how to mute a whistle?

Whistle
1

i have an Oak tinwhistle in the key of D. i was wondering if there is a way to mute a whistle so i can practice and not annoy everyone around me. i would like to be able to practice at work so i can play everyday. i’m a firefighter so i work 24 hour shifts and i don’t want to go a day without playing. i figure the only way to become good is to play everyday. but without being able to quiet it down a bit i won’t be able to do that. any suggestions would be great.

2

http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=16223&highlight=whistle+mute

http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=15991&highlight=whistle+mute

http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=13780&highlight=whistle+mute

http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=7467&highlight=whistle+mute

… search on “Whistle AND mute”

Denny

3

My best luck at that sort of thing involves putting tape over about half or so of the sound hole. Up and down, I mean.

4

I made a ‘muffler’ for my oak out of a toothpick…you cut it slightly
longer than the windway so that you can take it out when you need to.
sand it to the right thickness…this may take a few attempts as the
windway is narrower near the sound blade…as you play the pick
will expand and stay in place…keep it to the far side of the mouthpiece…
it takes a bit of getting used to but i found that it not only made the
whistle quieter but sweeter sounding to…and it needs even less air…
if this is possible with an oak.

Hope this helps. :slight_smile:

5

This tip is probably buried in one of the other threads mentioned above, but it’s worth repeating.
Take any whistle, put it up to your lips as if to play it, but instead of putting it BETWEEN your lips, rest the end of the whistle ON your lower lip, sealing off the windway. Now simply play as usual. The sound is VERY quiet, but easily hearable to the player. I just did this very thing with a Feadog as my wife sleeps about 15 feet away, and she didn’t stir. No need to muck about with mutes, etc.

6

Here is another link:
http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?p=198523&highlight=#198523
Brian

7

I hope to gosh my wife doesn’t get on this message board and learn these tricks of the trade. If she does, I just know that I am going to have duck take covering all my whistles…just the thought hurts… :laughing:

8

you can also roll up a little piece of paper and stick it into the window, just make sure you don’t damage the blade (shouldn’t happen actually).

9

If you’re just trying to get a feel for or practice the fingerings for a tune, you can try angling the whistle enough so you can blow over the fipple hole like a flute embouchure (but still holding it as much like a whistle as possible). The whistle will produce a very quiet, breathy sound, and you can hear all the notes and accents. The downside is that you only get one octave, but when you don’t have tape or paperclips, it works well enough.

10

Or you could see if anyone’s willing to sell you a Hoover narrow Bore Brass D whistle. That way you can have quiet and also work on your breath control at the same time.

How quiet? Wife watching TV in same room not noticing you’re playing quiet.