Erik Tullberg is safely in Fairbanks, along with his lovely family. I didn’t get around to talking about the trip, beyond the fact that it was safe.
Erik doesn’t have computer access, yet, as they are still waiting for some of their stuff to arrive. When they get settled in a house, I assume he will be checking in here to let folks know he’s back online.
Just thought those of you who are friends of his would like to know he’s doing well.
Aha Tully! We caught you. Thought you’d get away with running off to the wilds of Alaska after quickly, quietly, efficiently, relatively cheaply sticking many of us with those beautiful sterling silver whistles with the thoughtful bag, eh?
Erik spoke very warmly of the Goldies and I suspect he already misses them. But I finally got to play one of Colin’s Overton low D whistles. Really different from anything I had played with before. The back pressure is sort of a surprise to me. It would take some getting used to, but the sound! If I could afford an Overton, I’d deal with the learning curve for that sound…
And yes, Erik’s whistles are really something. Just the intrinsic value of the material adds a bit to the pride in ownership, but the sound and responsiveness live up to it. Just a little bit of breathiness, but not fuzzy. Just enough to be a whistle. I really like his whistles. The mouthpiece is also very comfortable, which it didn’t look to me like it would be. Turns out to fit that lower lip very well. Some real thought went into this instrument.
On a tangent, it really surprises me how cheaply some makers sell their instruments. The handmade whistles are hardly an impulse buy, but for the work in them and the skill involved, we have access to some truly fine instruments at very low prices. It occurs to me that there are not many whistle smiths living in big houses and eating filet mignon every night. I’m not urging a price increase, not until I have been able to get a couple of the whistles I want, but I think makers could bump up their prices a bit without being unfair to the customers.
Thanks for letting us know, Patrick. Just the other day I was thinking “I haven’t seen anything from ErikT on the board for quite some time,” and wondering what happened to him. I wish him and his family well!
Patrick, please pass on best regards to Erik and Julie from the friends they made at Strathspey-in-May earlier this year.
We look forward to the resumption of his wise and witty contribution to C&F. Tell him we expect a full report on his family’s move half way across the globe