Hello! I just bought a Burke narrow bore high D whistle. The upper octave down to low G is very sweet and easy to play. F# to D are very quiet. My Susato had difficult high notes in the upper octave that were excessively loud, but the low notes of the low octave were easy to play and sweet.
Is this simply a trade off - sweetness of one octave makes the other probematic? Best regards.
Mike
I happen to be testing a Burke narrow bore D (DBN) at the moment. And no, there shouldn’t be any problem with the volume of the lower notes. The whistle is very well balanced across the registers. In fact, all the Burkes I’ve tried have a notably strong bottom end.
A sound clip of your playing would really help to diagnose. It’s possible that you’re overblowing the higher notes, making the lower range seem weak by comparison. Or you’re using the wrong breath approach for the bottom notes.
That said, every whistle is a compromise of characteristics - volume, balance, tone, chirp, intonation, backpressure, feel, etc. The Susato high notes can be tamed if you want the rest of what it offers.
I’m sure Mike Burke would be happy to take a look. But I’d have an experienced local player check it before assuming that the problem is the instrument. Good luck!
Not exactly a trade-off. It is a balancing act making a whistle that works well over the two full octaves. Burkes are pretty well balanced. Now that balance has changed over the years I’ve played Burkes. The whistles produced in the early 2000’s were biased a bit toward the top end and were weaker in the bottom end. But I do not believe Mike made a narrow bore D in those days. By the time the black tip came into production the bottom end was more solid. The whistles made since mid-2007 are even better in the low end but still very nice up top. Just my personal observations though.
Can we assume that you purchased the whistle new from Mike Burke?
I have three Burke narrow bore high D’s, one in each material (and I’ve owned two other Burke NBs as well). I would describe them as very even and predictable whistles across the compass of the instrument. The breath curve is pretty smooth with no great push necessary at the top and no backing way off at the bottom. In fact they are about the most well behaved whistles I have ever played. It’s pretty natural for the second octave to be louder than the low octave. But I would not describe any of my Burke NB’s as quiet in the bottom half of the first octave.
Now the Burke NB is a somewhat different whistle from a Susato, especially the S series high D. Is your Susato a V or an S series? So breath control varies between the two Susatos and are different still from the Burkes.. You may just need some time to get familiar with the Burke.
Feadoggie
Thanks. I’ll see about putting on a sound clip. Perhaps I am overblowing the high notes and that makes the low notes seem weak.
I bought the whisle new from Mr. Burke about 6 weeks ago. I wanted a quieter whistle that was easier to play in the high octave since I’m a newbie and the Susato was too harsh for me in the high notes of the upper octive. It is a regular bore high D. Best regards.
Mike
Well the Burke should be easier to play and less harsh in the upper octave compared to the S series Susato. But the Burke narrow bore is not really a quiet whistle. While I’ve never measured the volume difference between the narrow bore and the standard bore Burkes, either is plenty loud to play in a large group of musicians, IME. So if you are approaching it with an assumption that it will be quiet you’ll be getting strange results. Most whistles love to be driven. A Burke likes to have a good flow of air going through it to get the most out of it. But the top end does not need anything as strong as the Susato.
Feadoggie
Agree with all that. The narrow bore is overall quieter than the session bore (or Susato). But it’s comparable in volume to other 1/2 inch bore whistles - Sindt, Oak, Gen, etc. I exercised it yesterday at an 8-player session, and it held it’s own just fine, a nice blend.
Yes, I had a narrow bore aluminum burke which had plenty of volume, more than a Sindt, as I recall.
The bottom should be strong, too. Mike B is a good fellow and you can certainly contact him.
Hello! Recording is tough since I know folks will be listening!
Here is the address on box.net. I uploaded Road to Lisdoonvarna and The Lonesome Jig, both as Wav files. Best regards.
Mike
That link is The Lonesome Jig only, but that’s enough. 
I think the whistle sounds fine. You start well with nice and strong F#,E,D. By the B part you’re starting to overblow a bit into the second octave, and maybe tightening the embouchure, so you miss it when you come back down. But that kind of breath and embouchure control is a matter of practice.
Nice cuts, by the way, and good rhythm. If you can keep your cut timing and fingering that steady, you’ll be in good shape when you start to speed things up.
Hi Everyone,
There have been some great answers to the question on this thread with a lot of historic data in them as well.
I will say that I can voice any whistle I make to be a softer blower or a more dynamic whistle to meet the preferences of the player involved. If a customer buys a narrow bore, I try to hit a middle ground with a nice solid bell note if the whistle is not blown too hard. It is a delicate thing, but getting a tactile feel for the action can result in more sound without a break on a soft blower.
If I voice more for a dynamic whistle, then the lower octave notes can be bent a little and swelled, much like a low whistle, but certainly not to that extent.
There is an interaction between sweetness and making a whistle louder and more dynamic. One need not produce a harsh sound to get a dynamic whistle, but the technique for playing it must be a bit more aggressive to get the most music out of it. The dynamic range allows more expression for airs and also for faster tunes as well, on sustained notes.
Therefore, the whistle may be tweaked a bit to make it a bit more dynamic, with the result that it will also be a bit louder and the playing style has to match the new voicing.
msheald may contact me about this if they do not adjust to the instrument. I have not played a Susato for a while, but it may be that there will be an adjustment in going from a whistle that needs more breath or a faster attack on notes in the octave to play effectively to a more sensitive instrument that has a quick and agile characteristic like I expect with the D Brass Narrow Bore. If you decide that you want it tweaked a bit, please contact me and you can send it back for that.
All the best
Michael Burke
Hello, Mr. Burke.
Thank you for your kind note.
I suspect that I simply need to play the whistle for a while in order to get a feel of it. Thank you for your offer. Best regards.
Mike
Hello! After playing the narrow bore high D more, I decided that I felt more comfortable with a whistle that required more pressure to break from the low octave to the high octave for the low D, E, and F#. Mr. Burke offered to tweak my whistle, but also suggested that a session bore whislte might provide the pressure characteristics that I wanted.
Even though I had had the whistle for about 7 weeks instead of 4 as stated in his return policy, Mr. Burke kinldy took my narrow bore whistle back in exchange. He was very professional and a pleasure to deal with.
I’ll post again once I’ve played the session bore to let folks know how I make out with it. Best regards.
Mike
Hello! Mr. Burke was kind enough to exchange my narrow bore high D for a session bore high D. The session bore fits my playing style very well. The low notes are strong, and the pressure to jump octaves is just right for me.
Of interest, while I was waiting, I practiced on a narrow bore Susato high D. I would rate the pressure requirements as follows from low to high: Burke narrow bore, Burke session bore, Susato narrow bore, Susato session bore. Best regards.
Mike
Congratulations!
I’d love to hear more clips if you ever feel like it.