Wondering if some of the seasoned veterans can confirm or deny my perceptions thus far on my journey to learn whistle playing at the autumn of life.
I began playing whistle 30 months ago after matriculating from using a recorder as a vehicle to finally learn to read music at 59 years of age. I’ve always believed that to learn to use any new instrument or tool, one must remove flaws in the mechanism first so that bad habits don’t develop through compensating for inherent design or production flaws. So I’ve always bought either tweaked or hand built instruments to make sure that if anything went wrong it was me and not the instrument. It’s not a function of price as much as having a skilled artist manually adjust for deficiencies.
I’ve progressed to the point where I don’t hear comments from neighbors like “we weren’t sure you were ever going to figure out that note” or “honey, I forgot something at the store, back in an hour or so when you’re finished.” Now it’s more like “we really enjoy that third tune you played last night while having a drink in the back yard, play it whenever you want” or “isn’t that the dance tune from Robin Hood or was it Barry Lyndon.”
I’ve noticed that whistles which I didn’t like at first now sound very different to me and that some of them sound much better on some tunes/songs than do others. Of the 26 I own, I’ve settled on six (seven actually) high D whistles which seem to fit all situations for me, at least for now. I have a Sindt brass/silver, Hudson Wind brass, Jerry Mellow Dog or Bluebird (can’t decide between the two), Busman dymonwood/delrin, Parks Walkabout and Goldie. I have others which cost more and less but these are the ones I play all the time. I can play anything in my repertoire on any of these but some are much better than others for a particular tune.
At first, I struggled with the Busman but I learned that because it is a bold whistle it requires a bold player and that comes from experience. Reaching between that first D and third D on a whistle with this much power can make one a lot of enemies at first but when those notes become solid, the sound is amazing and tunes like Mna na Heirann become magical. Same exact issue with the Goldie. Jerry and Carey’s whistles are a dream to learn on and nothing I own is better in my hands for faster tunes like Cooley’s or Toss the Feathers. The Hudson Winds or Sindt simply have no flaws, as long as you learn to half-hole and if you’re not willing to do that don’t take up the whistle since you’re handicapping yourself.
If your whistle clogs from spit, place it further forward in your mouth. You only need the tip of it just far enough into your mouth to blow cleanly. Don’t shove the whole mouthpiece into your mouth. Learn to suck back! Hey, it was in your mouth before it was in the whistle. It’s the only sure way you can clear the clog in the middle of a tune. And I believe it was MT Guru who suggested using dental floss to “wax” the inside of your mouthpiece rather than dupronol or soap solution. Sheer genius, that guy!
I also started out playing aires and slower tunes in the mistaken belief that they are easier to learn. Wrong. Having to hold notes for extended periods of time will dramatically expose weakness in breath control and timing. Simple tunes, absolutely should be the place where beginners start, but my biggest mistake was not interspersing some jigs and reels into the mix.
Reading music is not absolutely necessary for whistle, but it certainly helps. I find now that memorizing is the best choice. It also allows one to deal with tunes where there might be regional or other differences and sheet music just isn’t available. I have found that working out fingerings and placing them on sheet music to correspond with the actual notes is a good way to learn in the beginning. After you develop muscle memory in your fingers you won’t need it any more.
Breath control is more important than finger control. Squeaking is just as often the timing of breath during articulations or ornaments as it is finger placement. Finger placement is critical and will change somewhat between whistles but your mind will compensate for that with practice. Breath control is insidious since not only will different instruments require different breath control, more or less volume, slightly different embouchure, greater or less speed or attack on octave transitions, but it may require you to breath in different places on the same tune which is often very difficult.
Buy good whistles. I’m not saying that the Generation in the box of 100 isn’t a good whistle but a whistle that a professional has taken the time to tweak or make will be a good whistle. They don’t have to cost much. Practice every day, even if it’s only for fifteen minutes. Play scales to learn how to play in the different keys each whistle offers but don’t make it the primary portion of your practice. Play tunes. Break them down into sections and play each section over and over again, then put them together when each is solid. I start with three bars at a time then work on individual transitions within those sections until I can play them five times in a row without mistakes.
Don’t point the whistle straight down when playing. It can be angled but it should be closer to horizontal than vertical. Low whistles may require a more vertical position if you have shorter arms or fingers. But IMO fingering is more efficient, particularly in the early stages, and you don’t have to think about just holding on to the whistle and haven’t mastered keeping R4 (right pinkie) on the tube yet. Use the pads of your fingers not the tips. Keep your fingers as straight as possible but if you’ve got big hands or a little arthritis like me (I’ve got both) a little curve won’t hurt you and will actually help quite a lot.
Sorry for the length of this but we seem to have recruited quite a few new whistle players recently and I thought my experience might help them progress.
Critique’s welcomed.
ecohawk
. Wanted to make sure I understood all the variables. When you read all this conflicting information sometimes you just have to dive in and see for yourself. Plus it’s fun!