I’m pretty new to whistle playing, as you will guess, but obsessed all the same. I keep reading reviews of various whistles, their virtues and faults, and back pressure is always mentioned. So what is that about, please?
Many thanks to those who can be bothered to shed some light.
There are two related terms, backpressure and resistance.
They are often confused, but are not the same.
Backpressure refers to the amount of air pressure required to make a whistle (or other wind instrument) sound.
Resistance refers to the volume of air which must enter a whistle (or other wind instrument) to make it sound.
One measures the amount of air, but doesn’t reference the force with which it is blown. The other references the blowing force but doesn’t speak to the amount of air.
Usually you think of whistles which have low backpressure as also having low resistance (like the Clark original, for instance), and whistles that have high backpressure and also have high resistance (like the Overton).
But you can have whistles that aren’t so simple to define: I have a very loud M&E whistle that has high backpressure in that it has to be blown with some force, and low resistance, in that it also requires much air.
–James
Thanks James for putting it so clearly and taking the time to explain.
My favourite whistle of the moment is a Dixon low D, although at first it seemed to take so much effort and air to make it work. Thankfully it’s getting easier to control it, the more I play.
One thing though - I’ve found recently that when playing it in a big empty room with high ceilings and hard floor, the natural reverb seemed to incrase volume and sustain, but made notes at the high end of the second octave difficult to keep from breaking. Is there a trick to this? I have a gig coming up in just such a room, which is a worry.
I’ve found recently that when playing it in a big empty room with high ceilings and hard floor, the natural reverb seemed to incrase volume and sustain, but made notes at the high end of the second octave difficult to keep from breaking. Is there a trick to this? I have a gig coming up in just such a room, which is a worry.
I’ve found again and again that it’s a mistake to try to change the way I play because of the room or the ambient noise level.
My best advice is just play how you play. Don’t worry about trying to “fill the room.” Because of its high pitch, whistle carries deceptively well, even at softer volumes.
If the room makes you echo or sound much louder, don’t worry about that either.
Just try to ignore it, and play how you play.
–James
I think you’re right. If the room makes some parts of it feel easier, then that’s a bonus. Otherwise I’ll just play as if it’s any other day. It’s only three tunes I’m doing so not really such a sweat. On the other hand, it’s a book launch, so everyone’ll be paying attention. But the low D should have a good sound in that space, so fingers crossed. Thanks for that advice.