I know people post this all the time, but I was wondering…Are there any updates on Patrick O’Riordan? Is he still making whistles? I was just sort of curious…
Pat is still making whistles. Orders are accepted with a waiting list of 2.5 years…
He is very open to the possibility that 2.5 years out, he may no longer be making whistles. One gets placed on his list and then hopes and prays.
Best.
Byll
I talked to Pat on the phone a couple months back, and he is alive and well…though my wait has now exceeded two and a half years…
It’s OK though. I’m sure when they come, it’ll be loveley!
B~
Two yrs, eight months after getting on the list (and giving it up as hopeless), I walk in after work one day and my wife says, “Guess who just called. Pat O’Riordan.” I sit down and my wife spashes water in my face. She says, “He asked if you were still interested and I said I’m not sure.” I said, “Where’s his number?” I call Pat and he says I’m not obligated after all this time and is apologetic. I give him a piece of my mind and slam down the phone. Not really. He asked if I still wanted the whistles and I cooly replied, “Uh, I guess so.” Not really. Actually, all I remember is asking him where do I send the check. So now I’m filthy with O’Riordan whistles. I bought a second hand set awhile ago as insurance against bad luck. That set is promised to someone who needs to contact me (you know who you are). I can’t email because the spouse is supposed to get a surprise and that might blow it. I need to give details and make arrangements for shipping. 
Tony
Tony - I just got on the waiting list last week and spoke with Pat - what a lovely gentleman (and he may be getting tired of hearing that he doesn’t charge enough for his whistles; but you know he doesn’t). I too was fortunate enough to have some terrific Board member bestow upon me a wonderful set of lower O’Riordans, for which I am forever grateful.
I didn’t understand a word you said, probably because you’re still in shock and I think I’m coming down with the flu, but please send all extra O’Riordans that you now apparently have and I will pay extra and/or give you many whistles of other types!
Seriously, enjoy.
Regards,
Philo
I consider myself fortunate indeed to have one O’Riordan, a D.
I am on the wait list for a low E…or is that just an E? Anyway, its the only one I have tried that my short fingers can play.,
If anyone ever hears of one for sale, I will give it a good home and pay handsomely for it!
I spoke to Pat last week and ordered a high D in blackwood/delrin - he said 2.5y wait with no guarantee as he’s close to retiring age. Hang in there Pat! What a lovely bloke - turns out he comes from 5-10 miles from where Bernard Overton lives. Bizarre! Picked out his Brummy accent immediately
On 2002-10-15 04:24, nickt wrote:
What a lovely bloke - turns out he comes from 5-10 miles from where Bernard Overton lives. Bizarre! Picked out his Brummy accent immediately
Pat’s a Brummy? Well, learn something every day.
Yep, he and his wife migrated to Canada from Coventry in 1953, then moved to the States in 1960 and been there ever since. Speaking to him, you’d think he just stepped off the plane!
Do you have to put down a deposit to get on the waiting list?
John Mac
Nope: Pat asks for no money until delivery.
Best.
Byll
John Mac - No.
Philo
I bought an O’Riordan at a festival in Michigan. It’s one of those with a head joint that will fit on several different bodies. I have one of Pat’s bodies for it. It’s in two pieces. I prefer a Generation body though. At Goderich it looked like Loretto Reid was using the same setup. It’s currently my whistle of choice.
Steve
Loretto uses a Generation Eb, an O’Riordan head on a Generation D body, and mostly (only?) full O’Riordans for all the lower whistle keys.
She also says the only reason she uses the full Generation in Eb is that she’s never got around to ordering an O’Riordan head for a Generation Eb body. (I get the impression she’s very happy with her Generation, however – she uses that whistle a lot.)
On 2002-10-15 15:03, colomon wrote:
Loretto uses a Generation Eb, an O’Riordan head on a Generation D body, and mostly (only?) full O’Riordans for all the lower whistle keys.
I just tried the O’R head on my Gen Eb. It fits. I have never removed the head on the Eb so I just shoved it on the wrong end to see if it would work at all. Maybe it wouldn’t be in tune. I’ll try it later though. It can’t be any worse than it is now.
Steve
On 2002-10-15 14:51, SteveK wrote:
I bought an O’Riordan at a festival in Michigan.
Do you (or does anyone) know whether you can still get O’Riordans at festivals?
I bought it at the Southern Michigan Dulcimer Festival which is defunct. Maybe he goes to Evart. I’ve never been there. That won’t be till next summer, of course.
Steve
I don’t understand.
Why do people wait more than 2 years for a whistle? Is it a sacred whistle, does it play by itself, does it memorise the tunes?
How many orders does O’Riordan get that you have to wait 2,5 years. The other day Loren was selling one for about 600$.
Tell me, and I think a lot of other members, for I’m/we’re astonished.
On 2002-10-15 17:05, sweetone wrote:
I don’t understand.
Why do people wait more than 2 years for a whistle? Is it a sacred whistle, does it play by itself, does it memorise the tunes?
Because it’s a hand-crafted instrument that is (according to what I’ve heard) in the top of the line. There are many hand-made instruments that have waiting lists, and O’Riordan isn’t the only whistle with a wait. In fact, most high-end whistle makers have a wait (Sindt, O’Riordan, sometimes Burke, Copeland, Rose..these are just off the top of my head)
But to put some perspective:
Guitars: http://www.jthomasdavis.com/handmade.html
$4000-$10,000, about 1.5 year wait.
Flutes:
http://www.celticlands.com/PriceList.html
$700-$2000 up to 8 month wait. (copley)
http://www.castlemaine.net.au/~grinter/flute.htm
$1000-$4000 12-18 month wait (Grinter)
Accordian:
http://www.concertina.net/guide.html
around $2000 Collin Dipper up to 2 year wait (and this is shorter than it’s been in a while!)
Violin:
http://www.masterviolinmaker.com/
“A graduate of the Universita Internazionale d’ Arte in Florence, Italy for restoration of fine art. Production is limited to four violins per year with a two year waiting list.” No price given, but Gilbert violins also have about a 2 year wait and run about $8000-$16000.
Harp:
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Harp/study.htm
“Put in an order NOW for a large Italian baroque harp. The waiting list with the better makers is several years long” Harps run into the thousands of dollars.
I could probably go on and on forever but if you haven’t gotten my point by now, you likely never will.
Edit:
Oh, I had to edit to add this: I had to hit the net and see if I could find an expensive harmonica with a wait, since it’s a more ‘lowly’ instrument than many I list above. Sure enough:
http://www.polle.no/munnspi3.html
Georg Pollestad silver harmonicas. Best information I could find is about a 1 year wait and cost up to $7500.
[ This Message was edited by: wandering_whistler on 2002-10-15 17:37 ]
Dudenbostel mandolins had the waiting list
closed at 6 years out. The most recent two
to sell went for $22.5K.
Jim Olson has closed his waiting list at least
twice after it got past 4 years.
Some of this is people wanting a particular sound and being willing to wait for it. Some of it is Internet feeding frenzy, where someone on a mailing list raves about an instrument and 23 people rush to order. Sinc e many fine builders have day jobs and can only do a couple of dozen a year, it’s easy to go from 6 months to 2 years wait in one feeding frenzy.
I’ve waited as long as 3 years for one mando, but it’s one I’d likely not sell until it was that or live in the streets.