Squirrrrely

[RobBBQ]

Hey there,
I’m looking for some advice. I just got a Susato whistle (low F) and I’m having issues with its unbelieveble sensitivity. It, in fact, is soo sensitive to octave jumping that playing low notes can only be done by blowing a bit of air out the side of the mouth when playing. I have a couple of other low whistles and this is problem doesn’t exist. Any advice for tweaking teh whistle to make it a bit more playable? Thanks!

Rob
www.metloef.com

[Jerry_Freeman]

My first suggestion would be, see if you can exchange it. Susatos usually have a strong enough bottom end, so that one probably isn’t typical.

Best wishes,
Jerry

[Ridseard]

Regard this crappy Susato as a blessing. Too many Susatos and other low-end whistles, such as Generations, are just too good. So good, in fact, that they threaten the very use of whistles in ITM, which thrives on the challenge of overcoming the inadequacies of inferior instruments. When you play whistle, at least 50% of your effort should be on compensating for poor response and tone, and at most 50% on making music. I.e., one should restrict ones acquisition of whistles to no better than “halfway-decent” instruments, which implies that they should be no less than halfway-indecent.

[cj1]

Ridseard wrote:

Regard this crappy Susato as a blessing. Too many Susatos and other low-end whistles, such as Generations, are just too good. So good, in fact, that they threaten the very use of whistles in ITM, which thrives on the challenge of overcoming the inadequacies of inferior instruments. When you play whistle, at least 50% of your effort should be on compensating for poor response and tone, and at most 50% on making music. I.e., one should restrict ones acquisition of whistles to no better than “halfway-decent” instruments, which implies that they should be no less than halfway-indecent.

[Jerry_Freeman]

@Ridseard

Regard this crappy Susato as a blessing. Too many Susatos and other low-end whistles, such as Generations, are just too good. So good, in fact, that they threaten the very use of whistles in ITM, which thrives on the challenge of overcoming the inadequacies of inferior instruments. When you play whistle, at least 50% of your effort should be on compensating for poor response and tone, and at most 50% on making music. I.e., one should restrict ones acquisition of whistles to no better than “halfway-decent” instruments, which implies that they should be no less than halfway-indecent.

Whew!

I’m glad you set me straight on that one, Ridseard. You’ve saved me from making a terrible mistake.

[skh]

Rob,

are you really, really, definitely sure that you completely cover the bottom holes? I have a Susato Low A and am still fighting with it as the distance between R2 and R3 is wider than expected, and R3 rather large.

Sonja

[waitingame]

Rob, I’m having a similar problem with a Susato Low F. I’ve also got a Susato A and a Bb which play perfectly politely although they need more breath control than any other whistle I own. But the F is a nightmare in the lower end of the bottom octave. Sometimes it just will not perform at all and other times it reverts to the Susato goose onk.

However I’ve been persevering for about a month and it is getting slowly better. I guess I’m adapting to it’s very sensitive breath requirements. Incidently I don’t have the same problem with the Low D!!!

I’ve got to say if mine doesn’t improve in the next few weeks I’m going to tape up the window and use it as a straw for giant cocktails.

[Zubivka]

@Ridseard

Regard this crappy Susato as a blessing. Too many Susatos and other low-end whistles, such as Generations, are just too good. So good, in fact, that they threaten the very use of whistles in ITM, which thrives on the challenge of overcoming the inadequacies of inferior instruments. When you play whistle, at least 50% of your effort should be on compensating for poor response and tone, and at most 50% on making music. I.e., one should restrict ones acquisition of whistles to no better than “halfway-decent” instruments, which implies that they should be no less than halfway-indecent.

Thanks for pointing out to my terrible mistake.
Now, none of your criticisms is valid if you don’t provide a cure.
So, should I :

1. send my perfectly playing, shweet as treacles, Rose to Jerry Freeman so he tweaks for some chiff, pop and unplayability? Will this reverse disengineering and some unpolishing with a file make it a genuine Rude & old Rose? Or is tweaking a no-no if abiding by pure-drop ethnic ethics?
2. Or should I just swap it for the properly indecent Susato mentioned above?
   
   
   PS: Forget my questions. I just found out I can force my old brass Gen tube in the Rose head tuning slide. I thought first of epoxy-gluing a Walton Mellow D tube over the said slide, but it looks undecently recent, while the brass Gen looks like proper crap.
   If I heat the head, and freeze the tube, it should fit once and for all and even make it untunable. All I have to do is calculate the proper length so it plays a quarter-tone sharp, so I can join both D and Eb sessions. Blues, too (oops, sorry, I forgot non-ITM is non-kosher).

[skh]

Zubivka,

what did you smoke, and where can I get it?

Sonja

[Jerry_Freeman]

@Zubivka

All I have to do is calculate the proper length so it plays a quarter-tone sharp, so I can join both D and Eb sessions.

Very funny, Zoob. Great stuff, as usual.

Best wishes,
Jerry

[Ridseard]

@Zubivka

All I have to do is calculate the proper length so it plays a quarter-tone sharp, so I can join both D and Eb sessions.

All my off-the-shelf Generations were already like that. I always wondered why, and now I know. Thanks.