I have a Feadog brass whistle in D, and I am having so many problems with the 2nd octave!! The notes crack all over the place, and I just can’t figure it out!
I’m sure this is a common problem…but the thing is, I’m a flute player! I’m studying flute performance in university, so I consider myself a pretty professional flutist. You’d think I could play the tin whistle without much difficulty, right? I mean, the breathing and air pressure concepts are basically the same as flute for reaching the high registers.
Any suggestions on what I may be doing wrong? I’ve read through the forum alot and seen stuff about tweaking the whistle…but I really have no idea how that works so I don’t want to try it!
I REALLY want to play the whistle well! I have for years…my dad’s from Cape Breton, so I’ve spent many a summer there surrounded by wonderful music, and I want to PLAY IT!!!
First, don’t beat yourself up. The cackle you describe is something I was writing about in a different thread on this forum a couple of days ago.
Feadogs and Generations (as well as several other cylindrical bore whistles) are known for having a shrillish tone and for not playing cleanly in the second octave.
Before you give up on tin whistles, try different brands (and materials) until you find one that suits you and your playing style.
Among cheap whistles, Clarkes are a favorite of mine. Among mid-range whistles, Susatos are well regarded (I just recently got my first Susato–a C–and I really like it). For a higher-end(ish) whistle, I’d recommend Dave O’Brien. I bought one of his copper whistles a few months ago and am still delieriously happy with it.
To tell you the truth,
just recently I’ve visited a friend who has a Feadog brass D - and I brought my Waltons brass D.
They look almost identical to the naked eye, and they even sound the same on the first octave, but the second octave - that was a difference.
The Feadog indeed seems to be more… hard to describe - trying to sound clearer in the higher notes. Less chiffy.
My Walton’s sounded alot more chiffy - but with that doesn’t really crackle much when switching between holes.
With all that, I think it takes a little practice to ‘master’ your feadog - so don’t lose hope just yet.
As a former clarinet player, I still got squeaks and squawks when I started on the whistle. I was playing a Clarke Original and a Feadog D in brass. It takes practice, no matter the whistle … but my playing did improve ‘overnight’ when I bought a tunable Dixon.
You will be buying more whistles (which are much cheaper than flutes) … might as well start now.
Please persevere with that dawg! It does require a lot more sensitivity with breath pressure in octave 2 (Boehm flutes are much more forgiving). Please DO the blu-tak tweak! this makes things possible for a n00b like you and I. But once you tame the beasty I guarantee that you will be getting it out compulsively at sessions - regardless whatever Abells or Bleazeys you got in yer bag! Either that or make sure you got a Gen handy.
I imagine that after time I will get a hook and disgourge all that goopy blu-tak outa my dawg and have at it one more time - until then it’s as much a part of me as my Syn (and my Chieftian and my Abell and …)
All I can say is whenever I hear great whistle being played live - I go in and lo - it’s a Gen or a Dawg or a Clarke original going at it
Playing alone or concerts with microphones is another thing - but I would recommend unplugged group playing to keep the passion growing. Your dawg will always have a place there - I’ve even seen Original dawgs patched with bandaids and glue that sounded divine.
I’, pretty new to the whistle and I went through several Than I bought a Narrow bore from Mr.O’Brien.It really is a great whistle it’s very forgiving and stable.It has gave me the confidence that a beginner needs.
Work with the Feadog for a while; it really doesn’t take very much wind to get it to sound well in both octaves. In fact, I sometimes think that playing a whistle is an exercise in breath holding rather than blowing!
maybe i will get a Clarke whistle to start…they seem to be pretty popular, and easier for a beginner. I just really wanted to play the Feadog though, cause it’s the real deal authentic irish whistle! I’ll keep chopping away at it…maybe I should stop thinking like a flutist. Maybe i am putting too much air through it.. hmm
Go to the home page here and click on how to tweak a whistle. Then get some sticky poster tac and put it in the cavity under the windway. It does not have to be blue. You can get white at Wally world or hobby lobby.
It can be found at office supply stores also.
Agreed on the blu-tak tweak. My blu-tak is actually yellow and I got it at Wal-Mart for about $.99 next to the crayons.
It’s a pretty simple tweak and made a noticeable difference in the upper register on my Feadóg. It’s still a little more difficult to play than some others, but not by much - and it’s got that great bite in the tone.
Don’t give up on the Feadog…but do consider tweaking it. It really isn’t difficult at all. Mostly you want to make sure that there is no crud in the windway…even little tiny pieces of rough plastic crud.
Removing the head is worrisome, but pretty easy to do with the cup of hot (not boiling) water. And once you get it off, you’ll see how easy it is to fill in the cavity with something pliable like blue tack or candle wax (or chewing gum!) and it will stabilize the higher notes.
But crappy high notes, and learning to get the second register cleanly, is all part of being a whistler. Go for a note or two, then go higher and higher until you can get all of both registers without being afraid to make a really awful sound.
And don’t be too surprised if you come back after gaining more experience and find that this “unplayable” whistle has miraculously improved.
I bought a lot of cheapies when I started playing, and found many of them just about impossible to handle in the second octave. I put 'em away and played other whistles for a few months, then tried again - much to my surprise, some of the “unplayable” whistles turned out to be quite easy to handle, and even the worst were now playable. I may still have lousy timing and fumble my ornaments, but my breath control’s improved quite a bit
Since I’d been playing recorder on-and-off for 30 years before starting whistle, I’d thought I’d have the breath control down - bad assumption! Whistle and recorder are quite different beasts, and flute is even further distant, with the biggest difference in the upper octaves.
BTW - you may have a bum whistle, but Feadogs are generally one of the more consistant cheapies. When I first started out, I thought they sounded awful in the upper octave, but with a bit of practice they became quite controllable (and sounded much better). So don’t despair!
I love my feadog, i notice that even though i have a syn and it sounds beatiful, i always end up reaching for my feadog when i just want to goof around, i love the way it sounds and sometimes it squawks but not too much, it just makes it sound more authentic and not like a flute.
Generations and that stuff are garbage for beginners. My first whistle was a Gen and I was like “Man, I suck at life” after trying to play it. But then I got a Clarke’s and got my life back on track
so i’ve ordered a Clarke…it seems like all of you have several whistles, so I figure I may as well start adding to my collection. Now I can’t wait for it to come!
Maybe I’ll be brave and try that blu-tak thing on the Feadog…I just don’t want to ruin it though (it was a gift from my dad…sappy, i know…)
Grr of course I can’t even get the mouthpiece off, I tried the hot water thing to no avail earlier. Time to go try again…
Well here’s the deal. The beheading of a whistle can often come as the result of servere frustration. Now you did mention you’re having trouble with the second octave. My suggestion is to sit in the bathroom with the hot water running and play entirely in the second octave. When you start getting frustrated, bring the perpetrating menace to the sink whilst screaming “I’m gonna kill you!” and holding it under the faucet. After a little while you’ll see the glue sort of melting. Wrap a towel around it’s head and twist sideways. (by no means should you stop screaming at this point) It should come off easily, and hey, it’s killing two birds with one stone. Taking your frustration out and preparing your whistle for tweaking. Once the head is off, then and only then may you cease to scream at your whistle.
Another newbie here, also starting on a feadog. I’ve played clarinet, flute, and recorder for years, and also thought that whistle should be a snap–but I am both frustrated and delighted that there is more to it than I thought.
After playing it for a couple of hours I got out my electronic tuner and realized that my low d registered as a slightly flat d#, and most everything else was sharp to some degree. I ran hot water over the mouthpiece and tried to move it–nothing. It took hotter water than I thought it would need, for a lot longer time than I thought was prudent, but the plastic did not melt and it came loose.
The high octave speaks best for me with a smaller, but less focused aperture–I don’t know any better way to describe it. I almost feel like air might escape around the mouthpiece. This seems to lessen the rattle but keeps the breathiness. I read about tweaking whistles but I don’t have any poster tak handy and I’m afraid to do any more extensive work.
I’m considering picking up another cheap whistle, for comparison, and because there are a few tunes my session plays often that are in Bb, F, and C–maybe I need a couple more whistles. This could turn into a bad habit very quickly…
Hey folks - don’t be scared of the blu-tac tweak - you only gotta be careful to not get it in the windway and to not scratch the soundblade in any way. The blu-tak can be removed later with a bit of patience and small flattened stick - (bamboo skewar etc) - just insert stick into the tac and twirl - the tak winds onto the stick and usually comes out in one piece. I did this with my dawg when I wanted to replace the tac with DAS clay (which I think is nicer but a bit harder to apply).
BTW when yer puting blu-tak in there - do it in 2 or more small blobbs flattening with the back of a pencil (or similar) until it’s even with the windway exit. If you use too much it will extend past the windway and might affect the sound badly - and it’s a fiddly job to remove excess.
If you value the Feadog and don’t want to risk damaging it, why not leave the one your dad gave you alone and experiment on another (or on, say, a Generation)?
It’ll cost you just a few bucks and you’ll probably learn a lot from the experience. Disclosure: this advice from someone who’s also been too chickenhearted to tweak his cheapies.
Curious to know what you think of the Clarke once you get it. If you’re able to spend a few more bucks, you might consider adding a Susato to your collection. Whereas Feadogs and Gens require a precise touch, Susato’s produce a wonderfully stable and consistent sound.
i like this idea hahaha