I purchased an Irish Whistle (Feadog, D) online about a year ago due to boredom and a desire to expand my abilities. I’ve gotten pretty decent with it, though some concepts still elude me (such as Ornamentation in general). In particular, the whole “half-covered” notes make me chuckle, here’s why:
I’m 6’8", have extremely large hands, and am … chunky (fat fingers to go with the rest of me). So here I am trying to play a foot long whistle and am expected to be about to cover half a note?
I’ve seen instruments that are called “irish whistles” but have a deep tone and are 2-3’ long. Would this be worth looking into for me, or should I chalk this up to a “size restricted” item (as well as compact cars, and plane seats) and move onto something more my size (bag pipes, perhaps).
Also, being rather imposing, I look extremely silly trying to play a tin Whistle… might be good for theatrics, but I still feel silly.
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Summary: What is/are your opinion on large Irish whistles, such as an Overton Low D.
What you’re talking about is probably a ‘low-D’ whistle, which plays in D, an octave below your high-D whistle. Sure, you’d probably love one, but I doubt your hands are too large for the high-D. It all comes with time and practice.
I’m only 6’2", but I know I feel somewhat the same on those little high D whistles, except my hands are not all that big, and my fingers are smaller too. Stll, there’s not much room on those things.
You’d probably take to the Low D whistle like a fish to water-you’d most likely give a big old sigh, and feel like you’ve come home! Though, even a Bb whistle would feel like a vacation to you (Generation Bb’s the one to try), and your ears might like it too.
The lower whistles like G, F, and D would be a better fit, no doubt though. You might not even have to use piper’s grip, but you still may find it easy on the hands and fingers once you get used to it.
The Overton Low D is a classic that many love-but there are quite a few others around too, if that doesn’t tickle you. Just do a search on the forum for Low in the whistle forum, and you’ll see quite a number of posts about them.
Good luck-and congratulations for sticking with it all that time on that leetle whistle!!! You should be really happy when you get a bigger one or two to play with!
i’m a big & tall person myself. that has nothing to do with your desire to own more whistles. owning and playing a low D whistle is just way cool. how did you come to play the whistle? where did you buy it?
The low A whistle is a nice key and excellent for playing along with others playing soprano D or low D whistles. An A whistle is easier to get to grips with (sic) than a low D too.
How did I get started? I’m a logical thinker. I have a 5 year plan, for example (I’m 26). I’m also a list-maker, I’m the kind of guy you can ask, “5 favorite movies” and I can rattle them off immediately. So one day I’m at a pub with my brother and we are discussing our goals in life. We both realized we had a desire to play a musical instrument, and while on the way home (listening to Flogging Molly) I decided on an Irish Whistle. I searched the 'net for a couple days looking/researching and decided that I loved the sound of the Low D, but not the price (understood, I’d never played a musical instrument). I ended up buying a feadog online and started learning it… I still struggle with most aspects, breath for example (I’m a smoker), I tend to shift the notes off key by exhaling too much…
Now that I know the High D a bit better, I feel confident dropping some $$$ on a larger, better sounding (to me) instrument.
I like the sound of the Overton and the Chieftain and love the looks of the Overton V3, though I’ll probably go with the Chieftain for economical reasons.
I do have concerns though; I saw probably 50 video’s on youtube of various Overton, Chieftain, Sakuto (sp?) and Alba whistles (alba was pretty) and heard massive (to me) differences in sounds. A quick search of the site showed that since they are hand-crafted there is a difference in each pipe, and that worries me. I don’t know technical terms, but some of the pipes sounded tinny, while others were … I don’t know, breathy? You could distinctly hear the sound of the exhaled breath. I liked the breathiness (did I make up a word?), though the tinniness would bug me.
So I don’t know.
Also, I’ve seen alot of websites selling the whistles, but does anyone know of a few reputable ones? One site had Overton V3 for $185, and I have a hard time believing it…
First of all, a qualifier here. The only two low (or lowish) whistles I have played were a low D built by me from 1" PVC electric conduig and a low A I built from aluminium shower rail.
Both whistles, and the Low D in particular require a lot of air. In the case of the low D, this is at least partly the nature of the beast. In the case of the A, it’s almost certainly a case of me not getting it right. (The only whistle I’ve built from anything other than PCV) because my Bb PVC whistle only a semitone away does not require an inordinate amount of air.
Also, I have a Cheftain Mezzo C which requires a lot of air, is out of tune and is difficult to control. I guess what I’m saying that particularly with your nasty habit (smoking) you might want to ask for recommendations on a low D that does not require too much air. I have no experience of the Cheftain low D, but if it’s anything like the Mezzo C I own, you might just tire of it before you learn to master it. It can shine in the hands of a master though, but you might want to use an easier whistle to learn on.
One of the cheapest low whistles around is Guido Gonzato’s Low Tech Whistle. He’ll build you a low D for around 40 Euro if I recall correctly and from what I’ve seen in the forum, it’s a really nice playing and sounding whistle if you can live with the fact that it’s made from PVC and not metal.
Personally, I stayed away from whistles that did not have a metal body until I started building my own PVC whistles. The two reasons were that it didn’t “feel” right to be playing something made of plastic, and I’d borrowed a Susato C, D, Eb set and didn’t like them. They didn’t sound like whistles. Now I know better. My three piece homemade PVC soprano D whistle has become my favourite whistle. It fits in a pocket and goes everywhere with me.
I’m also new to Irish whistles and I have a Feadog D as well, although I’m not as big as you are.
I was checking out Low Ds and came across the Kerry Low D. It can be ordered from Lark in the Morning online. I’ve visited their store in San Francisco and have purchased instruments from them in the past with no problems. Just Google: Lark in the Morning, and go to wind instruments.
Here’s a link for Kerry/Chieftan whistles, then go to the Kerry Low D:
enter the site and go to products. Clicking on the Key will get another box with a demo (disable your pop-ups for a moment). The Kerry Low D is not as pricey as the Chieftan model.
Good luck in your search.
Wait until real music starts coming out of it. You won’t feel so silly then!
Breath control is one of the hardest skills to master. If you tend to blow too much air, try exhaling through the nose at the same time.
For a suprano D whistle, I would recommend my favorite whistle, the Clarke original design. They take a bit more air than other whistles if they are untweaked.
Another breathy whistle to consider is the Shaw, available down to low D. These whistles require more air than I can furnish comfortably.
I play my Clarke original design C and D whistles more than any others.
Of course, if you can “try before buying”, that would be a big help in helping you to chose. Does anyone live close to you that has a whistle that you are considering?
The holes on a Clark are also spaced slightly further apart than my oak, and perhaps other cylindrical whistles like the Feadog. The trade off is that some of the holes are slightly smaller on the Clark.
The Overton is the original low D. It’s the low D all others are measured by. In other words, you can’t go wrong with an Overton.
Chieftain makes the V3. I haven’t played a V3; but have noticed they receive mixed reviews. Some say the V3 design borrows heavily from the Alba Low D Vibe. BTW, the Albas are very well made and are reasonably priced.
Regarding over blowing the Feadog; it’s is very easy to over blow the Feadog as well as virtually all the “cheapies” as they have no back pressure.
Regarding price; the same rules apply to whistles as those that apply to any instrument: you get what you pay for. My favorite soprano Ds are Reyburns and Overtons and in low Ds; Overtons and MKs.
I would be guided by the sound that appeals to your ear and use that as the basis for your buying decision. Many web site provide sound samples.
If you are looking for a great source of whistles and advice, I would go to Doc Jones’ site: http://www.irishflutestore.com/newsite/ He’s great to deal with and is very generous with his expierence.
I would think that even with big hands you should probably work you way down to a low D. A Bb has a nice sound and is a bit bigger and a low G sounds great and is bigger still. Both cost a lot less than a low D which might also feel better to you for now.
Biggie, if you like the ‘breathiness’, you’ll probably love the Alba.
Our resident Undisputed likened it to Marilyn Monroe singing Happy Birthday to a President you are way too young to remember.
I want one, and though my hands can take the stretch Just about the same as a Howard), with the arm extension needed for it’s slightly longer length, i just can’t do it. I dare say you would have no problem with it at all.
I have a Howard low D that I love, my Alba A, which has a really wonderful sound, and a low G Water Weasel (tunable) that I cherish.
I have tried the Burke composit low D as well, and liked it very much. The Kerry’s are nice too.
So … get out your dice or sharpen up the darts, and make our choice. most of them hold their value very well, so if you find you don’t care for one, you can usually sell it and try another without losing much.
I would like to echo what a few others have mentioned and suggest an intermediate key like Alto G (one of my favorites). Soprano D to Low D is a big jump and you are probably going to want whistles in every key eventually.
