Hi all.
I’ve been playing for just 5 months now. Something I consistently have a problem with, regardless of whistle, is cutting up to high G. I get a nasty squawk instead of a little blip.
Is it something I’m doing wrong? Is it just me? Can I cheat and cut to high F or will I be breaking some kind of law? 
Thanks,
SwtCaro
I usually get my best-sounding cuts accidentally!
Seriously, though, I have found out that I do best on cuts where instead of consciously raising my finger, I just let it relax for a split-second. This usually produces a squawk-free separation of notes, almost like a very light tongue, but more trad-sounding.
Now, if my cuts were just a little more consistent! 
BrassBlower is right on–a good cut will be so fast you don’t really hear it, even as a chirp. I’m still working on it, myself.
Also you should know that different makes of whistles respond differently to cuts in the upper octave. It may take experimentation to find what works well on your particular whistle.
–James
I’m not sure I totally know what you mean by “cutting up to high G,” but try doing your cuts with the finger just above the note you’re playing.
Cut a D with the E finger, E with F, F with G, etc…
Grey Larsen covers this in great detail in his book.
This is one of two schools of thought on this issue, others say always use the same couple of fingers for cuts.
The way I mention above is how I learned and it seems to work well on whistle, and based on the couple of months I’ve been working on playing flute, I’d say it’s almost required for flute (at least the two I’ve played).
-Brett
I would like to see more discussion of this.
I’ve focused almost all my attention on the whistles themselves and not nearly as much as I would like on playing them. The next thing I want to work on (if time ever permits) is developing good, clean, correct for ITM cuts. I would like to find out what Steve Jones, Peter Laban, Phil Ochs (perhaps Bloomfield could speak for him?) might have to say about how to approach them.
Best wishes,
Jerry
I don’t know what this thread is really about ‘cutting to high g or can I cheat and cut to F instead’ . I am not sure at all what the question really is and I wonder if it’s about cuts at all.
Cuts as I use them are there to 1. provide emphasis on a note or 2. to separate two notes of the same pitch.
I am afraid I can’t offer any short cuts [ :roll: ] to getting them right. Cuts are what they are, a short flick of a finger.
I learned the whistle far away from any tuition and I was playing for years before I got my hands on a tutor [the Armagh piper’s club packet of book, tape and whistle]. Cuts were things I heard and they fell into place at some point early on, I can’t recall actually learning them. As usual, listening is the key and imitating the sound you hear is the way to get it right. Just make sure you don’t go into a habit of using the same cut for all notes [i.g. use a C cut throughout or the A for all notes below it, your sound will become very monotonous that way]
As a practical excersise you can play each note a few times [or a few dozen times] separating each from the next one by a cut and keep at it until you get it right.
For some examples how various players use cuts [and other stuff] see the transcriptions at
Thanks, Peter.
As usual, that’s extremely helpful.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Thanks everybody.
Peter, I had been doing exactly that–thinking that I had to use the G finger to cut all the notes below it. (That’s how most of the books say to do it.) I know how to do the cut. I don’t have a problem on the lower register getting the quick blip of sound. But when I do it in the high register, I get a squawk on the G finger. But if I am on middle D and cut with the F finger, it’s fine. Maybe I’m just doing it wrong up high.
I have no access to a tutor, and I don’t even think there are any sessions in my immediate area. (Not that I’ve been able to find on the internet, anyway. There might be one pub in our state capital not too far away, but not sure). So pretty much everything I’ve learned has come from trying to listen to whatever music I can find (or afford–not much left for CDs after WoAH ) and Bill Ochs’ tutor book. Problem is the ornaments happen so fast in most professionally recorded music I often can’t tell how they’re doing it. I really need to get a slow-downer program.
Thanks,
SwtCaro
I think what’s happening is simply that your
instrument isn’t responding to the cut on
the G in the second octave. This is pretty common,
I think, and not the fault of your
technique. The solution would be to cut with
a lower finger. Best
I don’t have a problem on the lower register getting the quick blip of sound. But when I do it in the high register, I get a squawk on the G finger.
On my current whistle, using G to cut middle D works if I have my top finger off (vented) and fails horribly if I have my top finger down…the whistle just chokes.
Wow! I just tried two others and they all behaved the same way. I tried it on a Water Weasel Bb and a Dixon D. I wonder what the physics of this is?
I’d say vent your D by lifting the top finger or use a different finger to cut middle D with.
It’s interesting, but I just resumed my whistle lessons, and realized that while using slurs, taps, rolls and cuts to separate notes of equal pitch, I had totally avoided using cuts between notes of different pitch - the stuff that can really add a nice little dimension to your playing. I think I would have gone on forever avoiding them if not for Bill. Maybe it’s because I just now started paying attention to them, but these cuts seem a bit more difficult to execute well.
Apparently I was avoiding both those cuts and ear training, which both require work (ugh, I’m retired now), but I know are well worth the effort.
Regards,
PhilO
If what you are doing is actually slurring up to the high G from the lower octave, I think you will almost always get a bump or sqwawk unless you tongue it lightly.
Here’s what happens:
When you overblow a whistle into the second octave, you are actually just removing the fundamental…you have blown one step higher in the harmonic series, and that first step is the octave.
Overblow again, and you don’t get an octave, instead you get a perfect fifth first, which happens to be an A if your fundamental is D.
When you are playing an unvented D, and try to cut to A, the whistle tries to keep playing the A even after you put L3 back down, because that’s a harmonic of the note D and it’s perfectly happy playing that note at that breath pressure.
If you vent the D, and then cut with L3, you are in fact dropping down to a C-natural–a perfectly good fingering for C-nat on most whistles and flutes is o x o | x x x --and the whistle responds crisply.
–James
Oh don’t say that! I’ve formed a habit!
James said…bla bla bla
Thanks for the info James! Interesting…I need to read up on this harmonic series/overblowing stuff some time.
-Brett
Edit: Here are some interesting Web sites:
Fair enough, it never occurred to me you meant cutting g on an unvented high d. That doesn’t work if you blow it strong but does if you ease off a bit. Best is to vent the d but you have the option of cutting with other notes, you’ll find each sounds slightly different and you may want to use the different sounds in appropriate situations.