Ok,
This is going to be a confusing question, at least for me!
When you are playing sheet music with a whistle other than a D, do you try to stay with the keyed structure of th piece (such as playing a D when it is called for), or do you just make like youāre playing your good old D whistle but in the end are playing the song in the key of G (such as with a G whistle).
Iām finding it difficult to change my mentality per whistleā¦I got the D fingering pounded into my brainā¦so Iām pretending Iām still playing my D whistle when Iām not, even reading music. Exampleā¦playing a G instead of the D that the music calls forā¦
Anyone have any advice on how I can train my brain?? Thanksā¦I know this was clear as mud, but hopefully someone can interpret alien
On 2001-08-20 12:41, Lori Peters wrote:
ā¦When you are playing sheet music with a whistle other than a D, do you try to stay with the keyed structure of the piece (such as playing a D when it is called for)ā¦
thatās going to be difficult the more different-keyed whistles you get! The D will be at a different place for each whistle.
THe above scenario is only applicable if you are playing with others and really have to follow the score because you canāt wing the piece by ear, and canāt, for some reason use your D whistle.
Try the C whistles: if you play keyboards you can relate the 6 holes to the white keys. Like all things, you need practice.
Iām not at all sure itās necessary to practice this with all other keys unless you do a lot of sightreading of scores.
or do you just make like youāre playing your good old D whistle but in the end are playing the song in the key of G (such as with a G whistle).
I thought maybe I was breaking some unwritten ruleā¦I donāt usually play with others, and when I do, I play the Dā¦but Iām liking my G whistle so much I might just have to superglue it to my mouth
Oh well, I guess I shouldnāt worryā¦most of the time when I play with others they always ask me what key Iām inā¦make THEM do the hard work! LOL!
Traditional whistle players donāt play from sheet music and why do you people keep calling tunes āsongsā??
anyway, assuming we are talking Irish music here tunes in D,G and related minor keys are played on a D whistle. There is little call for whistles in other keys unless you play those fiddle tunes in D/Gminor in which case a C whistle comes in handy (even though most can be tackled on a D whistle in the hands of a competent player).
Another occasion for using different keyed whistles is when playing with different keyed instruments : flat sets of pipes, lower tuned fiddles or concertinas in other than the usual keys.
In those cases the notes are still referred to as being pitched in D eg. when you would be playing with say a piper who plays a C set, a fiddle player would ask for an A to tune his/her fiddle to, the piper would finger the chanter like playing in D, but as he has a C chanter he gives the fiddle player effectively a G so that the fiddle is tuned a full tone down. which actually works great.
Confused?? onāt worry try playing nice music without thinking about it too much.
[ This Message was edited by: Peter Laban on 2001-08-20 13:58 ]
I thought maybe I was breaking some unwritten ruleā¦I donāt usually play with others, and when I do, I play the Dā¦but Iām liking my G whistle so much I might just have to superglue it to my mouth >
As long as you enjoy it and the people around you arenāt running away, then no rules are being broken. āTraditionā would say that tunes should be played on a D whistle; but traditions change. (My favorite tradition was broken with the invent of indoor plumbing )
If you like the G whistle, and will play it - all the more power to you. My personal favorite whistle Keys are A and Bb. I donāt remember any reference, but is your fav a high G or a low G? If itās the High G, just remind me not to bring any dogs should I ever have the need to visit.
I always have fun trying to take songs written in nice keys like B flat and play them on my D whistle. My brain contorts. I can transpose on the fly if there are no accidentals.
On 2001-08-20 13:56, Peter Laban wrote:
Traditional whistle players donāt play from sheet music and why do you people keep calling tunes āsongsā??
Funny, but the neighbor dog LOVED the high g, and would bark when Iād STOP! LOLā¦
Ok, first, Iām not irishā¦second, I have never been and will never BE a ātraditionalistā, 3rdā¦a tune is a song to me. If itās got a melody, itās a song, the song has a tune, etc etcā¦I wasnāt aware there was a correct terminology ā¦
I play by eye AND by ear, and will switch back and forth when I need (or want) to, depending on the situation. I learned to play music by ear, then went on to serious studies when I could read Which I will never regret, and Iāll never feel bad for looking at notes on a page. Improvisation is not one of my good pointsā¦but Iām working on it.
Thereās my storyā¦blunt as it may be! LOLā¦all the debates about eyes vs. ears are a futile point in my opinion, because there are those who CHOOSE or want to play the way they feel most comfortableā¦everyone has the right to their own way. If it sounds beautiful, itās music, bottom line.
So I guess this gives me an excuse to not worry about the keyā¦Iāll just pretend I donāt know
For what itās worth, itās really simple ā a song is something you sing. Itās got words. Those words are set to the melody ā the tune. And itās not a traditional-Irish thing; āsongā is something sung in jazz and in chamber music, for instance.
Amen! Iām not a traditionalist either. In fact, Iām looking to incorporate my whistles into my rock/country/blues jam group. I too believe one can both play by ear AND read music and agree that the words āsongsā and ātunesā can both be used here and not be sacrilege.
To answer your original question, if you play, say, a B-flat whistle and use the D fingerings, it will sound the same as if youād played the tune in the key of B-flat. In other words, if you had accompaniment, that person would be playing in B-flat, assuming they were matching your whistle, of course! So the best thing to do is to have several whistles in different keys (if possible) and use the one you need to play with others. Get familiar with which keys each one can play well (say, a D whistle plays D & G well). As the others said, most whistle music is written in D or G, so you can probably play the D or G fingerings on other-keyed whistles, just make sure the other players are in the same key. Someone else mentioned relating to a keyboard, this is a good idea, some combination of that and using the ear will be the key. Sorry if long-winded, but hope it helps.
[ This Message was edited by: cj on 2001-08-20 16:58 ]
[ This Message was edited by: cj on 2001-08-20 17:00 ]
This last bit was very much as I said it: D is the āreference keyā when you change whistle your are effectively transposing even though you will still refer to the notes as if they would be in D. This will be fierce complicated for your accom-pianist.
As regards to what also said ātraditions changeā they do and they need to, itās part of their nature. Change will only come slow, traditions are also by nature conservative and change will only come from within and with the consent of other members of the tradition. So, to change it, you will have to master and become part of it first.
What I meant by not being a traditionalistā¦I play the whistle because I enjoy it. I play anything on itā¦not just irish TUNES (there, did I get it right??)ā¦
I was at a jam this weekend and swooned over a guy playing one of my whistles in jazz improvā¦NOT traditional at all, but still mind blowing. THATāS what I like about it. Itās diversity.
I would never take the authority to change traditionā¦I aināt that great! LOLā¦but to have the guts to do something completely NOT traditional is admirable, to say the least.
Yes, obviouslyā¦but does that make me LESS of a whistler, or PERSON for that matter?? Just because we differ in opinion doesnāt make me not of your āworldāā¦what an arrogant statement. I would never judge someone on their difference of opinion, especially when music is involvedā¦itās like telling an artist that they shouldnāt have used that yellow in that spot. Geez!
Nowhere on this site does it say for irish traditionalists onlyā¦this is a whistle forum. While I enjoy traditional music and techniques, I also like to expand to other areas. Itās called ummmmā¦creativity??
If that makes me less than human, than I guess Iām in the wrong placeā¦
No, Lori, youāre NOT in the wrong place. Youāre a person with broader sensibilities than any hidebound, narrow minded person who needs to nit pick in order to feel āin the knowā.
Relax and enjoy. There are far more people here who are easy-going and enjoy music for music, and I for one play as much Brit, contra, new-age, and americana as I do irish.
TUNE a archaic : a frame of mind : MOOD b : AGREEMENT, HARMONY āin tune with the timesā c : general attitude : APPROACH āchanged his tune when the going got roughā
SONG a : a habitual or characteristic manner b : a violent, abusive, or noisy reaction āput up quite a songā
Question: I bought some sheet music of stuff recorded by a Traditional Irish Whistler. Is this allowed?
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āwhat happens when the perfect fool meets a fool-proof idea?ā
[ This Message was edited by: StewySmoot on 2001-08-21 13:58 ]
TUNE a archaic : a frame of mind : MOOD b : AGREEMENT, HARMONY āin tune with the timesā c : general attitude : APPROACH āchanged his tune when the going got roughā
SONG a : a habitual or characteristic manner b : a violent, abusive, or noisy reaction āput up quite a songā
Question: I bought some sheet music of stuff recorded by a Traditional Irish Whistler. Is this allowed?
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