Rose Whistle A Winner

Whistle
1

After reading a long thread on this forum about the deficiencies in service of some whistle makers and the poor quality of their product, I think those of us who have received new whistles should report our experiences, for better or worse.

Here, then, is my very positive experience with Fred Rose, of Combe, Lancashire, a relatively new maker of wooden whistles.

I ordered a whistle from Fred Rose last June after seeing very encouraging reviews of his (D)whistle on this forum, and hearing clips of it being played by Mick Woodruff on Clips and Snips.

I did not send him any money with the order, the receipt of which he immediately acknowledged, indicating that he was working on a backload of orders.

In mid December I got an E-Mail from Fred telling me the whistle was ready. I sent him a certified check in U.S. currency and Fred sent the whistle to me by airmail. It arrived on December 26. in a sturdy little green heavy cardboard box lined with a fitted green foam liner and accompanied by a very nice green custom-made whistle pouch.

The whistle is a visual work of art; grendadilla with an impeccably fitted brass tuning slide. Mouth beak, head joint rings, and the bottom joint ferrule and finial ring are gold plated brass. Fipple is cedar.

Musically too it leaves nothing to be desired as far as I am concerned.

It requires very little air to sound true from D through d", and only slightly more pressure on up through b",(which is as high as I ever care to go!) The octave transitions are effortless and reliable.

Volume is good … almost as much as my Susato in the first octave, and the second octave is consistrnt with first in both volume and sound quality, as compared to the Susato which tends to get rather shrieky at the top the 2nd. Third octave d" through a" of the Rose and the Susato are about the same, with an tonal edge to the Rose, and the b" of the Rose is true in pitch and more easily attained than that of my Susato.

Quality of tone is a matter of personal taste, and the Rose suits me perfectly. I wouldn’t want to essay a comparison with other wooden whistles since this is the only one I have played. Compared to my Susato (D) Clark (C), Oak (D), and Generation Eb, I would say the Rose is between the Susato and the Clark in tone and requires rather less air than the Susato.

Mal

2

Mal,

Thanks for the great review. I can hardly wait to get mine–just a couple more months to go.

Dave

3

I’ve got one on order too…though don’t remember when it’s supposed to get here. Have enuf to keep me going til it does.

I’d like to also say that I’ve never had any problem when I’ve order from Glenn Schultz. He’s always sent the whistle with an invoice. If it isn’t right…he will make it so.
And I’ve had great response from Colin Goldie and Eric Tullberg and my Copeland I bought on the spot. I’d venture to say that doesn’t happen very often. Mac Hoover is always very concientous (where’s the spell cop?)and so is Dave Parkhurst. Just had to put in a plug for all of them. Gm

Make a joyful noise!

[ This Message was edited by: Grannymouse on 2002-01-05 02:15 ]

4

Great Mal - Fred is one of the best, it’s good to see him getting such a good rap.

I last visited Fred in late November (Colne, BTW, not Combe), and he was furiously working at 18 whistles - so if you’re waiting I would suggest that your wait will soon be over.

Nick

5

And I’m still another ecstatic Fred Rose whistle owner. I just recieved mine yesterday and I almost played hooky from work today. All the positive things other have said are true. A thing of beauty, both visually and soundwise. I particularly like the sound and the balance it carries over two octaves. I have other whistles that I really like but none are as balanced as this one (I don’t have and have not played an Abel or an O’Riodan whistle). And as mentioned, Fred Rose is a joy to work with. I had a question about my whistle when it got here, sent Fred an email and he got right back to answer my question. The whistle, and the man, all I can say is WOW!

6

Looking forward to mine. Fred confirmed my order on November 1st with a 3 to 6 month wait. Two down, 1 to 4 to go…=)

7

After reading all the posts on Fred Rose and his excellent whistles I decided I’d add my opinion. Not worth much though. I got mine on July 18 my b-day. My aunt and uncle brought it with them from England when they came for holiday. I played it all the way home. Drove them nuts. I love it. I can’t stop playing it. I’ll put it up, see the green box (it’s getting ragged) and have to get it out again.
At first I found it a bit heavy, maybe because I was playing a little black before. I soon got over it. It is the best whistle I have ever played. I can’t say enough good things about it.
Goddess