Hello!
I am experimenting with making with making my own Low D whistle. I’ve had trouble reaching bottom two holes on Low whistles, so wanted to make something with smaller finger spacing to make learning the instrument easier.
Software for calculating hole positions shows that adding a large vent hole allows to move E hole higher. I tested this and it seems to work, finger spacing became shorter by 6mm and feels like it plays the same.
Is it supposed to work like that or am I imagining things? Is there a reason why vent holes are not used on Low whistles?
Apologies if it is a dumb question, I am new to all this.
If you make the hole that vents E larger, you will have to move it further down the tube, hence exacerbating the stretch.
There is no vent hole below E. The opening that vents D is the end of the whistle, and that is fixed based on the tuning of D.
If you make the hole that vents E smaller, you can move it up the tube a bit, but there are limits to how far you can push that while keeping a robust enough voice for that note and getting the upper octave in tune.
Another way to reduce the hand stretch is to use a key. Some of the Susato low whistles have a kind of hinged flap which functions like a key, allowing you to press it with your finger in one location and have it close a hole in a different location.
If you are going to close the holes directly with your fingers, then you’ll have to look at techniques like the piper’s grip, and even so the stretch might be difficult. A lot of people struggle with low whistles at D or lower. In fact, even a low F whistle can be quite a stretch.
I haven’t seen that done on whistles, but as we know it’s common on flutes to have the body extended to the length at which the open bottom would give C, and there are two vent-holes, the lower one theoretically giving C# and the higher one giving Bottom D. I would think that this must end up reducing the venting of Hole 6.
Since the influence of venting is probably well-known among Low D whistle makers, if adding length of tubing with vent-holes was beneficial to Hole 6 I would think that most or all of the Low D makers would be doing that already.
Since they’re not, I assume that at least some of them have tried it and found it not to help.
With Low D whistles there’s really only one way to skin the cat. I can lay out great-playing Low D’s from a number of makers and all of them have the tone-holes in nearly identical sizes and positions. The Low D’s I’ve played which deviate just don’t play as well. An example is the Burke “Ezee” Low D where Hole 6 is moved up the tube and, as it must do, has been made smaller to compensate. What you get is the most feeble Low E on any good Low D whistle I’ve tried.
One thing that does work is making Hole 6 big and further down (halfway between Hole 5 and the open end) and using your little finger to close it. I tried it, and it’s nice to have your ring finger not needing to operate a tone-hole so it can function as a full-time anchor finger.
Thank you for answering! I know that normaly there is no vent hole below E, but I made one like in this diagram. It seems to my ear that with this new extra vent D and E sound the same, but holes are now closer together. However, I’m not sure that I can trust my ears because I’m new to playing and making flutes. That’s why I want to know if this effect is expected when adding extra vent
That’s what I thought as well, but I can’t seem to find an explanation on what is the negative effect of doing so. I assume there should be some noticable downside, but I have no idea what it is. Do you have any guesses?
I have another question, if you don’t mind me asking. Are there any downsides of moving holes up the bore by adding chimeys on top? I know Carbony whistles have internal chimneys and they work, but it seems hard to make
When you use a vent hole instead of cutting the whistle bore shorter, the effect that the vent hole has will vary across the octaves, depending on the size of the hole. Below a certain size, the vent hole will not terminate the bore for higher frequency harmonics. Higher frequency waves in the bore can bypass a vent hole (or tone hole) without noticing it, if it is small enough, but they can’t bypass a completely terminated bore.
When you use a chimney above the tone hole you effectively reduce the tone hole size, acoustically. This will flatten the note and make it quieter.
In contrast, if you use a chimney below the tone hole, i.e., protruding into the bore, and you set it at an angle, you can have the opening inside the bore be further down the bore than the opening at the top of the chimney that the finger closes. This can improve ergonomics, but it makes it harder to swab out your bore, and is tricky to make. I suspect it also has a detrimental effect on some other notes because it is an obstruction in the bore that will suck some energy.
That’s what I ended up doing with my low D flute/whistle prototype. I started by trying to make it chromatic, but it was absolutely crippling to play, so I filled in the two lowest holes and replaced them with a bigger one in between to be closed by the pinky, and it works fine, allowing my fingers to sit on the tube with the same separation distances as on a Generation Bb whistle and providing a strong E (and weak but usable half-holed Eb). Incidentally, I think I could handle the bigger stretch if I put a 45 degree kink in the tube between the hands, so I might give that a go if I try doing another chromatic one.
