Sean McCann of Great Big Sea played this whistle last night in a concert – it had a very different sound to it – can anyone identify it from the picture?
[Edited to fix my img tag]
[ This Message was edited by: garycrosby on 2002-10-02 12:23 ]
The body makes me think of a susato, I think the dublins are white, but there’s too much black on the head for it to be a dublin…
I agree with the Susato body. I think it’s a hybrid.
Wherever has Anna Martinez got to these days? I this world of mad vegetarians and Tigers defending birds, I need her level headed take on life.
I can’t tell from the picture if the body is white or if it might be bamboo? Erik the flute maker makes a hybrid of a Susato head with a bamboo body. Kinda sounds like a science-fiction thriller, eh?
Its not obvious from the picture but the colour of the body was an off-white kind of creamy colour (very much the colour of a Susato Dublin) – I’m quite sure it was not bamboo.
It had a very different sound to it – I suppose it could have been some electronic effects but I don’t think so because Sean was singing and playing into the same microphone.
From what I remember, all of Erik’s susato/bamboo hybrids used a dark brown bamboo anyway. I’ll know for sure sunday, since the first weekend of TRF is then.
As for singing/playing into the microphone, that’s what effects pedals are for. 
I know a dulcimer player who uses one to add additional reverb at his whim.
[ This Message was edited by: Wandering_Whistler on 2002-10-02 12:49 ]
On 2002-10-02 12:43, garycrosby wrote:
It had a very different sound to it – I suppose it could have been some electronic effects but I don’t think so because Sean was singing and playing into the same microphone.
John Popper of Blues Traveler sometimes uses the same mic for singing and harmonica (and sometimes uses a handheld “bullet” mic for the harmonica). I’ve seen him use what appears to be a guitar multi-effects floor unit (possibly a Digitech RP-20, I’m not sure) both ways. Talk about some wild effects, just listen to him do the Star Spangled banner some time – makes Hendrix’s version sound tame!
John
With electronic effects pedals, one toe-tap and they’re gone!
John
I realize the guy could have been using an effects pedal but I don’t recall seeing him using one (a couple of the guys, Alan Doyle and Darrell Power, were using them). The sound from the whistle didn’t sound enhanced – no noticeable reverb or anything like that – it sounded very acoustic (aka natural, non-electronic) but it was distinctive. The best way I could describe it would be a pure, non-chiffy sound with a reedy quality to it (like a bagpipe chanter) – I thought it was pretty cool.
On 2002-10-02 13:19, garycrosby wrote:
I realize the guy could have been using an effects pedal but I don’t recall seeing him using one (a couple of the guys, Alan Doyle and Darrell Power, were using them). The sound from the whistle didn’t sound enhanced – no noticeable reverb or anything like that – it sounded very acoustic (aka natural, non-electronic) but it was distinctive. The best way I could describe it would be a pure, non-chiffy sound with a reedy quality to it (like a bagpipe chanter) – I thought it was pretty cool.
Okay, in light of that and looking at the picture again, that extra long black mouthpiece could be a ligature from maybe a soprano clarinet or sax or the like glued to a Susato body. Hmmm, even if it’s not, that idea has possibility written all over it!
Do you have a better/larger picture of the mouthpiece area?
John
[ This Message was edited by: OutOfBreath on 2002-10-02 13:26 ]
Hmm, John, the idea certainly has merit
Perhaps this has the makings of yet another Chiff & Fipple “Unsolved Whistle”?
Looking at the way his lower lip is curled under, reminds me very much of a clarinetist’s embouchure. I think the hybrid idea is a very good possibility, IMO.
Bill Whedon
On 2002-10-02 13:33, garycrosby wrote:
Hmm, John, the idea certainly has merit >
Yep, it wouldn’t sound like a traditional whistle, but it sure would open some possibilities.
Consider, one of the biggest drawbacks to whistle is poor dynamic range.
On most whistles the pitch changes too much with changes in volume and some even jump to the second octave a bit unpredictably.
Enter the lipped reed (i.e. a reed in a ligature ala clarinet or sax vs. read in a tube ala chanter). A good clarinet or sax player can “lip” about a half step in pitch change which opens up the dynamic range, makes slurs far more possible, and so on. I’m hearing “blues” reed-whistle in my head right now…
John
Hey guys thanks for all your input on this Other than playing the whistle (and poorly at that) I don’t have any significant musical background or training. So, I sure appreciate all the information and opinions you provided by people who are knowledgable.
It looks like a Susato (maybe the engraved one) with a black replacement fipple / headjoint, like those available at thewhistleshop.com.
I don’t think it’s a clarinet-type mouthpiece; there is no evidence of a ligature to hold the reed.
Best,
–James
http://www.flutesite.com
Edit by James to fix a typo.
[ This Message was edited by: peeplj on 2002-10-02 17:01 ]
Have a look at an enhanced piccy of the mouth area. Could the item pointed at by the yellow arrow be a ligature??
Cheers,
Bill Whedon
Hey Serpent. nice work
Is it just me or does the lighter coloured area bordering Sean’s fingers look like duct tape?
I’ve played Sax for many years and judging from how his lower lip is placed, he aint playing anything with a reed. The bottom lip sits on top of the bottom teeth, getting squished between the teeth and the reed (resulting in a “groove” on the inside of the bottom lip that never goes away if you play long enough, I haven’t seriously played in 8 years and the dent’s still there). The diameter and length of the darker portion really doesn’t look like a clarinet mouthpiece which is short and fairly fat. Looks to me like a dark susato head duct taped to a whiteivory body.
Old reed guy’s opinion,
Mark
Without a cleaner photo, or somebody who actually knows him and asks, I’d surmise we’ll never know for sure.
A clarinet-type mouthpiece using a narrower reed wouldn’t be all that difficult to make. In fact, I’m kind of intrigued by the idea - maybe a “Serpinet”? 
I almost hesitate to add, because a lot of people get really stroppy when they think us whistlesmiths are into unfettered self-promotion, but does somebody wanna order one and give me a few weeks to play with it? If so, I’ll give the first request 50% off the price of the nearest equivalent whistle. Send email to bill at serpentmusic.com (note the email addy, and use a regular at-sign without spaces, of course!)and the first one in based on my receipt date/time, gets it. Later requests will be given the opportunity to rescind. And nobody pays unless the thing actually works out. Fair?
This looks like a Really Cool idea! And whether anybody participates or not, I do intend to build one, and will report to everyone what it sounds like, and also put up .wav and .mp3 on the site (see www button)
Cheers,
Bill Whedon
I will e-mail GBS about the kind of whistles that they played in the concert – if I get a reply (and if they let me) I will post it to the board.
If a reed mouthpiece is used on a cylindrical bore with a fingering system that plays an octave’s worth of notes, you end up with a chalumeau. A chalumeau usually only plays an octave because if you over blow it, it goes up a 12th, which is more than an octave, so you loose the ability to hit all the notes in it’s range. Closing one end of a cylindrical bore with a reed changes it acoustically relative to a whistle or flute, which have an opening at both ends of the bore. A clarinet overcomes this problem by having at least a 12th’s worth of holes and keys. What sort of range did the instrument have? If it was a reed instrument and the wall was thicker toward the mouthpiece so it had a conical cross section internally, it is basically a small sax, the conical bore allowing it to over blow by an octave rather than a 12th, giving it another octave or more of notes, like a whistle.