Hello lads and lasses, this is a common introduction to the the boards. I am new to the board as of yesterday, though I have been soaking in info found here for about a year. I felt it was high time to finally create an account. I have been playing the whistle for about a year now, though I have been exposed to the wide world of whistles and ITM for most of my life (with a name like Michael Patrick Clougherty who would’ve guessed .) I’ve just always played other instruments. It’s nice to be here, and seeing as the body of this post feels rather small, I’m going to list the whistles that I own. So here is a written representation of my WhOa:
Sweetone D (ahh the first whistle) self-tweaked
Feadog C in nickel (self-tweaked)
Feadog MkIII D in brass (self-tweaked)
Clarke original natural, Victorian, unpainted or whatever they call it now D
Feadog Mk I x2
Pre-1982 Generations in C,D,G bluetops ( have they always made blue/nickel and red/brass whistles at the same time, or did one come before the other?)
Freemen Bluebird D, brass Generation Bb, Mellowdog D/C set
Killarney D and Eb Nickel bodies. Noted seeing as they now do brass as well. Tried putting a brass feadog body on, but it wouldn’t fit. Might sand it down.
Milligan C in cocobolo dymondwood
Dixon trad Bb
Potter D
Waltons D
Cheers!
Yes, impressive.
Welcome to you, sir.
Have you considered that whistles are the great musical instrument bargains of the whole world.
What does the best whistle cost?
How about the best piano, violin, guitar, or concertina?
We, sir, are blessed.
You’re welcome. As Maki rightly said in comparison to other instruments they’re not too bad really (that’s why we all end up with TOO many) A friend on mine paid almost £800.00 for a Tenor Saxophone MOUTHPIECE, YES £800.00 just think of the number of whistles you could buy with that!!
And once purchased there is no ongoing expense with a whistle, most woodwind instruments require; new reeds, springs, pads, rods tightening, an annual service etc, apart from a quick rinse now and then and sticking a bit of old credit card in the windway we whistlers are maintenance, expense free.
We are blessed with these wonderful little instruments! Especially for the price in comparison to other instruments, whether good or bad! I know if my younger self who played string instruments heard me complaining about prices now…
I have no right to complain after all.
True that good quality craftsmanship will command higher prices, it’s also true that, as far as whistles are concerned, price isn’t the deciding factor. I think you’ll find many folks here who would agree that, in looking over your roll of whistles, you have several rather good whistles that are decidedly not expensive. Given that ány make of whistle can produce both duds as well as stunners, even your Feadogs and Freemen and Gens and even the Clarkes can be really good whistles.
By the way, welcome to the forum! And please, take a picture or two of your whistles and share them in the “Photos of Your Collection” thread! One of these days I’ll have to update mine. WHOAD never takes a day off!
I think the answer to that is “at least one”! (Or perhaps more about half a whistle, if you’re in the market for that low D sterling Copeland that was on the Fleabay a week or so ago.)
I do agree that whistles, even the most expensive ones I can imagine, are cheap in comparison to almost anything else out there.
You and I both know that’s an extreme example (thankfully), I made my comment based on the whistles the OP already owns and the ones he aspires to own. Also the mouthpiece I evoked is now being used with a saxophone that’s worth in the region of £10,000.
Exactly! (Though, quite frankly, anyone spending 10000 quid on a saxophone ought to be committed!)
Point being, that extreme high of whistle prices is really for the ultra-rarest of the ultra-sought-after. An average Copeland high d in brass or nickel can generally be had for rather less than £800, more like half that. Very many fine whistles and even more serviceable factory made ones can be had for less than £75 and many for less than £20.
The corollary to my answer is, of course, “at least one…but perhaps as many as 80 or a 100!”
(As an addendum to the insanity of saxophonists: the fellow who’s sunk nearly £11,000 into a keyed fog-horn probably uses 50p reeds from the local music shop! Go figure!)
As far as whistle prices go, as a maker for me the biggest factor in setting my prices is the time it takes to make a whistle. Every hour I spend in the shop is an hour I’m not spending with family, reading, working around the house, hiking, kayaking,traveling well you get the idea. Since I have a full time “real” job, those hours are precious to me.
I’ve noticed that we almost never see a whistle maker on the list of “Richest People in [Name your country]”… Imagine if Bill Gates had decided to make whistles instead.
.) I’ve just always played other instruments. It’s nice to be here, and seeing as the body of this post feels rather small, I’m going to list the whistles that I own. So here is a written representation of my WhOa:
Go figure!)
