WyoBadger wrote:
Mark’s right. Circular breathing will not work on a whistle (or a flute, for that matter) because the technique requires back pressure.
It works but takes a lot of practice. I do it on both the whistle and flute. Not simultaneously of course.
Tots
Mike,
Interesting. The Kerry Low Pro should have an “Overton like” back pressure, does yours?
Tots,
Okay, so you’re able to do it on flutes and whistles, cool. Now I’m curious: when you say “It takes a lot of practice”, do you mean you already had the ability to do circular breathing on sax, but had to practice quite a bit more to accomplish the same thing on flute and whistle? If so, would you say you’ve had to develop a somewhat different technique, or just get much stronger with the skill you already had?
Loren
Loren,
Yes,my Kerry is almost identical to my friends Overton but I dont think this circular breathing thing is really gonna take off…sure am glad they dont put holes in didgeridoos!:)Mike
Loren,
I’ve used circular breathing on the sax for around 20 yrs. now. The technique is the same for any wind instrument. The trick is getting the embouchure and resistance for each instrument. The whistle has no resistance at all, so you have to sort of create the resistance with the embouchure.I find too that the technique lends itself more to the first octave than the second, as opposed to the flute which works in all registers. The technique is universal but the treatment to each instrument can vary greatly. Hope this answers your questions.
Tots