If this has been discussed before, I couldn’t find it on the forum. I’ve just started playing the tin whistle and have a Mellow Dog in D tweaked by Jerry Freeman.
I play the piano but will soon be traveling a lot for extended periods and wanted to have an instrument that I could take with me. The whistle is perfect. I love the music and it’s so portable.
Everything has been going along well EXCEPT for the low d (and very occasionally, the low e) on the whistle. It’s very hard to sound the low d and not a high d – even when I blow very lightly. Sometimes I’ll be able to play the low d for a few minutes then for some unknown reason (I think I’m blowing in the exactly the same way) back comes the high d. Going from A to D is impossible. I’m not sure why there’s another hand position for the high d since it’s so easy to play the high d instead of the low d.
Also, C natural, C sharp, high d, and high e sound shrill, abrasive and out of tune.
I’m getting so frustrated! Is it the whistle, me or both? I’d be so grateful for any advise.
Double-check your fingering? Trying things out just now, I find that if I roll the whistle a bit, so that my right-hand fingers are just a smidgen off the holes – so little I can’t find a way to see it – a nice solid low bell-tone D will break up an octave, and the tone gets really nasty.
Hi and welcome to the whistle forum. As a newbie myself, I would suggest just giving you and the whistle practice time and see if anything improves. I didn’t want the problem to be me, so I blamed the whistle for everything. Months later now, I’ve accepted the fact that it was me and not the whistle. So practice and keep it fun, afterall, its a whistle.
I only started playing last week and have found a similar issue myself I find I need to relax my fingers so they fall where they want to rather than me forcing them where I want them to be helps.
Yep, it could be finger placement. More likely (or maybe also) just breath control. You’re probably blowing too hard, even if you think you’re not. The low notes take a very light breath, almost a whisper.
As an exercise, start on low D and try playing up and down the 1st octave scale with the very lightest, quietest breath you can manage and still keep each note sounding. That’s you’re starting point. Once you’ve mastered that, you can think about increasing the volume as you go up. But beginners almost always start by blowing way too hard.
Hi
welcome
i am also a beginner, not a newbie anymore but still on beginner level, id say
and i can remmeber that i had a similar problem when i did b eginn to play whistles some month ago
all you have to get used to, is breath controll
if you want to play a low d but get a high d, than you did blow to hard (fast)
its different from whistle to whistle but some “want just very little air” for the lower notes or “jump up the octave”
play scales up and down , that will help getting used to the amount of air which is needed for each tone
…and be patient, give yourself some time to learn this
by the way, sometimes i just grab a whistle and just play without even thinking what i play … and after a while i notice that i play completely in the higher octave … without concentration this can happen quite easyly on some whistles whcih need very little air
Yes, breath control. It comes with time and you will later wonder how you could have found it so difficult.
But there may be another complicating factor. Moisture tends to condense inside the airway, more so if you start off with a cold instrument. I own an old Mellow Dog, one of my favorites, and the design rarely seems to “clog” for me. But if I am not careful, it can accumulate just enough moisture at times to make the low D a bit more difficult to hit. Much as you are describing. If this is a factor, you should notice the problem is worse after a few minutes of playing.
Experienced players have several methods to deal with the moisture problem. Pre-warming, sealing the window and giving a quick puff before each set, etc. It’s a common problem for many when starting out. (I know I struggled with it.) Consider checking out some of the previous conversations around this topic.
I recently gave away a whistle (a first for me. A Dixon Trad btw - I like that whistle a lot so my own replacement is already on its way in the mail), and when the receiver first tried the whistle I immediately noticed a problem with the low D and E - a quick suggestion of “Don’t cover with the fingertips, use the finger pads” fixed the problem right there.
And of course - breath control must also be there. But if that’s not the problem then I suspect the above could help.
My Mellowdog(s) (20 months old) have one of the strongest bell notes of all my whistles.
They are great whistles, and I have one in D and another complete one in C.
With a Sindt in the house now my Bluebirds get played less, but I still pick up those MDs.
I also humbly suggest that the issue is either breath or finger related.
Thank you so much for all the suggestions! I’ll check on my fingering and practice breath control. I’m hoping it’s one of those things that improves with time and practice.
