I have a Kerry low D whistle which takes quiet a lot of air to play. I am wondering if a low D flute(Tipple) would take as much air to play or if a flute like that would take less air than the Kerry low d whistle. I seem to run out of air trying to play that big pipe of a whistle.
Thanks for any advice.
Scottie
i’d say it’s all depends, some never get the hang of the flute and stay whistling.
others can controle their breath much better on a flute.
give it a try, but don’t pack it in too soon.
and you can allways sell the tipple for a good price.
With a good embouchure a flute can be less air-demanding than a low whistle. So at first a flute will be harder than a low whistle until you get your lip in shape.
Once your embouchure gets good you’ll find the second octave to be much easier on flute than low whistle as you will be using your lips to get there, not your breath.
Think more about what sound you’re after. If you want lots of harmonics, dynamics and volume you’ll want the flute. If you’re after that low, mellow tone you may want to stay with the low whistle.
Cheers,
Aaron
If you’re not after volume, a flute can be played with as little air as a high whistle… when others are in bed, I often strive for the lowest-volume in-tune sound I can manage, which requires (or at least can be achieved with) a very tight embouchure, a substantially covered embouchure hole, and very little air. When I do this, I find that just like on the whistle, I often need to breath -out- the pent up carbon dioxide as much as I need to breath -in- a fresh bit of air.
But at first a flute probably takes more air, depending on how naturally you take to it. But I wouldn’t play any instrument for anything other than its own sound. A flute just doesn’t sound like a low whistle. Of course, if you want to play the flute, stop making excuses about air and just buy one. 
I find that flute takes considerably less air than a low
d whistle, and probably less than higher whistles too.
I haven’t played them much for awhile.
The point, which others have made, can be expressed this
way, as JOhn Skelton has.
Just as you can make a garden hose squirt further by
closing most of it with your thumb, a good embouchure
will focus a small quantity of air to great effect.
So air demands are less on flutes.
The trick is developing a good embouchure,
which takes some time but is well worth
the effort.
Flute is louder than low whistle, too, which
has been a great help for me on the street.
It is exceedingly expressive, because
you are the whistle, and the tone keeps
improving for the same reason.
For the same reason flute is harder to master
and, IMO, more satisfying. One of the loveliest
instruments in the world but not, as I was
counseled here when I started playing it,
for the faint of heart.