Queston about my new whistles

Whistle
1

Hello, everyone:

I just got my new Tony Dixon D whistle and Sweetone in D by Clarke. The Sweetone is very easy to play in both registers, :smiley: but I am having trouble getting a good sound out of the Dixon. What am I doing wrong? :confused: It seems that it is much harder to keep the two registers apart with the Dixon, and that playing it is an exercise in breath-holding for right now, anyway.

I always assume that it’s me and not the instrument when I have trouble with things. I have learned that my Highland pipes usually respond well to having someone else tweek them or tell me how to tweek them myself, and then everything works as it should. So I am asking for help with this kind of problem, too. (BTW, I learned that I need to practice the whistle FIRST and THEN play my pipes, rather than in the other order. Reason: I need to start with the lower breath requirements and then after whistle practice I don’t need to make a BIG transition down in air pressure.)

Thanks to all who reply.

With best regards to all,

Steve Mack

2

Well, Dixons tend to take very little air and have very little backpressure, which, as you pointed out, makes it very easy to go into the upper register.

3

I’ve also noticed that my Dixon low D has some condensation issues. I have to shake it clear after every song I play. IT can also be sqweaky sometimes when playing in the lower notes.

4

You can haved problems going back and forth between whistles with different playing characteristics. Stick with one for a week or two, then swap over to the other. It’ll take a bit of time to adjust your playing to the second whistle.

5

yeah - what Tyghress said.
My Dixon is my “practice in the living room” whistle because it is very quiet - mostly because it requires very little breath. It’s a very nice whistle, but too quiet for a session, for me.
Stick with it - you’ll get it.