this is my first post here, so let me first give a quick introduction. I’m living in Belgium, so English is not my main language. So excuse me for the typing error’s.
I’ve bought my first whisle yesterday. A susato high D. Haven’t played an instrument before but after watching some whistler video’s on youtube I decided to try it myself. At first, I wanted to get a low D, because I like the sound much more then the sound of a high D. After reading a few comments on some whistle shops, were they all recomended a high D as a first whisle, I did follow there advice and bought one.
I’ve started with Ryan Duns lessons on youtube and was suprised that after about 2 hours of practice I could play the songs from his first 3 lessons whithout that many mistakes. Looks like I’ve chosen the right instrument for myself.
But there is one thing. The high note’s on this whisle are just hurting my ears… and the whistle is really loud, even if you try to play rather silent…
So now I was thinking of allready bying a low D and go further with that whisle. They say it’s harder because the holes are wider appart and bigger, and I can see that as a problem for who has small hands, but I’m almost 2m high and have rather big hands with large fingers. Would it be than much easier for me to play the low D, or would it still be a lot harder then playing the high D?
And for the low D, which whisles are the better low to mid prized ones? I would be looking for a whisle that is not to loud (the neighbours would appreciate that ) and that gives a nice sound and isn’t to hard to play.
i have 2 low D whistles one needs the pipers grip (easy to get after a few days playing) so big hands aint a problem
and i have 1 with offset holes and i can play just like any other whistle (with my finger tips )
Know that I’m not an expert, but I’ll give you my thoughts on your problem anyway.
Part of the problem, as I see it, is the Susato. I have one and can’t stand the noise it makes, so I very rarely play it.
There are louder and softer whistles. Guido Gonzato’s whistles are getting good comments here: http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=59823
I’ve never played one, but you might like one of his lager whistles. I like my Mack Hoover quiet whistle.
Whistles (supposedly regardless of the key) can damage your hearing. I’ve not tested this, but I’d guess that almost any of the whistles preferred for sessions would be loud enough to do damage to your hearing, perhaps depending on the acoustics of the room.
I often wear hearing protection, either plugs or a headset, depending on which whistle I choose and which room I’m playing in.
If it were me, I don’t think I’d move over to the low whistle right away. It probably would be quieter, but I wonder if it’d be as easy to build your grace and speed.
If you find yourself really loving the woodwinds, you may want to try the wooden flute eventually. It’s played very similar to the pennywhistle and the sound quality can be stunningly beautiful. Of course, playing the flute is more complicated than playing a pennywhistle, so you’d probably see slower progress on the flute.
I’ve read that thread a few minutes ago. I could were ear-protection, but it’s also that I don’t like bothering the neighbours to much. I would like to be able to play whenever I feel like, day and night, and a high whistle just seems to be to loud to do that.
After listening to some low D whistles, I have the feeling that they are a lot more quiet. That and the lower tone would fit me a lot more I think.
I’m going to check out the softer whistles you mentioned above also, that could also be a sollution.
But would you guy’s strongly recommend continuing with a high D whistle until I get the hang of it before switching to a low D or do you think it would be possible to make the change now and just start over from the beginning (which isn’t a big deal since I just got started..).
The flute would also be a possibility, but I"m afraid that would be a little to difficult to start with. But as far as sound go’s, the flute is definatly my favourit.
Yes, you should start with the instrument you want to play. Starting with a small whistle is only an opinion and not a fact that needs to be followed.
Your motivation is more important.
It seems to me that most people recommend a high D because:
1 - It’s the most useful and common key for Irish traditional music.
2 - Inexpensive good high D whistles are easy to find. A good thing if you are experimenting and don’t know if you will stick with it.
3 - The lower keys require more finger stretch and often require more careful finger placement.
People can and do start out on low D whistles. It’s just not common. As someone suggested, a Generation Bb is relatively cheap and has a nice sound. An A whistle would also be good, but you probably will pay a lot more. Either key would allow you to play without Piper’s Grip. (http://www.chiffandfipple.com/pipers.html)
For practice in apartments and other locations where you don’t want to disturb others, I would consider a whistle mute or the Every whistle from Parks which has a built in mute. Just remember that you need practice time without the mute to pick up proper breath control.
If you use the search function to look for “mute” in old threads, I am sure you will see several examples of how to keep the noise down.
Thanks again for all the answers! Friendly people over here! I like it.
So, after reading all the answers, I think I gonna try to mute my Susato so I can keep practicing on this whistle and I also gonna start looking for a nice low D whistle. Kind of like taity is doing. Practicing on the high D and once I got it on the high D, moving over to the low D. I think that would work for me.
So about the low D, what would you recomment? The local shop sells dixon and susato. Should I go for a low D from one of these manufacturers or are there better one’s on the market that I can order on-line? Not looking for a real expensive one, but it has to be a good one, that I can enjoy for many years. I don’t have a certain budget, just want one that is good quality. Since I don’t plan on playing in group, it doesn’t need to be tuneable. Any help would be apreciated.
Tom, I believe that you can jump to the whistle right away. In recently posted interview with…ah, my memory…I believe it was Sean Potts, it´s been said that even children were picking pipes (which have bigger finger stretch than high whistle too), and learning them straight away. Of course, there´s different cultural context, lack of “musical houses” in continental Europe, but still, I think it should be no problem.
To matter of brand…the difference between “low end” and “high end” low whistles is not as big as in case of high whistles…my friend recently bought Dixon low D and it plays rather nicely, although it can be hardly measured with better (and not so much more costly) whistles.
I tried Overton low D, Kerry D, Alba and Dixon - Overton seemed as clear winner to me (by far) - on the other hand, I´ve heard very good remarks about Burke Viper…since I haven´t tried it, I can´t elaborate on that.
Anyway, I think, since the best (probably) low whistles are around 200-250 euros, including VAT, which is not truly cheap, but still, it doesn´t seem that much to me. And you´ll have instrument for a lifetime, I believe.
I like the Burke low D viper. Not only does it have a terrific sound, you can rotate the bottom hole so that it is offset. That makes it easy to play for most sized hands. It isn’t tough to pick up a low D at all. And it is the right key if you want to play in some local sessions.
I have a Susato low D and it’s quite nice, a bit difficult to play because of the finger stretching, but I can manage it with piper’s grip (i’m 1,80 m, with average size hands). I think it wouldn’t give you a lot of troubles if you are almost 2 m.
For a quiet high D whistle you may want to look at an “Everywhistle”, which has a mute function and makes it a very nice practice whistle (www.parkswhistles.com).
I already play GHB’s in Bb and SSP’s in low A; is a low D whistle really that much more of a stretch than my low A chanter?
It’s not a whistle, but I have a very old Lawrie practice chanter in African blackwood (with elephant ivory ferrule and sole) who’s tone is absolutely lovely; particularly compared to modern black plastic PC’s that sound very much to me like kazoos.
went to a local music shop today and I’ve tried out a few low D whistles.
The one’s I’ve tried out are:
Susato Low D tunable
Dixon Low D non-tunable
Chieftain V3 non-tunable
MK Low D tunable (not for sale, was the whistle from the shop owner, just to compare it to the other whistles)
After trying these I must say that I like the Chieftaine and the MK much more then the Susato and Dixon. The sound is much better in my oppinion
I like the sound of the MK a little better then the sound of the Chieftaine, but the Chieftaine is a little softer (not that loud as the MK) and seems to be a little easier to play. So for the moment, I like the Chieftaine V3 best.
I left the shop empty handed cause I wanted to do a little more research about that V3. All the reviews I’ve found are possitive, appart from that they are very breathy wich seems to bother some people. It didn’t bother me, so I’m thinking going back to the shop tomorrow to buy the Chieftain V3. Price was 151 euro, wich isn’t that much if I can enjoy it for many years.
So what do you guys think? Should I buy this whistle or are there things I need to know before I do that? Would this whistle be a good choice for a beginner?
Buy it! You’ll buy more in the future anyway… I wish we had music stores over here that had the selection you found - if you find a Generation in the stores around here, you’re lucky…
Yes, go for it!! I think the Chieftain V3 is a very good low D, and if you had the possibility of trying it out and you liked it, there’s no reason for not buying it.
I believe that you are close to Colin Goldie who makes Overton whistles. Apparently they are “living in Germany right at the border to the Netherlands and Belgium”. I’d throw an endorsement their way anytime. Go to http://www.overton.de/ - now!
Post the hole spacings on your chanter for a more precise answer to your question.
Low D is a full fifth below A. So yes, the scale length is around 50% longer. And the spacing between holes B2 and B3 on the Susato is notoriously large.
As one comparison, here’s the spacing (center to center) on the GG low D:
B1-B2 32 mm / B2-B3 54 mm
Most people would find piper’s grip necessary to cover that spacing with any degree of comfort.
) and that gives a nice sound and isn’t to hard to play.