Shaw Squashing

Whistle
1

Heya whistlers,

Im having a really hard time with my Shaw Low D,
It requiers so much air sometimes i feel my soul is getting out of the whistle…

anyway, im sure lots of u allready know of this problam.

since im a begginer to the whistle im wandering ,

Am i exadurating? is this whistle possible to play in a normal way?
is it good that im learning on a togh whistle?

and now to the technical part,
ive herd here and there about squashing the head a bit so it would take less air.

has anybodey here done it?
should i try?
with what and how?

im really sorry about blasting with so many questions …
but u probably know how it is when something is bothering u about ur whistle…

good day to ya all :party: :stuck_out_tongue: :party:

2

Shaws are known for their high breath requirement. If practical, you might want to look for a more air-efficient whistle, rather than exclusively using the low D Shaw. I think Shaw is the only maker using the rolled metal design for such a large whistle.

and now to the technical part,
ive herd here and there about squashing the head a bit so it would take less air.

has anybodey here done it?
should i try?
with what and how?

I tried it with pliers, when I was new to whistles (long before I’d heard of this site) not on a Shaw, but another whistle of the same sort. I ruined it.

3

It is possible to scrunch the airway in a good way (Walden? Pliers :astonished: ?) but I wouldn’t play around with it too much. The Shaws takes a lot of breath control and breath control takes a lot of practice. If discouragement is a factor, then you may wish to do as Walden suggested and find a whistle that takes less air and needs less control. Otherwise, I can guarantee that with practice and proper breathing your Shaw will be controllable (as opposed to controlling you). And at that point, there won’t be a whistle or flute out there that you won’t have the experience to be able to fill.

Usually, the problem is that those new to wind instruments waste air in ways that don’t create sound. This is due to a number of reasons, least of which is trying concentrate on 20 new things at once. With time and someone showing you proper breathing technique (diaphragmatic) you’ll get the hang of it.

Erik

4

Hi, Eran.

I’ve been interested in Shaws because of what I’ve heard about the breath requirements.

I’ve had excellent success tweaking other whistles that take a lot of air, adjusting the back pressure/air requirements (Sweetones, Clarke originals, etc.). I would be willing to check your Shaw to see if I can solve the problem for you if you will pay postage both ways. If I can adjust it, I won’t charge for the labor, as it will help me with my research. Though I suppose there’s always a remote chance of mishap, I’ve enough tweaking experience and skill that I consider the risk of spoiling your whistle to be very small.

Best wishes,
Jerry

5

To be honest, if I were in your shoes, I’d just get another whistle. Susato sells a Low D for around 40 dollars or so I believe…

6

I have a Susato Dublin low G, and it’s a very nice whistle. I don’t know what it cost, as it’s a hand-me-down, but if their low D is similar, you might find it to your liking.

On the other hand, I really am interested in tweaking the Shaw for you. It’s a conical bore, rolled metal whistle, like the Clarke originals. “Good” Clarkes have a sound that many feel is special. I would be interested in finding out if the Shaw can become more user-friendly, as it might turn out to be quite a fine whistle if its appetite for air could be brought down.

Best wishes,
Jerry

7

Jerry, you may want to talk with Thom at the whistle shop. He does the same fix on the Clarkes. Also, I believe there is an article on C&F discussing Shaw/Clarke tweaks. I’ve done it myself, but have also undone one because I preferred the original sound.

I really don’t believe the air requirements to be as outrageous as most say. Yes, it takes a lot of air, but I find them to be a fine whistle just the same.

Erik

8

I’m familiar with what Thom does. I’ve done the same thing to two Clarke originals with very good results.

However, there are other ways to approach the problem that offer more flexibility in getting the best possible effect. Among other things, I’ve developed techniques for changing the size of the windway either from the top down, the bottom up or both, within tolerances of a few thousanths of an inch. These tweaks are fully reversable, making it possible to try several different possibilities before deciding which one to keep.

Best wishes,
Jerry

9

First, Thank u all for helping…

really don’t believe the air requirements to be as outrageous as most say.

Hey, im sure they are not outrageous, just a bit for me , maybe as a beginner…

Jerry, thank you for the offer, i will let u know soon.

Its funny because my other whistle is a Clarke original, and also is a bit heavy on the air, again, for me…

But ill still whistle all Day :slight_smile:

:laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :astonished: :boggle: :astonished: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

10

Shalom, Eran–
When you wrote about squashing Shaws, I though you did what I did once: sat on a Shaw and squashed it! The metal is fairly thin, and they can get crushed pretty easily…
Actually, this thin metal makes the adjustment you want to do a bit easier. Using your thumb, you can press the end of the windway down a tiny bit, narrowing the height of the windway. Try just a TINY bit, and then test the whistle. If it’s better, try a bit more. If it’s worse, you can raise the windway back up with a thin bladed knife. Also, look through the windway, and see where the blade is in relation to the top of the fipple-- they should be roughly level with each other. This can be lowered a bit with your fingers, and raised with a tool of some sort. I tweaked a Shaw C and D in this way, and the sound was a LOT better-- I like the Shaws quite a bit. The low D, however, will take quite a bit of air no matter what you do.
Wishing you and everyone in Israel well in these troubled times…

11

I’m impressed by any beginner who plays a Shaw low-D. I think it’s one of the coolest whistles out there – nothing at all subtle, just in-your-face, breathy, honking, big, low sound.

That said, it’s not an easy whistle to play; you might want to stick with your Clarke, or better yet, get something like a Clare, build up your confidence and fingers, then graduate to a more difficult whistle.

12

I’ve re-tweaked my Shaw (High) D in the way Brewerpaul describes, and I can finally play it without hyperventilating. Yeehay!

I’ve done similar tweaks to a Clarke C and D with similar success - breath requirements were reduced without any noticeable loss of volume or tone. A lot of air seems to get wasted by passing well above the blade, which doesn’t seem to make any difference to the whistle - it’s like playing with your mouth open.

I’d now like to get a Shaw Bb to play kwela on, assuming I can do the same tweak, as I think it’s probably the only Bb conical whistle in my price range.

13

Ok…

i pressed the blade a bit with my thumb and tried the Whistle,
I am very new to whistles so its very hard describing in professional terms…
a tiny bit of the breathiness has reduced (really a bit) , the thing that i notice the most is that the higher notes (second octave) are easier to produce now :slight_smile:
that was the main defect, i had a really hard time while playing high notes,

i pushed a bit more :blush:

same change just a bit more…

so i find my self sitting, giggling, pushing down the blade ,raising it a bit with a knife,
exploring the physics of the whistle (very interesting)
getting a nice little improvment, afterall as u said it would still take a lot of air no matter what.

enough, i think thats the most i can do, ill play a while on it before ill let u know how much it improved, if…

but , another thing happend,
after doing this little adjustment, i raise my head and what do i see…
the next victim :slight_smile:

my CLARKE :imp: :moreevil: :smiling_imp: :devil:

common little clrake lets fix ur little appitite for air :devil: :laughing: :devil:

well, here ends my experiance with tweaking whistles.

i think i damaged my clarke, it has a new voice added to its beautifull sweet voice :sniffle:
its like a little new whizzz…

this is quite a shame because getting a new whistle in israel is not the easiest thing.

anyway,
Thank u paul, U have helped me a lot with the shaw.

jerry - after reading a little about ur tweaking history here in the forum i
am really interested in sending u the whistle, but, the price of the
postage is somewhere near the price of a new whistle, so… im
still considering.

beginners - Think Twice Before Messing with ur Whistle

enough with fixing workshop and chatting, ill just go play a bit :laughing:

Happy Purim to ye All :party:

14

Mr Shaw must have been doing Chi Gung since he was a babe in arms - individually voiced whistles indeed.

My Shaw A arrived this am - I had innocently thought that smaller whistles would be less demanding on puff (having missed Martin Milner’s post on Dealing with his highD!).

Second octave? Ermm…working towards that one. My Howard Low D is such an easy blow compared with this, but I LOVE the sound.

To tweak or not to tweak that is the question?

Trisha

15

Someone’s sending a Shaw (low A, I think) for me to examine. I believe I can fix the breath requirement problem pretty easily using techniques I’ve developed. I’ll keep you posted.

If it turns out that I can do this easily, I would be willing to offer Shaw tweaking as a service. I’ll have to look into the size and packaging factors for Priority Mail, but it might be affordable, at least in the U.S.

Several people have commented that they love the sound of the Shaws, but they take way too much air. It would be nice to be able to enjoy those whistles and not have to give up and buy a different one.

Best wishes,
Jerry

16

Interested to hear how you get on, Jerry. Has anyone ever mailed Shaw about this “problem” with his whistles? Did they get a response?

Trisha, heading for a cosy chat with my Gen Bb nickel rather than another workout!

17

Several people have mentioned the Shaw breath requirement problem on this board, but I haven’t heard of anyone discussing it with the maker.

If someone would take the trouble to track him down and ask about it, that might be worthwhile. Even the mass-produced whistle makers sometimes do retool based on customer feedback.

Best wishes,
Jerry

18

I don’t own a Shaw–guess I’ve been scared shy of them here!–but here’s a link :
http://www.shaw-whistles.co.uk/

and email: info[snail-thingie]daveshaw.co.uk

19

I just did…

Trisha

20

Andwhat did Dave say :confused: