New To Whistles Advice Needed

Whistle
1

Hi
Im a complete newbie on this subject so would welcome a bit of advice .

I like the sound of the low whistles in eg Riverdance Reel around the Sun or the sound from the beginning of Braveheart they have a very rich mystical sound. I dont want to spend a fortune till ive tried one , was thinking of Dixon DX003 Polymer Low D Whistle or TONY DIXON LOW D TENOR WHISTLE DX012 TUNABLE ?

Are they easy to learn ? I can play a recorder inside out by ear ,not sure how i do it ? i just think of a tune and it comes out .will this help or are the notes in a completley differant place?

2

easy to learn…ah, sure

think/comes out…ah, sure (not the same note by concert pitch name but ~~~ )

a “D” whistle will finger concert D with six fingers down

D  XXX XXX
E  XXX XXO
F# XXX XOO
G  XXX OOO
A  XXO OOO
B  XOO OOO
C# OOO OOO

what’s all fine once ya get used to it…(really F# is the only curve in the mix.)

3

Thanks Denny :thumbsup:

4

you’d need a recorder in “C” to get the same notes (ignoring all of the forked fingerings/cross fingerings that the recorder has)

5

Welcome!

If you want to check the fingering before plumping for a low D, you could start with a cheap high D whistle - lots of choices are available.

The Dixon polymer low D is a good starter low whistle, or check out Guido’s home made PVC option. Depending of what recorder you play, the finger stretch might be an issue, which is another reason to start with a high whistle, or maybe an alto whistle - something like a Generation Bb.

You can play a whistle in the same style as playing a recorder, but I think that’s missing some of the unique whistle characteristics. For instance, little things like not tonguing make a big difference to the sound…

6

aw, they’re both whistles stuck on a stick with holes… :poke:

7

You can never go wrong with a Susato low D. I recorded a whole album with one of the early ones ( it had a wooden block instead of plastic) and it sounded great. The transition from recorder whistle to should be be fairly smooth and the tonguing stacatto is not a worry, it certainly has it’s place, IMHO. Good luck and happy whistling!

8

Thanks for all your replies ,you have been a great help

9

PM sent.