Just wanted to say hi, and thank you to everyone on the forum – I’ve been lurking here for a little while, and I’ve learned a lot from all of you. A local bluegrass/old time festival I’m attending next weekend is having a penny whistle workshop, which got me curious about the instrument. I did some research online, which is how I found Chiff & Fipple and Jerry Freeman tweaked whistles (I ordered a nickel Generation D that he was kind enough to ship right away for it to arrive in time for the workshop. It probably would have arrived in time anyway, but I thought I’d ask when I ordered – and I got the shipping info within about three seconds of placing the order).
I also found the wooden flute. Yeah, I have one of those on the way too – a used mopane Casey Burns Folk Flute. I took flute lessons for a couple of months as a teenager and loved the instrument, but hated my teacher, which sort of ruined it for me at the time. I’m really looking forward to getting back into it.
(I know, I go overboard. I got a ukulele a while back to learn one song, ended up with three ukes, saw a banjolele, liked it, but then thought “Why not just play the banjo?” and that’s how I went from learning one song on a cheap uke to a banjo and steady clawhammer lessons.)
For now, I got a Clarke Sweetone D from Amazon to tide me over until my tweaked Gen D gets here; it just arrived, and it’s dented. Still playable, though, and this will probably just make me love the tweaked Gen D even more, so I’m not too worried about it. I can play from a low D up to one octave higher with minimal squeaking, so I think I might get the hang of this eventually. Or maybe I’ve already peaked and it’s downhill from here.
With that, I’m off to find “how-to-play” videos on YouTube while my husband’s at work and I’m the only person in the house. (My poor dog!)
Welcome to the Whistle Forum. You’re in a good place.
The tweaked Jerry Freeman whistle is a good choice to begin with. Any whistle in hand is a good one. Listen to a lot of music of the type you want to play. Look up top of whistle forum page for the recordings list and the YouTube thread. And use the search button top of page for threads on tutorials (numerous) as there is a wealth of information available on the whistle forum.
Listening and practice is what will get you there… and keep it fun… its not a chore.
From the instruments you mentioned, yeah, you got the bug! multiples…
That doesn’t really sound too bad to me. You know, those Uke thingies come in sizes - soprano, concert, tenor, baritone. So you’ll need a few more. Then a Uke bass is pretty cool too.
And whistles! They come in different keys. Gotta have a bunch of those if you’re playing with fiddles, mandos, Dobros, guitars and such. Start planning which key comes next. At least they are relatively affordable.
And those banjos come in flavors as well. You’ll want a proper bluegrass model soon enough for Scruggs style. And those vintage Fairbanks/Vega/Stewart banjos sound great with a skin head and nylon strings for that real old time sound. A banjo mandolin should go nicely with that Banjolele too. Of course after you’ve played whistle for a while, you’ll have to have a tenor banjo too - 17" scale to start then maybe a 19" scale after that - for the Irish tunes.
Not that I’d know about any of this. Hah!
You’re just getting started! Believe me, these instruments have a way of multiplying over time.
ytliek, almost any whistle in hand is a good one. It turns out my Sweetone is not only dented, but slightly bent. Playable for now, I guess, but it feels slightly off when I hold it. I got my husband the version of this whistle that has a Celtic design on it – even if he doesn’t want to play it, he’ll like the look of it. It’s supposed to be here tomorrow. I might just steal it from him since he doesn’t know it’s coming. I’m a horrible wife.
Feadoggie, I had a Goodtime resonator banjo, but I sold it not long ago because I’m just not that into bluegrass. I bought it before I realized that “bluegrass” and “clawhammer” were two different things. Oops.
I hope the workshop is helpful. I’ve taught hundreds of them, been to hundreds of them, and they can be extremely enlightening, motivational, and fun! Others, not so much.
So much depends on the teacher, but also much depends on the unique mix of musicianship levels and personalities of the attendees. Magic can happen! Or a class can be dragged down to the lowest (or slowest) denominator.
Oh, there’s nothing like a big utter-beginner whistle class when everyone is playing High B for the first time!
With your background and obvious intelligence and dedication you’ll probably have a leg up on most of the attendees, and be in an excellent position to get the most out of the class.
Please let us know how it goes! I’d be interested in hearing what approach the teacher used.
A Freeman Tweaked gives just about the greatest ‘bang for the buck’ you can get. I myself preferred his Feadog D, when I had the opportunity to play several different Freemans. It was a superb player!
Try a couple Burkes if you can, a Session Bore D and a Narrow Bore D. A Narrow Bore in brass is an exceptionally sweet pure clean well-balanced well-behaved player; the Session Bore gives a bit more power with a bit less sweetness. If you come across a Sindt jump on it!
And whenever, wherever, you come across Generations for sale try them all! There’s a very special magic in a really good Generation.
pancelticpiper, I’m embracing the horror. I fully expect a high-pitched musical car wreck – anything better than that will be a bonus. I’m really going for the clawhammer banjo master class; that I’ve already been inspired to learn a new instrument means I’m ahead, regardless of how the workshop actually goes. (Although you might want to ask me about this again right after the workshop, when my ears are still ringing…)
Jerry, according to the tracking info, it should be here Monday. I’m really looking forward to getting it. (It’s weird to be saying on Friday that I’m looking forward to Monday.) Thank you again!
Just checking back in. The Bear on the Square workshop was a lot of fun. We learned Muirsheen Durkin, which I thought would be a a lot for the group; surprisingly, he had us playing most of it pretty well by the end. He also quickly covered cuts, rolls, and slides, so along with the tune I came away with some technique-related things to work on. Not bad at all for a free 45 minute workshop.
Sounds like you had a good time. Now you have to find another, perhaps more regular and recurring, situation and some players to keep you learning and growing. Enjoy the journey.
