Can anyone tell me of a quieter low D than the Dixon tapered bore suitable for hotel bedrooms with thin walls, preferably a whistle that can be split in two. Mack Hoover’s old low Ds might have been ideal but he doesn’t make them anymore . . . unless, of course, someone has one they don’t mind parting with!!
Mike, you can mute the Dixon. No need for another whistle.
Several ways to do that.
Cover some of the window with a length of tape.
Place a bit of putty or chewing gum on the blade.
Insert a sliver of card stock or a toothpick into the windway to limit the amount of air making it to the exit.
If you can get your hands on another piece of pipe (plastic or other flexible material) with a similar diameter to the Dixon head you can slice off a piece about the width of the voicing window. Cut a section out of the slice the size of the window’s width. Wrap it around the head at the window. Rotate it to open or close the window as you like. Much like on a Park’s whistle
Or you can use the whisper method. You don’t blow into the windway at the beak. You blow over the window with the beak placed below your lower lip. The whisper method does not give you two octaves of notes, just one, but you get over that quickly enough. That method has kept peace in the homes of late night whistlers for many decades.
Feadoggie
Or a gem-type paper clip, very convenient to carry.
Thanks for the ideas but my Dixon is a fixed low D and not very convenient for travelling. Maybe I will have to buy a tuneable version but, while I’m at it, was wondering if there was a low D inherently quieter of itself. It seems pointless buying another Dixon.
Oh. Ok. Mike, I do not have the latest tapered bore Dixon. I assume they are similar in volume to the older models. I have had a few of the non-tapered bore models. They are about as quiet a decent low D as I have played. Certainly a low D could be made quieter still but it might be rather touchy at the low end I fear.
I’ve played a couple cheap PVC low D’s that were rather quiet but I wouldn’t wish any of those on you. I’d still think muting a decent low D is the way to go in any case. If you have a tunable whistle on hand try the muting methods out if you can. They do work. The whisper method works on any whistle and it has preserved my sanity many, many times.
Feadoggie
Below are some photos and notes that show a way to mute a whistle.
Needed materials:
- some cardboard that fits your windway
- a sharp knife (x-acto)
- some scotch tape
X-acto + cardboard
Trim to fit windway + window. The tape adds a little stiffness to the delicate part, and slows breath-moisture softening.
Mute next to whistle head.
Mute on top, showing position when inserted.
Mute inserted.
The basic idea is to shorten the length of the active sound-generating edge without occluding the window too much (so as to minimally alter the pitch). Certainly, the breath points for a tune will change (it takes MUCH less air!). But, for learning + memorizing finger patterns, and keeping peace with people nearby, I’ve found it useful.
For the cardboard, I’ve used those antique (pre-bic) items used for lighting candles, bareques, etc… Certainly, other materials might be better (e.g. plastic, rubber). But, cardboard is often easier to find.
cheers,
trill
Thanks for the suggestions. Although my Dixon is non-tuneable, it may not be too difficult to travel with and I wouldn’t be devastated if it got broken, so I will try out the various forms of muting. The advantage of course is not needing to spend money on a specifically quiet whistle though I would still be tempted to get hold of a Hoover Low D if one came up for sale.