Hey everyone,
I’m a newbie in the purest sense of the word - new to the forum and new to the pennywhistle. I have a guitar background and decided that after twenty years of playing that I wanted to try out the pennywhistle.
I have no idea what I’m doing, so be gentle on this old boy should I ask stupid questions. 
Just wanted to pop in and say hello. Looking fwd to participating in the forum.
Hi, welcome to Chiff & Fipple and the exciting world of whistles.
Welcome Living,
Careful, you have just cracked open the lid on a very interesting box that used to belong to a person named Pandora I think.
Cheers,
Carey
Welcome!
welcome!
what whistle are you learning on?
Welcome aboard,
First suggestion - ask your family to leave home and use the xtra space for teh whistles you’ll acquire 
This seems like a friendly forum!
I ordered a Clarke just the other day - hopefully it will arrive for the weekend so that I can properly annoy the family
I take it from your screen name you like Jethro Tull?
Welcome to whistling and to the board!
I still consider myself a ‘noob’ (been whistling for about 5(?) months now)…
I too, come from a guitar (more electric bass and piano) background. If you play by ear (waiting for the ‘playing by ear comments’) - you’ll do great - if by notes - (I do both) - you’ll still do great (I find I do 75% of learning by ear for the whistle)
Check out Ryan Dunn’s tuts on YouTube and the Irish and Celtic podcast.
The session.org and Clips and snips ( http://www.tinwhistletunes.com/clipssnip/ )… and search and ask here for info etc etc
be warned - whistles are more portable than guitars (and easily concealed!)… (I’ve taken mine outside many times…)
I have a Clarke (and a Meg and Feadog) - I really like my Clarke - has a breathy tone and is pretty easy to play - nice tone and control.
It’s a lot of fun!
TM
And enjoy music ranging from Flogging Molly to Claude Bolling to Natalie MacMaster!
But Tull really got me sucked into the fusing of styles.
Thx!
Just don’t use Ian’s flute technique when playing the whistle. 
But of course, it’s optional. Jethro Tull wouldn’t be what they are/were if they had only cared about what’s correct or not.
And welcome to the forums, I’m pretty new myself, just been playing whistle for a few weeks. I think it’s an amazing instrument.
I really wanted to pick up an instrument that A. was traditional and produced the sound and created the mood that I love, B. Must be easy to carry around. C. Has a relatively compressed learning curve.
The pennywhistle seems to fit each requirement. You know, I tried picking up the fiddle and I did it for a while and made some progress, but it required so much work to become proficient that I simply couldn’t keep up and perform to my satisfaction given my work and personal life. Further, with the maintenance of the bow and strings, and general fussiness of violins, I just was not able to commit.
That’s not to say that I expect to become a proficient player of the tinwhistle overnight, but there is so much that makes it an attractive alternative to other traditional instruments that I had to at least give it a try. And as you say, it’s portable and convenient. It’s also an inexpensive alternative to other instruments (which is a big deal to cash strapped me), and personally, I love the lonely airs performed on a tinwhistle. And the sound is great. I think it evokes the same kind of unique mood that only the best bluegrass players can raise. So if all I learn to do is play a slow air on the tinwhistle, I’ll be a happy guy.
Thanks!
I don’t know ANYTHING about flute technique, so I’m totally unqualified to comment, but I will say that the gritty sound Ian pulls out of the flute is something I dig, so I guess from Ian’s perspective, it was mission accomplished! Having studied classical guitar for many years, and then some rock, jazz and blues, I am quick to notice all the really bad guitar technique executed by very successful musicians. But, hey, they sound pretty good in spite of their poor technique so I figure that my criticizing misses the point. If I were to call foul everytime I saw Neil Young do something technically awkward when he plays, I’d lose what it is that I love about him.
So yeah, technique is definately a consideration for me (I need that kind of structure or I’ll go nuts), but sometimes the rebels do some pretty cool things in spite of themselves.
Thanks for the kind welcome!
I’m not saying that Ian’s technique is bad, just that it wouldn’t fit with irish traditional music. But of course, one may use the whistle in other genres too, even if it’s prevalent in irish.
Gotcha. Yeah, it would be weird, eh?
True for me, too. Another plus for me: it is far more quiet than my clarinet. My landlord loves it for that, even if it does mean that he has to indure listening to a hundred repeats of the new songs and ornamentations I’m currently learning.
I’ve got my whistle for a good two weeks now and I’ve already started to carry it anywhere I go… Seems I’ve found a new obsession. 
Welcome to the board!
One of my kids is learning to play the clarinet, so I can relate to the volume thing! He’s pretty screechy, too. Yikes!
Welcome. I play everything but ITM on whistles. Try Christmas Carols. What is your goal with whistle playing?
Honestly? I love sea shanties (many of which are based in irish traditional music) and want to be able to whistle out a few good ones whennever I feel the urge. But additionaly, I just love music and the creative process and want another way to express it.
Yes, honestly. I never had any exposure to ITM and it all sounds the same to me. I do like the airs. I’ve only ever seen in person two people play a whistle. The first person was the son-in-law of our folk group’s keyboard player. He was visiting from out of town. I play church, folk, classic rock, torch songs (love 'em), classical, christmas carols, and just about anything else.
Keep a whistle in your car. It makes traffic jams a joy to behold.