OK so a D whistle is best for Irish traditional music, because it can play in both D and G, the two most popular keys for tunes. What key would be second best? I already have a D whistle (several, actually).
I’m thinking a G whistle, because you get G in a lower range, plus the key of C. Or an A whistle, which gives you A plus the key of D in a lower range. I’m not sure how useful a C whistle would be. And the other keys seem pretty unlikely to come up in a session, though you might need them with a singer. I’d appreciate any advice.
It depends on whether you are playing
with other instruments, and what
they’re playing. I play a lot with
banjo, guitar, and fiddle–lots of American
folk music, and a low G
is the whistle I use second most, after
the D. A is next, then C. Playing alone,
on the street, a Copeland Bb is great.
At home I often play a C.
I agree with the other posters in playing Bb and C some. In addition, however, I like to play along with guitars, but they are so A and E intensive and I’m too small for my A whistle, thus I play the little Hoover E fairly often.
On 2002-02-09 02:36, jeeves wrote:
OK so a D whistle is best for Irish traditional music, because it can play in both D and G, the two most popular keys for tunes. What key would be second best?
For playing Irish trad, the next whistle you need is a C. This will allow you to play tunes in D-dorian (what passes for “D minor” in Irish trad.) and G-dorian “G minor”).
You do this by transposing the fingering and playing the tunes as if they were in Em and Am respectively.
With a D whistle and a C whistle, you can easily play a large proportion of the standard session repertoire.
Bb and Eb are both very nice keys for whistles, but are less useful than a C for your common-or-garden Irish tunes. Unless your local session is in Eb - common enough in Ireland, but not in NAm as far as I know.
I find the D whistle the most useful as well, especially for IrTrad and Folk. However, I use the C quite a bit on pop and Christmas songs, and hymns (which are usually written in flats) often call for my trusty Bb or Eb. My F and G usually stay in the bag unless I am laying tracks with a background whistle.
For playing Irish trad, the next whistle you need is a C. This will allow you to play tunes in D-dorian (what passes for “D minor” in Irish trad.) and G-dorian “G minor”).
You do this by transposing the fingering and playing the tunes as if they were in Em and Am respectively.
Aha! Now this is fascinating to me. D dorian has F natural and C natural, just like the key of C major, hence it’s easier to play on a C whistle. THanks for the insight.