Hey, this is my first post here. I am seriously looking into taking up the whistle. I just don’t know which kind I should get.
I have been looking at the Original Clarke, but, some offer a tweeked version and others don’t. Is the tweeked one worth the extra money, or as a new player will it not matter?
I have seen Fine tuned Shaws for like $35.
I just want to make sure I get the best one to start with. I have a good ear for tone, and I just want to start out right. I don’t want to get frustrated right away from a crappy cheap one.
Thank you for any insight that you may give me.
This has been discussed here endlessly. The consensus is that you can save yourself a lot of time by simply buying one of everything you hear about.
Seriously, though. A few extra bucks for a tweaked anything is usually money well spent, considering the time you’ll spend with it. Hope that helps a little.
Hi jkwest, welcome to C&F, and the exciting world of whistles. Trying to buy one whistle has been tried but never works. But it is good to have at least one that is tweaked.
I’m also a newabie. I have some ordinary Generations, but fell in love when I got a Dixon alloy. Then I got myself someone who could teach me the real stuff. Then I traded (with a little bit of extra cost) my Dixon for a Chieftain, and guess what: I was disappointed, because I was not ready for the heavy blowing and the loudness. That’s when I got confronted with the fact that first I have to learn to whistle and then choose the whistle that suits me best by listening to many different ones and try many. Someone told me that whatever you buy, if you can’t whistle, it’s no use, and he was right of course.
Ok, so I purchased a lovely tweaked Shaw from thewhistlestop. And I’m going to buy a tweaked Sweetone next week to compare the sounds. Is there any good books that your guys can recommend to a newb?
I have read up on the Clarke Book..and am considering a purchase. Any other good ones out there?
I will check this site on a regular basis. It was actually the reviews here about the Shaw D that made me choose it. I will stick around, I promise.
Just like with whistles, you can drown in choices with method books. I suggest you select a highly regarded book that includes a CD (like the Ochs book) and stay faithful to it for a while. After learning a while, you’ll start to understand what direction you are interested in taking your learning, and what further resources are necessary.
Hi jkwest—Welcome to the forum! I have seen a couple of quite knowledgeable whistle players highly recommend the Clarke book here on the forum. I have not used it myself, but their opinions would go a long way with me. I agree with dDave’s advice about getting the CD and also with sticking with one book for awhile and not getting all bogged down with tons of different opinions and advice at first. It can get overwhelming when you have too many options. Just my opinion, no expert here.
Welcome!
Get Grey Larsen’s book, “The Tin Whistle Toolbox” even if you have already bought another tutorial book. You can get it at the whistle shop. This book helped me IMMENSELY. Not only does it contain exercises to work on, and a CD to work with, but the songs contain notations for cuts, slides and other ornaments so you can get a feel about how to use them. I consider this book essential to every learner. You can get it from the Whistle Shop, or from Chiff and Fipple, or Grey Larsen has his own website.
Welcome to C&F, jkwest. I, too am a new whistler. By all means, get one that is tweaked to begin with. You’ll never regret it. The one I like best is Jerry Freeman’s Mellow Dog, Key of D. I’ve tried others but the Mellow Dog is great. Jerry sells the Mellow Dog on ebay all the time. Right now forget what he charges.
Just got my next step up (a big one), a Burke. Just got it, but haven’t had a chance to really play it yet.
As for a book, The Clarke Tin Whistle with CD was recommended by many and I’ll agree. It’s a good one.
Hope this helps.
Donn
I’ve been playing about a year, but it’s been a little on and off. So, I’m still new myself.
I have both the Bill Ochs book and the Grey Larsen book. My Larsen book is the full book, not just the toolbox. But, I was under the impression that the information was the same, and that basically the flute stuff was left out.
Anyway, the Ochs book is very thin and doesn’t look like much. However, it’s well written and to the point.
The Larsen book is meticulously detailed. Where the Ochs book has one or two 5" x 7" pages (my edition) on cuts, Larsen spends twenty 8.5" x 11" pages.
It depends on what you want and how much you want to read. I normally like very detailed explanations, but found Larsen’s book a bit much at times.
I would start with some of the online tutors. There are a few good ones.
Howdy jkwest, I’m a fairly new whistler myself and decided to put my two cents in. I started with a Tweaked Sweetone and a Tweaked Generation plus a non tweaked Walton. The Sweetone is my favorite most days,to my ear it’s a little softer and warmer wheras the Generation is brighter and crisper. I’ve just ordered a Tweaked Clarke just out of curiosity!! As for instruction I have the Phil Ochs Clarke book and like it for basic instruction. I got the Cathal McConnel Irish Pennywhitsle book and 3cds about 1 week ago and love it. It’s good,granted a lot of it is over our head but it still gives us an idea of what great whisling sounds like and a lot of the tunes are accessible after working thru the Ochs book. I really want to get the Grey Larsen book after reading some of the reviews so good luck. Stevie.
I just bought a second whistle today on EBay. It is an Original Clarke C. Not sure the diff between the D and C are yet, but, it was such a steal, I couldn’t pass it by.
$4.00 for the whistle, Clarke book and cassette. $5.50 after shipping. I feel fine with the investment. I’m sure I can find my cassette player somewhere… >.>
Anyways, thank you again!! Maybe I’ll actually get to play one soon…haha..
My 2 cents: The first whistle I really liked was a Feadog. I know, I know, it takes more breath control than many other cheapies, but I liked the challenge and I loved the sound of the whistle when I did get a note just right. For the record, I had a Clarke original, a Walton and a Walton LBW. The Feadog was the one that got me to practicing regularly - and I guess that’s my real message. Buy several and find the one you’ll practice with every day because that’s the one that will teach you to whistle. For a few more bucks, my favorite practice whistle now is a Mack Hoover whitecap on a Feadog tube - it is much quieter than the stock Feadog which makes practicing easier on the family.
I have several books but found the online sites more interesting, particularly Brother Steve’s site. The book I’ve used more that all the rest put together is “Ireland’s Best Tin Whistle Tunes” by Clare MeKenna. It’s not a turotial, just a book of tunes with a CD. It’s got 110 of the more common tunes. The tunes on the CD are played with little ornamentation on the early/easier tunes and the ornamentation ramps up with the difficulty of the tunes. Again, no explanation, just a book of dots and a nicely done CD. I have the CD loaded on my mp3 player and listen to the tunes driving to and from work; when I practice a new tune, it is very familiar to me and I learn it much faster. The book and CD weren’t very expensive; about US$15 as I recall.
Perhaps the most valuable resource for the whistle is right here in front of you - Chiff and Fipple provides tips, companionship, humor, motivation, insight and good folks all in one neat, free package. Welcome to the world of whistling.
The difference between the D and the C is the scale. When you cover all six holes, the D whistle will play the second D above middle C. When you cover all six holes on the C whistle, by contrast, it plays the C above middle C.
You’ll probably need to use your D whistle if you want to play with other people (e.g., in a session, and to play along with most recordings). But a C whistle will work fine for getting started learning by yourself as long as the tape you got is also in C.
The Clarke original is a fine pennywhistle - it embodies much of the ethos of this cheeky little instrument: It is about as simple as an instrument can be, it is full of challenges; it has a seam on the back that will be a bit uncomfortable until you get used to it, it is not the easiest to control, it will take a lot of breath but should sound pretty good. The Clarke original is probably on the steeper side of the learning curve but the rewards come sooner if you persist.
As for tweaking - best to try your own hand at that after you have a few whistles in reserve your Clarke is a good candidate for personal customization, if you get it tweaked by someone else, you will miss-out on that particular joy.
But it is good to have at least one that is tweaked.