The Silvertone by Gyula Foky-Gruber, “Tinwhistle in D”.
(Do not confuse with its spitting–llama imitation, the Silberton, i.e. Foky-Gruber 8-holes reXXXXX in C)
Fokyng amazing!
Really? No Kidding?
This is BIG news.
No Foky kidding–I’ll wait for 1st April for practical jokes*, unlike some others…
But the scoop on the news belongs to someone else on-board, first to locate the Silberton, at the risk of becoming a cross-fippler, before I hit the SilVertonE. This person knows who she is–I won’t drop names in such a case of closet eight-holing…
http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=15907&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
- (but take date: you won’t escape it…)
Looks like a sawed-off clarinet mouthpiece bolted to a Syn. Are we sure it’s not April 1?
I’ve seen a mouthpiece like that somewhere…too squat to be a clarinet.
No April’s fool.
The Silvertone is made of a massive brass tube, thick silver-plated after machining. Optionnally, it can be solid sterling, if you’re ready for the big ewes* AND an even heavier weight. As is, the beast already weighs 210 g, i.e. the weight of an aluminium non-tunable low D!
At first, I was surprised by this feature but since I play mostly low whistles, found out it helps me stabilize this high D.
- Bucks being $US, I guess in Ewrope we should have ewes…
The general finish is so-so: the tuning slide needs some silicon grease, or a turn of Teflon tape. The holes are obviously hand-adjusted, not machined. The block, on the lip side, is roughly finished and not perfectly filed flush with the tube. Finally, the windway roof is painted, when I’d have preferred a clear varnish. However, the general apperance is good, and this silver-plating on a perfect polishing does look superb.
The strange looking head comes from the windway design. Technically, it’s a lot like a Sindt (or Parkhurst, etc.) i.e. the tube thickness forms the height of a curved windway. The cutaway forming the blade looks almost exactly like a Parkhurst.
Note it seems Foky-Gruber would have precedence on those quoted, his original recorders dating back some 30 years…
The plug is a round dowel of cedar. The roof is a half-cylinder separate block of softwood, painted black only externally. It is removable (a bit like NA flutes) and attached by a chrome-plated ligature, but one could tie just as well. Note the Silkstone whistles do also resemble this design, except their “lid” is pinned, not strapped. Hmm… Silberton/Silvertone/Silkstone, is there a hidden filiation? 
The movable block may be used for some sound variation: move it back to ad extra breathiness, and allow a harder bell tone (sacrificing 3rd D). Its thickness allows to absorb moisture without distorting. It could be easily replaced with a slimmer “lid”, for instance plastic, and I will certainly try to (to avoid intrigued stares in ITM company…).
Tuning is dead-on.
Better, it is remarkably consistent on both octaves (i.e. high G is a clean octave above low G, etc.).
C nat x-fingered oxx ooo is “chromatic” i.e. a coma sharp, and spot-on if played oxx xoo.
Low Bb is perfect at xox xxx, and consequently Ab xxo xxx too sharp.
Low Eb (xxx xxø) is playable–weak of course but no buzz.
The shapes of the holes, rather large and slightly beveled, is comfortable, allowing an easy seal and half-holing.
Soundwise, I could describe it as in-between a Sindt and a Rose, just slightly chiffier/breathier than the latter, but warmer than the former. If the block/lid is totally dry (new, or after a long resting time) then the sound is quite pure, Rose like. Their sound volume is comparable, too, i.e. medium.
The Rose keeps an advantage for hitting effortlessly the 3rd octave, but the Silvertone has a more solid low D and E.
Finally, playability is on par with the Sindt, but–weight for weight–I prefer the Silvertone’s balance.
Just to mention:
Mr Gyula Foky-Gruber is apparently known as a music composer, which does set him apart among whistlesmiths…
His works seem to rely on folk motives from his native Hungary.
I’ll try and get a copy of his “Suite in D on Hungarian folk songs” (for piano or tenor/soprano recorder), and I see he wrote many “short pieces in Eb”…
Congrats to Zub. This is a major find. I had almost consigned the Foky to the realm of mythical whistles.
Thanks!
Dale
It’s really ugly though…
Jens, you are right, it is a little ugly and I don’t get the black painted wood at all.
I have a Hopf-made Silberton Folk Re*order (made under license from Foky Gruber) - which I posted about in November last year, I have no grumbles about finish.
Mine has what I think is a cedar top cap nicely finished and with a normal looking ligature. OK, so it looks somewhat retro…design goes back to the early 70’s…but the finish is very good and the sound and expressiveness possible is amazing. And it weighs in at 265g (around 9 ounces) which is a lot for its size, but has a back-fitted thumb rest to help out.
It has been hand-tuned and can mostly be played in the second octave by overblowing if you forget the back hole :roll: .
Dale - I confess, it was me who persuaded Zub to part with his hard-earned Euros 
. Thank goodness he seems happy about it 
.
Trisha
265 g! Wow, that’s 5 g more than my Yvon Le Coant blackwood low D! Y’know, the one you called a “bludgeon” 
Now, that’s “stable”. Also, you picked the only recXXXXX no-one will make fun of in a session–too lethal.
Please post a picture!
After all, I showed you my Foky-Gruber, it’s only fair I get a peek at your Hopf :roll: