I just felt, that there’s way too many discussions of brand of whistles, and no CD reviews, little talk about players etc. Does the brand really matter so much (I think it absolutely doesn’t). Of course it matters somehow, but hardly more than good CD listening, and knowing what to play etc., right?
Isn’t switching too many whistles just an excuse for not that good abilities, while energy would be better spent on practising, rather than buying?
Why don’t you practice what you preach and review a good CD to listen or play along with?
It’s a broad church - some people like one whistle others like lots. Practice is fairly obvious for improvement - but probably not something that can be rewardingly verbalised here other than ‘go do it’.
I don’t think you’re the only person thinking it but rather than bash collectors, a very acceptable part of this forum, why not just start pushing the areas you would like to hear more discussion about? Go for it! Tell us about players or best whistle oriented CD’s. The forum is your oyster…
I’m still a bit of a whistle newbie, and a very casual one at that, but I’d absolutely disagree with that. I mean really, how much time does one spend buying whistles? Most of my whistles - and all of my cheapies - were purchased online in a matter of minutes. My 2 more expensive ones - carbon fiber whistles in high D and low F - were bought at an Irish festival. I was going to the festival regardless of whether or not I planned on buying any whistles, so it’s not like it was taking away from practice time. And for another matter, many players switch whistles because they can get very different sounds from each one. My carbon fiber whistles, for example, have a very breathy, non-traditional tin whistle sound…they’re nice for slow airs and such, but not the sound I’d generally want on a traditional Irish reel. I favor my Dixons and Feadog for tunes like that. So while you can certainly get by with one whistle, and many people probably do, I don’t think collecting a number of whistles has any ill effects on one’s playing and certainly shouldn’t be discouraged or insulted.
The way a whistle is designed and built is primarily responsible for its tone. A player can vary the speed of the air stream to change the tone, but nothing else. So yes, design, “brand” and model, and tiny differences between individual whistles matters a lot, so I am not surprised it gets talked about a lot. It matters a lot more than the differences in flute models and “brands”, since a flute’s tone depends much more on how a player can shape the mouth.
I didn’t mean that the tone is not affected by the brand. I ment, that when there are really good players choosing whistles, it’s something different than dannyboyers/wildrover-ers discussing whistles in depth. Of course, if they’re whistle collectors, there’s nothing wrong with that, but I often feel they are players.
You’re right, I think. There’s thesession which is primarily interested in tunes, while people at c&f do a lot of discussing of hardware.
I myself, in general, am not a “whistle collector”. I’ve been playing the same high D whistle and the same uilleann chanter since the late 70’s. I played the same Irish flute from around 1982 up until hand cramping forced me to abandon fluteplaying a couple years ago. But… when I realised that the Low D whistle must become my session horn, having a load of cash from selling my flutes (I had flutes in D, C, Eb, and F), I went out and bought several Low D’s in the Quest for the Low D that was best for me. I kept my favourite and sold the rest. (I have whistles in a lot of keys for key coverage, but I don’t care to maintain more than one whistle for any given key.)
Whenever a Low D comes available of a make I haven’t tried I’ll buy it and try it. I have four Low D’s at the moment. But my goal is to have one.
I myself am much more interested in styles, ornamentation, variation, etc than in the hardware. A while back I posted a long detailed post giving around 20 ways to vary the first phrase of Sean Bui. Then later I posted a link to a YouTube video I did where I demonstrate same on the whistle. I also did a video demonstrating a large number of possible variations on the first phrase of Earl’s Chair on the uilleann pipes.
Wait, are you saying that slow airs aren’t traditional?
I’d say that the whole business of buying different whistles to get different sounds is another red herring. I can get loads of different sounds out of my feadog (and loads of them are even good sounds!)
Wait, are you saying that slow airs aren’t traditional?
I myself didn’t take the phrase “traditional Irish reel” to mean that all other sorts of tunes were non-traditional.
I’d say that the whole business of buying different whistles to get different sounds is another red herring.
I myself much prefer to have the single best-playing whistle I can find for any given key. I’m much more concerned with how a whistle performs that its actual timbre. I’ve heard a number of people on this site say over the years that they use one whistle for airs, another for dance music. I wouldn’t bother with that myself.
I can get loads of different sounds out of my feadog
There’s not all that much scope for getting different timbres out of a whistle, I don’t think. With my Burke and MK Low D’s I’ve seen that pushing the mouthpiece far in the mouth gets a clearer, bolder tone while putting the tip of the mouthpiece at the lips gives a bit breathier, softer tone. But, doing so makes the scale out of tune, specifically B in the low octave is quite flat unless the mouthpiece is placed fully in the mouth. Of course you can stick things in the windway etc to get a less-focused tone than the whistle is capable of.
When money is being spent, no question is unimportant. And it is not necessarily an easy task to return a whistle, between the time and repackaging, shipping costs, etc. I consider my money to be fairly important, so I find the “whistle brands” discussion to be interesting, more interesting than a CD review. Right now, I am not learning by ear, I am learning by sheet music. If a song’s rhythm escapes me, I do a YouTube search, listen, then back to the sheet music.
I dont play Danny Boy , but the stuff Im learning to play , would probably fit into your “scoff” catagory…
Im sure any GOOD whistler can make any whistle sound good, it IS the player , not the whistle,
that said, I have a mellow dawg , and just got a C Blackbird ,both are easier to play than any other whistles I have. If I can produce the sounds Im going for ,“on a easier to play whistle” it gives me satisfaction, then eventually inspires confidence. and confidence ,I believe is a Major factor. I know it is on other instruments.
Also , heck its fun to discuss & buy stuff
I knew a man who had 5 expensive ukes on his wall , he could barely play G chord. But they gave him a lot of satisfaction.
Im sure a lot of us here wont be session players , its just a fun hobby.
Tone
Intonation/tuning
Playability in all registers
Therefore it is highly relevant to any discussion.
Sometimes its the oddest, cheapest whistles which are the best.
I rate my Clarke C (£8), Clare D (£5) and Dixon Trad D (£15) as the best whistles I have played on recently - for the way I blow and the way I want to sound.
Not at all, just stating my preference for a soft, breathy whistle when playing slower tunes and a brighter, crisper sound for jigs, reels, and other more lively tunes. Some people are OK with using the same whistle for all songs, I just see nothing wrong with switching it up a bit!
I, too, can get different sounds out of my Feadog (unlike you, however, not that many of them are good sounds ) but I have yet to figure out how to make it sound like my carbon fiber whistle. And the carbon fiber, no matter how I play it, is never going to sound like a Feadog.
Amen to that! I’m a hobby player all the way…pretty much the only person who’s heard me play is my dad, and even that took a lot of poking and prodding on his part! I play for my own enjoyment and satisfaction…sometimes learning traditional tunes, sometimes playing along to songs by my favorite bands like The Elders. Some might say it’s foolish to have more than one whistle just to do that, but when you can get a Gen for $8 or an Oak for $10, what’s the big deal?
Ehm, I can’t remember saying that where I’m quoted… Probably a mistake though.
Anyway, to the tradition of breathy sound - if I’m not mistaken, the oldest design is of Clarke Original kind, which is the breathies beast I’ve ever met. Depends on the definition of “traditional” I guess.
Captain Obvious speaking: People probably waste more time posting on forums than collecting/switching whistles.
To keep it relevant: I have been guilty of the “a different whistle would make me sound better” mentality. A good instrument makes a difference, though as several have mentioned, not as much a difference as listening to good playing or practice. I think that Mike McGoldrick would sound phenom playing just about anything…
I have but a small selection of High D whistles, but all three sound different, and are physically different. The Clarke Meg and Feadog are shorter than the Generation. The Feadog has the widest end opening, the Meg the smallest. The hole spacings are every so slightly different.
@ Pyroh
Your interests for discussion would be welcome. I’d read them.
Well said. And I won’t be a session player for a long while yet. But it won’t stop me from going to listen when I can.
An example of what happens. I planned to practice at least a half hour or longer every night this week. I managed to squeeze in one half hour on Monday, and about 10 minutes on Tuesday.
Considering the other dumb things I could do - like sit in front of a TV - whistling when I get the time is a great stress reliever and a bit of accomplishment.
I don’t own a TV, so I have no expense for big-screens and surround sound systems. Occasionally I do have some extra funds to buy and try a whistle that catches my interest. I have no other expensive vices.
So I guess I’m a whistle hobbyist, ex-whistle collector (thinking of selling some), whistle learner when I can make it happen, and future session player.
That gives me quite a bit to chat about here. And there’s so many great folks here to chat with - so why not?
I continue to get a big kick out of making mostly-organized sounds on my whistles.
I own over a dozen, and get pleasure from each.
Some are easy, some harder to play.
They all have peculiarities that are stimulating.
I play them all, in an unplanned “rotation.”
There are fads, and temporary favorites.
I even have a love/hate situation with a Copeland Low D.
Joy is the bottom line, for me.
Hey…I walk a lot, too. And enjoy the great variations of weather.
No day is the same. No whistle is the same.
) but I have yet to figure out how to make it sound like my carbon fiber whistle. And the carbon fiber, no matter how I play it, is never going to sound like a Feadog.