I haven’t gotten up the courage to buy something other than a D yet; so where do I go from here..should I go with a C or an A (or something else)? I’m going to Ireland in a month so I want to be sessionable, and therefore I’m widening my horizons. I figured a low D might be nice but after seeing the prices and thinking heavily…it wont really help me in other keys and stuff anyhow, are there any cheaper (under 20) whistles in a popular session key that someone might suggest?
I’d say C and A are the most useful (in that order).
That covers most of the keys I’ve ever come across
in sessions.
C and A, I agree. Susato Cs are good, IMO.
But Bb is interesting just to play.
Also G whistles are neat too. You sort of work your way
down to a low d, then you play the flute…
The Generation Bb isn’t very expensive,
and it’s probably their most consistent
whistle, quality-wise.
C is very handy, it covers tunes like Tam Lin and Julia Delaney which are in flat keys and don’t fit well on the D whistle, but are common tunes in sessions.
I used to use B-flat when playing with GHB, which is unfortunately something I’ve not done for a few years now.
–James
I love the sound of a Bb Whsitle. Unless you know the tunes in C or F a Whsitle is really no use, unless the Session does some songs. For a Session (tunes only) you really only need a D Whsitle of course for some tunes you do need a C, but why get a C Whsitle if you don’t know the tunes.
To learn them. 
By the way, so far my favorite C’s are Oak and Susato.
–James
If you can get a good Bb, go for it. On that note, I’d say C is the next logical step. (I went C to D, don’t ask me why ) Start off cheap, to see is that is what you really want (would say Walton’s C is a good tester), then go from there.
A Gerry Freeman tweaked Generation Eb is an essential tool.
Nothing beats this whistle for soloing or playing with a guitarist. The guitarist has only got to capo on the first fret.
The small step of a semitone makes a huge difference to the brightness of the music.
Once you’ve tried it there’s no going back 
Slan,
D.
My first venture away from (low) D was a low G Dixon, so that I could try the occasional session tune in C. It’s also handy when another sessioneer drags out his C/G concertina, or for songs in G.
Santa bought himself a Generation Bb, to play with the GHB guys in a street band he’s joining. The stock fipple was horrible (don’t know why I didn’t notice that in the shop), so I ordered a Mack Hoover Whitecap which arrived in the Christmas Eve mail. Miles of improvement…
Further afield, the next bout of WhOA will likely inflict on me either one of Daniel Bingamon’s ethnic whistles or a Native American flute.
For 20 bucks you can get a Walton’s C and Gen Bflat, both of which are wonderful whistles. The Walton’s C, especially. It’s bright, chiffy, and powerful all at once.
i’ve been travelling with self-tweaked Gen Eb (it’s small so it packs well and cheap so no worries if i lose it), and there’s just something about that key that really makes for a sweet and nimble whistle. i get the feeling i’ll be spending a lot more time with it when i get home.
Mary Bergin’s recordings have a lot of Eb, and Gavin Whelan’s cd is almost entirely done on an Eb Gen.
I have a Generation G that I don’t like…not that I can play it though. My fingers are too fat to cover all the wholes so I don’'t know what it even sounds like, haha. Thanks for the input…I was looking at the Walton Cs, I’m thinking I should go with C.
Bb whistles are useless for Irish sessions. D covers 95% of the tunes with C helping on a few and an E whistle (for playing in A) helping on a couple of others. A whistles are useful mostly for a few tunes in D that reach below the note D. On solo albums you’ll hear whistlers play other keys (Mary Bergin as noted above plays a lot in Eb while Laurence Nugent favors his C whistle) but in sessions people tend to play tunes in D and G with the related minors.
One more fan of the Susato C…I’ve seen others on the board castigate them for sounding too much like a recorder, but I don’t find it so. I also like the C whistle for playing outside, which I’ve only been able to do in a dead calm with any of my D whistles.
I’m chiming in also for a Generation Eb. Mine just has the putty tweak. Sometimes I put a Feadog fipple on it and it’s sweet without being shrill. It’s been of no use in session except when playing a tune set that I’m certain no one else knows (and with my session-mates’ OK), but
Eb is just such a dead-sexy key to play in 
. Give it a try.
Mike
I think you should have a least two whistles of every possible key. You can’t go wrong with that!
Meanwhile if you love the whistle get Eb, C, Bb to add to your D and you’ll be very pleased in your investment.
BTW save your money and buy your cheap whistles in Ireland where most cost a lot less than in the US.
I just ordered a Gen Eb brass and an Oak D.
I’ve heard quite a few good things about both these whistles on this forum, so i’m looking forward to having a go on them at last.
Thanks.
Really? that’s supprising…they keep telling me the cost of everything is ridiculas…but I’ll be across the street from an Aldis
It’s true that I’ve never had an opportunity to play my Bb in session.
But I use it constantly to play along with CD’s! Kevin Crawford plays a Bb flute in some recordings, and lots of recordings that include pipes have some Bb tunes or related keys. My (most excellent, BTW) Copeland Bb gets a ton of use, and it’s certainly not wasted even if it’s only me and my family who hear it.
Jennie