A while ago, I think I posted that if you tape the end of the mouth piece and blow across the window while holding the whistle like a flute, it works.
Doesn’t sound the grestest, but it does work.
So I was wondering, does anyone make a flute head for a whistle body?
I priced Irish flutes and they are way out of my budget. A low whislte is not so bad and I was just wondering if someone had figured out a way to make a low whislte with a flute head?
If not, and this works, I expect a cut. Or at least the first one off the production line. )
I wrote to Susato once about making a clip that combines two whistles so you can close the holes on one whistle and play it as a drone. I’ve done it with rubber bands and it works well. Just a couple of plastic clips designed for the purpose would work/look better.
Well, you must remember the fact that piccolos are extremely demanding instruments to play. I really felt that way myself until I got a couple of real piccolos, and had a much harder time with them than with the Dixon combo. Piccolos require an unbelievably tight airstream in order to get a note at all, much less a good one.
Funny thing is, I just pulled out the piccolo head for my Dixon and gave it a try. Now that I’ve (almost) got an embouchure tight enough to play a piccolo, it really sounds pretty good. The sound is not as pure as my other piccolos, it has kind of a “plastic” chiff to it. However, it’s not objectionable, especially in an instrument of that price. It certainly is more than good enough to learn on, though I’d REALLY suggest learning on a flute first.
That would be the one made by my friend Eric Marczak. It’s Apricot wood and the non-drone tube is tuned to a regular whistle scale, rather than the more typical pentatonic Native American one. It’s areally cool instrument.
Eric is a terrific woodworker and performer. He’s very much into Native American culture and history. His musical taste is very eclectic-- you GOTTA see and hear him play a polka on two overtone whistles: no fingerholes!
A plug for a nice guy and terrific craftsman-- you can find Eric at: http://geocities.com/whistleworld/
All of his flutes are gorgeous, and can be made with input from the buyer as to type of wood, design, etc. Very reasonable too. I have no commercial interest etc…
If any of you have an interest in making your own “fife Head” for your whistle “Body” I can calculate and post measurements for say, a popular metal body with a polyclay head or a varnished Balsa or Bass wood head for a plastic body?
One hole and an hours work would result in a “passable” headjoint. You will all have to agree on a single type and provide me with a key frequency, bore diameter and length measurement for a “first try”. If this becomes a popular C&F project, I may be able to post fife head joint measurements for several brands on the Main Site(Dale permitting).
Ralph Sweet sells both a D whistle, and a “folk fife” in the same D (not low) that look like heads could interchange. They probably don’t, but the styling is certainly similar.
That said, I’m much happier playing a whistle that small rather than a flute. A transverse flute in that type of size is a much more difficult instrument to play than a “normal” D flute (you know, the D just above middle C, like the low D whistle).
As others have said, the Dixon combo is probably your best bet at anything like a budget price, but if you have $250, you might be happier with a maple D flute from Ralph. Reviews are mixed on the Flute board, but the price is low. I’ve been thinking about one just to see what I can do with it. (Playing, not modifying)
I have a Ralph Sweet Folk Fife and a matching whistle. They are not interchangeable. Still, they make a nice pair.
I like D fifes. They are cute, fun, and if the kids get hold of them, there are none of those horrible shrill noises you get from a whistle. Problem is, the fife is a lot louder than a whistle. If there is a way to mute it, I want to know.
Seems to me, a simple mini flute head could be made with about 2" of 1/2" cpvc with a 5/16" hole in it and a cork shoved in one end. Getting the cork in the right place would be the only real challenge. Course, what do I know?
This would be a neat use for the headless whistles people have left after tweaking experiements ruin the heads. Or a use for some of the Generations that just don’t measure up.
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