I have been inspired to really work at learning to play by ear pieces that are not previously known to me (thanks again, Janice!). I know to listen to the piece many times and to try humming along. Then I need to figure out what key it is in..other than trying all my whistles (D and G, then C to start ?) until it sounds right, are there any other helpful methods? Also, I believe it is usually correct that the last note of the tune indicates the key?)
If you’re going to play by ear (and assuming you’re not playing along with a recording or with other instruments), it doesn’t honestly matter what key it’s in. Are you planning to play along with a recording or something like that? Otherwise, the easiest thing to do is noodle around until you find a starting note that will let you play the tune without too many accidentals and you’re all set.
If you are playing with a recording, I’d start with a D whistle and see if you can match the starting note and, if starting from there, you can play the tune completely without too many accidentals. If you can’t get the D to work, either try the C or, if the D is just off by a little bit, try a different D (not all manufactured whistles are exactly in tune).
With major scales it’s true that the ending note of a piece often (but not always) indicates the key note. I’m not sure that holds true for minor scales.
Redwolf
hi lizzie, you don’t need to buy all the whistles to play in every key.
just use roni’s slowdowner http://www.ronimusic.com/
If you have access to a chromatic instrument—guitar, piano or even a cheap elctronic keyboard or a melodica—you can figure out any key with time and practice. I find this is usually much quicker than picking up a bunch of whistles and tooting along.
If it’s mainly Irish music you are listening to, if you have a D and Eb whistle you stand a very good chance though of having one that will do the job.
Yeah, a chromatic instrument is a big help. That may not be very encouraging if you don’t play one, though.
I’ve been playing by ear since I was too unmotivated to memorize the marching band music in high school. And because flute is my “native” instrument, I use it to figure out a tune and immediately wish I’d gone ahead and bought the Amazing Slowdowner. Often, I’ll transpose it into a more flute-friendly key, or into 2 sharps (which is not necessarily D) to play on the D whistle.
So Redwolf’s right–pick up a D and noodle around until it sounds like the tune. And there’s a sporting chance it will be in D anyway.
Hey, it’s fun, and a learning experience, and a real sense of accomplishment when you get it done.
M
Yes, in most western modal music the last note will be the tonic key.
Some people confuse the key signature for staff notation with the tonic key of a piece.
Do not be confused by this.
For instance do not be confused that a D key moxolydian piece will be notated with G key signature.
Transposing keys using tin whistles or simple system flutes
is a cinch because the tonic for every European plainsong mode
is in the same finger position regardless of which keyed pipe you are using.
Eg XOO OOO always = natural minor tonic whatever key this may be.
XXO OOO always = mixolydian tonic etc etc
In this sense the whistle is the transposer’s magic wand.
I hope this helps Lizzie.
What kinds of tunes are you trying to learn? From a practical point of view, sung melodies are bound to show much more variety of key than ITM instrumental pieces, which will mostly be playable on a D whistle–whatever key/tonic/mode that requires. (With the obvious exception that some troublemakers may record traditional instrumental materials using Bb whistles and worse.)
In my personal experience, if I have a tune in my head, what I need to do is to find the starting note from which everything else flows. That is, if I start on that note, I don’t need any crossfingering beyond Cnat, and I can reach both the highest and lowest notes of the melody.
In the case of standard instrumental pieces, if you think you may be listening to something played on a whistle other than D, you can always refer to written music, including the ABC stuff on various Web sites, to find your starting point. From there, you can ignore the written music, if you wish, and just play what’s in your head.
In the case of songs, it may require a bit more hacking around to find your starting point, but it helps if you have the melody in your head, but are not tied to a particular key.
For example, I have a recording of The Dear Irish Boy that’s sung in B Dorian, but would be played in E Dorian on a D whistle, so that means it’s being played on an A whistle on the recording. If all you had to go on was the recording, it might take a long while to figure out what’s going on there. (In reality, the CD accompanies a tune book, and the song is written out as if it were in E Dorian.)
I learned a lot of the theory from decades of playing Old Timey and Bluegrass music on various stringed instruments, so it’s sort of second nature to me now. I can recall how confusing it was in the beginning, though.
Of course, you don’t need all that stuff–if you can arrange to be raised by a nice Irish family for about 5 or 6 years before you actually start playing…