Due to the lack of tin whistle teachers in Norway, I’m thinking of buying a book (with a cd) to learn to play the whistle properly. I saw one called ‘complete Irish tin whistle’ on thewhistleshop.com - http://www.thewhistleshop.com/catalog/tutorials/tutorialsets/complete/complete.htm - which seems to be good for me, since I know how to read music, and I was wondering if any of you have this book? If so, what do you think of it? Are there any books that could be a better option?
Emilie
Emilie, I don’t have that one, but I do have the ones by Bill Ochs, and Geraldine Cotter, and they are excellent. I’m not speaking ill of the one you are referring to, but I do know you can’t go wrong with Ochs or Cotter.
Emilie, I do have the book you’re considering, and I don’t think it’s a great first tutor at all. For one thing, it assumes you already read musical notation…it doesn’t teach you how to do so, nor does it substitute another method, such as whistle tab. It also assumes you already have some working knowledge of how to play the whistle. Basically, it’s geared toward helping a more intermediate player hone his or her technique.
For a beginning tutor, I don’t think you can beat the Bill Ochs book (it’s called “The Clarke Tin Whistle: A Handbook by Bill Ochs,” but it can be used with any brand of D whistle…you don’t have to own a Clarke). I used to recommend Robin Williamson’s “The Penny Whistle Book,” and I still like it, but I picked up a copy of the Bill Ochs book a month or so ago, and it’s just outstanding. It walks you though the entire process step by step…from holding the whistle correctly to basic music reading (a good section even if you already read music…it’s a nice refresher), ornamentation, etc.
If you can afford two books, I’d get the Ochs and either the book you’re considering or a good basic tune book (such as “Ireland’s 110 Best Tin Whistle Tunes”) to give you some additional music to work with when you tire of the music in the tutor. If you can only get one, go with the Ochs.
Redwolf
[ This Message was edited by: Redwolf on 2003-03-02 02:32 ]
Redwolf is right. I have both the L.E. McCullough whistle books, and in the first book the music notation is handwritten, making it very difficult to read (at least for me). The second book, if you read music already is actually much better and has four CD’s with each tune played slowly and then fast. I made myself a little session CD from the four CD’s of the tunes that I wanted to learn first (the slower versions), and can use the sheet music to play along with the CD.
Thank you for the tips! I think I’ll get Och’s book and McCullough’s second book. 125 songs.. that should keep me busy for a while! 
I have to say, I hate Norwegians customs. I have to have the books sent to my mom in Canada, so that she’ll send them to me as a ‘gift’..
Life is not easy for whistlers in Norway. No wonder there’s so few of them.
Emilie
After ten years I’m pretty good at playing this thing. I learned from the Bill Ochs tutor, L.E. McCullough’s tinwhistle tutor, and listening to a lot of music. The Ochs tutor is good for basics but I personally feel that L.E.'s tutor is the best out there, especially if you already know how to read music. L.E.'s favorite irish session tunes (or F.I.S.T.) is not really a tutor but rather a collection of songs to play along to. Not much teaching involved. I’ve been out of the tutor loop for a while so he may have slipped one in while I wasn’t looking.
Grey Larsen has a book coming out from Mel Bay sometime in the next few months. It’s a huge book and covers Irish whistle and flute playing. What I’ve seen of it looks more like a scholarly work or Irish whistle/flute player’s ‘bible’ than a simple tutor, but it’s something you could probably learn from for years.
Definately something to watch for…
-Brett
I wouldn’t be without the McCullough tutor. It’s pretty exhaustive on whistle technique, plus it contains some fascinating historical material. The style is rather informal, and the author manages to convey his ideas on such things as ornamentation without being dogmatic. I didn’t use it as a tutorial, but rather as a reference work. However, it is such good reading that it even made its way into the “library” for perusal while seated on the “throne”. (No, I don’t play my whistle in there, although it does have nice acoustics.)