Observations on our new Bleazey Whistles

Whistle
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( Some comments are added to the end from Phil that were sent to me today.)

I have had some time to play the low D Bleazey ( http://www.bleazey.co.uk/ )now, not as much as I would have liked or should have. I am being REALLY careful with this gem. Bleazey recommends only 15 minutes a day to get started and working up over a few weeks, so I am taking it REALLY slow. The fact that my wife can actually PLAY this whistle takes away from MY playing time as well. More on that later.

Last night we were playing some tunes. Towards the end of our time I was bouncing back and forth between the Overton and the Bleazey. I asked Renee to turn around and listen to me play. This is the result…

She was able to tell me when I was playing each instrument. She told me that the Overton and the Bleazey played very much in tune and sounded very nice to her. Now here is the difference…

She told me the biggest difference is that the Bleazey SINGS. I think that is a good thing. She also said it has a sort of growly sort of sound. (Note To Self: Gotta get the recording thing resolved!!!)

Some other observations:

The B takes a bit more air and has a bit less back pressure than the O. Not a whole lot, but enough to make you take notice. I would say it is fairly similar to the Alba I recently had, but without a direct comparison I cannot say for sure. I do have low D’s that take more air and have less back pressure than the B.

What else… It is wood (Mopane) and visually very pleasing to the eye. The holes are a bit on the small side and that make half holing a bit difficult. Where I can half hole a second octive D# on the O it is nearly impossible at this point on the B. I was able to manage a decent G# last night. ( I have also discovered that XXO XXO works like a charm!!! )

It is heavy. The walls of this whistle are quite thick. It is cylindrical or very, very slightly conical. I will have to ask Phil about that. ( see notes at the end of this )

IT DOES NOT CLOG! Period. The fipple plug is aromatic cedar and although I have seen moisture buld up on both the low and high whistle, this has always been on the blade ramp and never in the windway.

This whistle makes my wife happy when I play it. Well, so does the Overton and most of the rest of my low whistles. I think this is a different kind of happy, more like “That is a REALLY nice sound” happy. Definately not a “I am soooo happy he is playing that EXPENSIVE piece of wood” happy.

The result of all this is the Bleazey, so far, appears to be a fine, easy to play instrument. It has a bit of an edge over the Overton in sound quality. Visually there is no question the Bleazey is the winner. The Overton, at least at this time, will NOT be going away though.

Please let me know if there is any other area you would like me to address. I would have a difficult time measuring responsiveness or speed as I am still a slow player and just now starting to experiment with ornamentation.

Now Phil’s comments:

Both whistles are very definately conical bore difference from top to bottom in the High D is 1.5 mm and on the Low D almost 10 mm.

… During an extended playing session the block expands and rises up in the windway (on the larger instruments it is not just a cylindrical block but has a projection which stands up in the windway to allow this movement to take place) this means that when it comes to its optimum moisture content it will use a little less air than it does at the moment while you are still playing it in. During the voicing process I artificially raise the moisture content of the windway floor to simulate extended playing . Achieving that “non-clogging” attribute is one of the largest contributors to the high cost of these instruments.

Hope this helps.

Regards

Phil

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I’ve heard that the mouthpiece is VERY chunky. How does it feel in the mouth?

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The mouthpiece is reasonably comfortable. A little bigger than my Overton (see pics) and MUCH better than my Susato!!! I do have to hold it out a little to keep the block area from touching my chin, but not excessively so.

I like the sleek lines and that they do not look like re%^?%%%%% (darn static)

Here is a pic that Phil sent to me. I will be taking more of them tomorrow if the weather cooperates:




Here is a detail of the mouthpieces. Phil told me that he has redesigned the mouthpiece and that this is the result:

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Thanks for the review. It is good to hear other people getting excited about Phil’s work!
A friend of mine in town owns a small collection of Bleazy’s instruments.
He has a low D whistle and a flute, both in black wood. also a D and C whistle. Funny, he also has an Overton low D! Anyway, it seamed like a fine instrument. The finger spacing was very easy and overall the whistle was very easy to play. I am not a very accomplished player so I couldn’t say to much about it. Also, It was about a year ago that I played it and it was only for a short time.

Honestly, I like the sound of his flute and I ended up buying one in mopane. Being a total beginner it was easy for me to play and I love the sound of a flute. I do like low whistles, I have a goldie F and a Burke Al E.
But for a low D, there is nothing like a flute!!
Nathan

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I’m another Bleazey convert. I’ve got two D whistles (boxwood and blackwood) and a boxwood Rudall-style flute. I absolutely love the flute; it’s the perfect beginner instrument; very easy to get a good sound from and comparatively easy on the lungs.

Nate, do you have a Rudall or Pratten?

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Chas,
I have the Rudall model!

I handed it to an experienced irish flute player who really liked it. She has a blackwood Pratton and commeted on how easy it was to play.
It sounded good on the other end as they say!

Nate

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Steven or Chas
Whilst this thread covers the Bleazy Low D rather well, what’s the high D like?

waitingame

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The boxwood D is one of my favorite whistles. It’s not a whistle for beginners, though.

It’s a whistle that requires a lot of effort to play well. You need to really push it to hit the high notes, and even the lower notes sound better when played really hard. The result is a sound that’s at the same time warm and harsh. It has the characteristic buttery sound of boxwood, but with an edge that gives it a sound unlike any other whistle I’ve played. I have a blast with it.

The blackwood is similar, but less so – less harsh, less warm, takes less air. A very nice whistle in its own right, but can’t hold a candle to the box.

Both whistles are very well crafted.

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Chas
Thanks for that. Looks like I’m about to disturb Mr. Bleazy’s lunch!!
waitingame

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Chas is right about the High D and Renee is having a bit of trouble with it for that reason. She actually has trouble pushing ANY of her whistles and still honks on the upper register regularly. There was a thread recently about someone that was afraid of the high notes, that is my wife too!

She does like to play it (it is slowly replacing her Alba playing time with it), but it will be a while before she gets it full potential.

The low d is so smooth and buttery. Renee says it sings! Small holes are all but preventing most half holing and that would be my only complaint with it thus far. IT DOES NOT CLOG!! PERIOD!

I am considering an A or G now, oh heck, I will probalby get both!!!