I now own 2 Mack Hoover Narrow Bore D brass whistles. I ordered the first one because I was looking for a quiet whistle. I am still a beginner, so I need to practice a lot, but I don’t want to torture my cat and my Guy.
I figured there would be some trade-off in sound quality to achieve quiet, but that is not the case at all. To me, this whistle is not so much quiet as sweet- no shrill, ear-piercing high notes. I can, with virtually no effort, hit all 3 octaves cleanly. Of course, I don’t need the 3rd octave, but even that did not send my cat running from the room.
And speaking of animals, I feed the round-tailed ground squirrels. When I unpacked my new whistle and started playing, they came out of their holes to listen (my other whistles send them underground). I felt like the pied piper.
And this whistle really is magical. I own several whistles now, but this one feels just right, like it was made for me – which it was – but as if Mack knew the exact specs for me. I have small hands and a small mouth. The grip feels very natural and comfortable and has made my playing better. The whistle itself is beautiful and finely crafted with great attention to detail. I am one of those obsessive-compulsive types, so this level of aesthetic appeal and perfection, in a hand-made instrument, was a pleasant surprise.
My friend Gary is a far more advanced whistle player than I am. Though his hands are larger with wide fingers, he really liked it too, and had no trouble with grip or fingering. This whistle sounds sweet, even with my poor playing, but in the hands of someone who plays well, the sound is even more incredibly pure and sweet.
I like my Hoover whistle so much that I can’t bear to be without it. I grab a minute or two to practice anywhere I can (including stop-lights) and carry a small purse. I keep my whistle out of sight because I would be horrified if anyone asked me to play for them. So I asked Mack to make me a telescoping brass narrow bore. With his usual humility he told me: <The telescoping whistle is more of a novelty than a better whistle. It is virtually the same as it’s regular counterpart. The main difference is that it costs more to make because of all the pieces that have to fit together just so.> I told him I wanted one if he was willing to make it, and 4 days later I had it in my hands. I like this one even better.
Mack responds quickly to any email query, the turn-around time is incredibly fast, his prices are very reasonable, and he even makes a clever triangular cardboard container to ship the whistle.
If this sounds appealing to you, get one now because I can easily see Mack becoming one of those whistle makers with a waiting list and double his current prices.
Sandi in Tucson
