Hello. I have been wanting to buy a Dixon low D whistle somewhere online, but I’m too afraid that I won’t even be able to reach all of the holes! Are there any small-handed people out there who have had success with playing one of these whistles? Many thanks!
Hi,
I had a dixon Low D for about a week. I could reach the holes using piper’s grip, but playing with my finger pads was an uncomfortable stretch. I’d guess my hands are average for a woman and pretty flexible from playing piano, flute etc. I didn’t like the upper octave sound on the Dixon…lots of air and little tone in my hands. The lower octave was ok. This was not the most expensive Dixon, though- around $100, so maybe the higher end models will sound better. I haven’t heard the Burke Viper EZ yet. They have closer finger spacing, and according to one review, a slight loss of tone as a result. Good luck finding your whistle!
The small hands/Low D dilemma comes up frequently. You can do a search using the link at the top of the page to see what is generally suggested. A frequent suggestion would be the Sweetheart Resonance low D whistle with the EZ Reach hole spacing. The Resonance has a conical bore and smaller holes than many low D’s. http://www.sweetheartflute.com/lowwhistle.html
Tony Dixon also offers a low D based on his conical three piece polymer flute. Model number DX030 for the flute and DX030WHD for the whistle head. Again the holes on the Dixon are smallish and spaced closer than the average cylindrical low D. There are rumors of a newer Dixon low D in the works but I have no idea what the hole layout might be.
I frequently recommend the tunable polymer Dixon low D (model DX021) as a first low D. I personally find the tone to be pleasant across the two octaves albeit a bit quieter than some other low D’s. I own/play several Burke low D’s as well. One is the composite EZ model. Comparing the reach and hole sizing between a cylindrical Dixon polymer low D and the Burke EZ there is only a 2mm difference between the stretch on the Dixon and the Burke for each hand. The Burke is 2mm closer for the bottom hand and the Dixon is 2mm closer for the top hand. So not a significant difference. I experience no serious loss in tone or note strength on the Burke EZ. And I do own a couple of the Burke pro low D’s which I favor. The Burke whistles offer a rotatable bottom hole configuration and that makes the stretch a lot more manageable for many people. The Burkes are very good whistles, IMO.
Piper’s Grip makes most low D’s accessible to smaller hands. It’s a skill worth developing, IMO. If you can borrow a low D to experiment with a piper’s grip, it might be worthwhile. Good luck! …and welcome to the C&F forums.
Feadoggie
Yes! I have this Dixon Plastic(black) Low “D” whistle and I have small hands for a guy and I have no trouble with this whistle but I must say at this point with my playing I can’t play reels or Jigs as of yet on it…It will make a Bb Gen or Jerry Freemsn’s A Brass whistle seem easy to play tho… The reach is not as bad as I thought it would be. I like the sound of this whistle a lot! I think it’s the Dixon DX-012 if my memory serves me well.
www.tuxedomusic.com
I’ll second the Sweetheart Resonance recommendation. My wife can play it, and she has a small reach. Great, flutey sounding whistle.
The WD Sweet Onyx has the friendly reach of the Resonance, without the higher price. Mine is great to play, even with my skinny fingers. It is a 3-part whistle, so I can turn the bottom piece a bit to facilitate reach as well.
Deb
aye. I went to a local music shop and tried out a Low D whistle. Susato? I think… Anyway, i tried for about ten minutes or so. Couldn’t even get a decent scale down. My hands hurt afterwards, too. Ah well. Thanks for the replies!
Don’t give up on the back of 10 minutes with a Susato daynamite, there are ways to play a low D easily. I have pretty average sized hands but use my pinky rather than the ring finger for the bottom D, this makes it very easy and virtually no stretch. And it’s not unusual - if you’re aware of the scale on the Uilleann Pipes, D is all fingers down and E is raising the pinky and the ring finger. So effectively if you treat the first couple of holes on the low D as pipes, only without the ghost D hole, then it really is very easy to play, just takes a wee bit getting used to.
I am old enough to have learned that one size does not fit all - in anything. So many threads concerning small hands and low whistles always spend much time on different brands, models, and design issues concerning various instruments. And that is fine… However, in Feadoggie’s post, placed innocently among the rest of the wisdom, is written: Piper’s Grip makes most low D’s accessible to smaller hands. It’s a skill worth developing. Such truth..
I understand that piper’s grip is just one more technique to be learned in the long whistle journey. There are so many others, that one more can seem burdensome. However, once learned, it makes things so natural. If polled, I know that quite a number of players would admit to using piper’s grip for more than the lowest of whistles. it simply works. I echo Feadoggie’s sentiment in respectfully suggesting that individuals who wish to play low whistles should learn the technique.
Best to all.
Byll
Yes.
I absolutely hated pipers’ grip, and was slightly ashamed to find it took me less than a morning to get used to it. Such a fuss over nothing 
The only difference between the EZ and regular Burke Viper is the size and location of the bottom hole. The bottom hole on the EZ is higher up and smaller than on the regular. This makes for less volume in the E. A side by side comparison makes this obvious.
Even with piper’s grip, my hands are slight enough to be unable to cover the holes on the straight bored low whistles I tried. My ring finger is a size 5.5. (They are almost skeletal.) I’m the one they send in at work when something jams in the copier beyond anyone else’s reach. I would encourage you to check out a conical bore low d whistle. They are a little scarcer, but very worth the hunt. I use piper’s grip on the bottom holes of the Onyx. The difference is that I can cover the holes and play without pain and fatigue.
Deb
So you’re using piper’s grip now? Was this before or after your description of problems with your slippery Howard?
I can’t play the Howard at all unless I use the second joint of all fingers, otherwise I can’t play the bottom D. Ginormous holes…
OK, thanks, ducks. I think I have an inkling now of what you’re dealing with.
So did mine when I first started, but after picking up the Low D for a few minutes now and again the pain went away and the hole coverage improved.
I too have small hands and skinny fingers, both of which are not friendly to low whistle playing so I was a long time on the search. I ended up getting my whistles from Nick Metcalf at Ethnicwind. I have his low D, Low F and Mid G so far and am planning on replacing my Mid A Susato with another Ethnicwind. I had a Mid or also called Low G from Susato with two keys on it but I really hated the keys because it interferes with playing expressively. I used the whistle a lot in performances and it along with the Susato A had great volume but I was not happy with the harshness and the key problems with the G. I decided to take the plunge and get a low D from Ethnicwind that had offset holes. I was able to play it pretty well but of course had to use pipers grip as I do on anything lower than a Bb anyway. His whistles don’t have the great volume but they make up for that in good tone in my opinion but like all low whistles they take some practice to play in proper tone. It is just one of their challenges that pretty much assure the fact that I am the only low whistle player in my city, so look on the bright side, I am in demand. Susatos are pretty good as far as proper tone is concerned but the keys were a problem for me and the fact that Susato is not going to offset the holes for me to make me happy. After the Low D purchase I made on ebay I ordered the Low F and was pretty happy with it with the offset holes but I must admit that I need some more hours on it. I just received my low G and asked Nick to make it with the holes not quite so offset and he just offset the bottom set and it actually turned out perfectly for me. I can play it all day without hand fatigue. At least with Ethnicwind I can order a custom whistle and I do play through a mic so volume issues can be dealt with there. I don’t believe that there is the perfect whistle because what solves one issue seems to make another one but so far this has been a good solution for my problem. I play publicly every week and grab a new whistle probably five times during performance so I do need something that is going to work. I have noticed that the Low whistles need very little pressure on the low end and a lot of push on the top but I am used to it. This is just my humble opinion and experience so good luck in your quest.
Hi, I just received a Burke low D whistle. I also have small hands but the offset bottom hole definitely helps. I wouldn’t be able to play it without using a pipers’ grip, but it feels very comfortable to me to play that way. Now all I have to do is practice!
The Burke low D is actually very comfortable because not only is the last hole offset, you can move it to maximize your comfort. Ronaldo Reyburn makes a heavy Low D with offset holes on the third and sixth fingers. It is heavy enough to use for personal defense if you need to. 
Rob Gandara (pipefitters Union) will adjust the last hole as necessary for you. His carbon fiber whistles are pretty much indestructible. None of these are cheap, but you should be able to find your comfort zone with one of the above. Or not. 
To take what Bugz posted further, Ronaldo also advocates the option of using the “pinkie”. From the Reyburn website:
“In an attempt to make the low whistles more accessible to more people, Reyburn Whistles is offering an off-set pattern with the 3rd and 6th holes off-set to more comfortably fit the hands of the player. In using this pattern, the sixth hole, generally the one most difficult to cover, is covered by the “pinkie” finger which greatly improves the reach of the player. This approach allows the player to use the more sensitive pads of the fingers to cover the holes.”