I was thinking about getting a slightly higher end whistle. What would you all suggest? Elfsong or Overton
[ This Message was edited by: bufo on 2003-02-04 15:18 ]
Why are you only considering those two? I saw in a previous post that you like the tone of the Oak. If so, you would probably like a brass Burke, which sounds kind of like an Oak on steroids but with less “chiff”.
[ This Message was edited by: Ridseard on 2003-02-04 17:05 ]
Well, I’ve never yet had the opportunity to play an Overton (someday, maybe!)…I’ve heard nothing but wonderful things about them, though. I do have an Elf Song, and I would highly recommend it to anyone…it’s a beautiful whistle, not only in appearance, but also in the way it sounds, and Sandy is great to do business with. I play mine daily (at least!), and the more I play it, the more I love it.
Redwolf
Sounds good to me. I do not have much experience with high end whistles so any advice would be well apreciated. I figured the elfsong would illicit more of a response. I will definately look into that
I have three Elfsongs (I love them) but I think my next whistle may be a Busman.
I had a chance to hold one a while back and have lusted after one ever since.
Like the Elfsong dilemma of “what color and design?” the Busmans offer you the challenge of “what wood?”
M
If it’s any help, I wrote a review of my Elf Song a couple of months ago, which is now on the Elf Song site under “reviews” (it’s the last in the series, I think, and the only on on the “Coppertone” the last time I checked).
It’s hard when you’ve got two really good whistles to choose from like this, from two reliable, service-oriented makers. In a way, it’s hard to go wrong. A lot’s going to depend, I imagine, on what you want from your new whistle. I can tell you everything I love about the Elf Song (as will others, I’m sure), and others can tell you everything they love about the Overton, but in the end, it’s going to come down to what really grabs YOU.
Redwolf
I assume you’re talking about soprano D whistles? In any event, you picked two whistles that are very very different from each other in playability and tonal qualities. IMHO both are fine whistles, but without knowing price range and preferences, it’s apples and oranges.
There are also other whistles to consider like Burke, Sindt, Silkstone and then more expensive ones like Copeland and Abell.
Word of warning. While I love Overtons and own lots, they require quite bit of effort and breath compared to other high-end whistles. (The phrase du jour is ‘you have to lean into them’.) for days when I don’t feel like leaning into them, I like to have the choice of other whistles but I still wouldn’t part with any of my Overtons.
On 2003-02-05 00:08, Wombat wrote:
Word of warning. While I love Overtons and own lots, they require quite bit of effort and breath compared to other high-end whistles. (The phrase du jour is ‘you have to lean into them’.) for days when I don’t feel like leaning into them, I like to have the choice of other whistles but I still wouldn’t part with any of my Overtons.
By contrast, my Elf Song has very low breath requirements, and an almost effortless second octave. It’s not a particularly loud whistle, but it’s not whisper-soft either…I think of it as a soloist’s instrument.
Redwolf
Alright which color elf songs are your favorite and would you go for sassy brass or copper?
I personally am going nuts over the shiny copper mouthpiece and a summers evening with stars.
On 2003-02-05 01:23, bufo wrote:
Alright which color elf songs are your favorite and would you go for sassy brass or copper?
I personally am going nuts over the shiny copper mouthpiece and a summers evening with stars.
Well, the Sassy Brass are the higher-pitched whistles (E, F, F# and G)…Coppertones are C and D…so unless you want a high whistle, go with a Coppertone (and yes, the copper mouthpieces are very beautiful!).
Colors…mercy, there’s the question! I agonized, and even changed my order at one point. I think the marbles are particularly pretty (my D is “Emerald Gold”), but that’s me. “Fall Flurry” is lovely too. I think my next Elf Songs (yes, there will be more in my future, eventually) will be Fall Flurry and either White Marble or Royal Marble (the latter would match the colors of the Morris group I play for 
).
Redwolf
Decide what you want from a whistle first in terms of volume, tone, playability, etc. The two you mentioned are at opposite ends of the spectrum - the Overton is loud, sweet, and needs considerable umph to play (nearly as much as the low D).
My own view is that the Overton low whistles are as good as they come, but the high ones are more for sessionists wanting to be heard.
BTW, ever considered wooden high whistles? There’s Abell, Rose, WW, Busman, Grinter and others (wood is my favourite, though having said that I eagerly await an Elfsong this month!)
I have both the elfsong and the overton and don’t play either of them much. The Overton is great, except that it requires so much air and is correspondingly loud. If I lived high on a hilltop somewhere, I would play it often, until I got used to the breath requirements. My elfsong, by contrast has a very thin, strangled sound and I can’t hear it at all in a session. My two most played whistles are the Oak (non-tingling) and the Sindt.
On 2003-02-05 19:01, Blackbird wrote:
I have both the elfsong and the overton and don’t play either of them much. The Overton is great, except that it requires so much air and is correspondingly loud. If I lived high on a hilltop somewhere, I would play it often, until I got used to the breath requirements. My elfsong, by contrast has a very thin, strangled sound and I can’t hear it at all in a session. My two most played whistles are the Oak (non-tingling) and the Sindt.
Wow…“strangled” is the last way I would think to describe the sound of my Elfsong…it’s very rich and full, just not loud. Are you sure the windway doesn’t need to be cleaned out a bit? I clean mine after every playing with a pipe cleaner. Proper warmup is also very important to get the best sound out of this whistle…the sound gets richer the closer it is to breath temperature.
I agree, however, that it’s not an instrument for sessions…that’s why I refer to it as a soloist’s instrument.
Redwolf
My first good whistle was a Burke , wide bore, brass. I have a Copland,Sindt,Weasal,Bussman,Rose. They are all great whistles in their own right. You can’t go wrong with a Burke. Especially if its your first good whistle. The tone is full and nice. The loudness is Medium. The intonation is the excellent. The tuning slide is exceptional. It is a good value. The waite is minimal. You can’t go wrong with a Burke. Nuff Said…
Redwolf, I spent a lot of time with pipe cleaners and other implements, thinking that there must be something blocking the sound. The windway on my elfsong is really tiny, and I think it would take a lot of tweaking of some kind to get it to sound more open. But with the coating on the mouthpiece, it would have to go back to the maker and be refinished, I think. I do also warm this instrument up before trying to play it. It is the only one that I’ve kept in the sleeve of my sweater for ten minutes before playing. It still clogs very quickly. I suppose that I should send it back to Sandy and see if she can improve it - I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.
On 2003-02-06 22:54, Blackbird wrote:
Redwolf, I spent a lot of time with pipe cleaners and other implements, thinking that there must be something blocking the sound. The windway on my elfsong is really tiny, and I think it would take a lot of tweaking of some kind to get it to sound more open. But with the coating on the mouthpiece, it would have to go back to the maker and be refinished, I think. I do also warm this instrument up before trying to play it. It is the only one that I’ve kept in the sleeve of my sweater for ten minutes before playing. It still clogs very quickly. I suppose that I should send it back to Sandy and see if she can improve it - I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.
Do talk to Sandy about it. She’s very good about customer service. If there is something wrong with it, I know she’d want to know that.
Also, what you want is to warm it to internal (breath) temperature…best way to do this is to block the window and blow through it until the tube feels slightly warm to the touch. Then play it until it clogs and clear it. If it’s anything like mine, that should be the end of the clogging, unless you set it down for several minutes.
It’s also entirely possible that you and the Elf Song just don’t get along…it happens with the best of whistles 
If you think that may be the case, or if you just don’t feel like messing with it, might you be interested in selling it?
Redwolf