I went to a music store earlier today (World of Music in Cupertino, CA) and came across some $10 bamboo whistles made in Vietnam. I picked one up (expecting to put it right back down after proving to myself that it was just junk) and after playing a quick tune (Old Hag In the Kiln) I found myself wanting this whistle. I put it through its paces by playing a few more tunes and fell in love.
Since getting it home I’ve played a couple of hours on it. Here’s my impressions so far and a brief description of the whistle:
Appearance: They had several finishes available. Some were shiny laquered whistles with various oriental motifs for $15. The $10 one I chose (because of how it plays) is clear finished with nice palm leaf style stencilling from top to bottom. The whistles I played were all made very well.
One curious thing about this whistle is the bottom 7 inches that don’t actually have anything to do with the speaking length of the whistle - it’s there for decoration I guess, but it sure looks cool. There are extra holes on the lower end that make this possible.
Another curious thing about this whistle is that all of the finger holes are the same size. Their placement makes them in tune, not their size.
Sound: The sound is pleasantly “windy”. Not as windy as a Clarke original.
Both the voice and intonation are assertive and firm. The transition between octaves is very smooth and the upper register is very easy on the ears.
It’s not a quiet whistle. Not a loud one either. I’d say it’s a touch louder than my Burke composite.
I’m also very pleased with the evenness of timbre from note to note. The unused lower part of the whistle may have something to do with the belltone sounding so similar to the note above it. This is rare in whistles and has to be experienced to be appreciated.
‘C’ fingering (actually a B note on this whistle): OXXOOO is sharp but usable. OXXXXO is most in tune.
Overall: A lot of whistle for the money. It looks really cool, and plays better than many whistles I’ve paid a lot more for. It’s firmly tuned (no tuning slide) to the elusive key of Db. I am pleasantly surprised at the quality and playability of this cheap bamboo whistle and would unhesitatingly recommend it to any person suffering from WhOA.
I plan to record a clip and maybe get a photo up if I can figure out how to do that. Do I have to be hosted to put up a photo?
Anywho, just had to share this with you all. Thanks for reading this far!
Aldon
EDITED to add that I’ve posted a sound clip at the link in my signature. It’s track 9 called “The Butcher’s March.” Oh, and I also edited an errant apostrophe - I really do know the difference between “its” and “it’s”!!! I swear I do…
Okay I looked ‘petard’ up, but still don’t know what you mean.
3 entries found for petard.
pe·tard ( P ) Pronunciation Key (p-tärd)
n.
A small bell-shaped bomb used to breach a gate or wall.
A loud firecracker.
\
[French pétard, from Old French, from peter, to break wind, from pet, a breaking of wind, from Latin pditum, from neuter past participle of pdere, to break wind. See pezd- in Indo-European Roots.]
Word History: The French used pétard, “a loud discharge of intestinal gas,” for a kind of infernal engine for blasting through the gates of a city. “To be hoist by one’s own petard,” a now proverbial phrase apparently originating with Shakespeare’s Hamlet (around 1604) not long after the word entered English (around 1598), means “to blow oneself up with one’s own bomb, be undone by one’s own devices.” The French noun pet, “fart,” developed regularly from the Latin noun pditum, from the Indo-European root *pezd-, “fart.”
\Pe*tard", n. [F. p['e]tard, fr. p['e]ter to break wind, to crack, to explode, L. pedere, peditum.] (Mil.) A case containing powder to be exploded, esp. a conical or cylindrical case of metal filled with powder and attached to a plank, to be exploded against and break down gates, barricades, drawbridges, etc. It has been superseded.
There is an expression in English, “to be hoisted by one’s own petard” which means, literally, to be blown in the air by one’s own bomb, and figuratively to fall into your own trap.
It’s from Shakespear and appears there as “hoist by his own petard.” While not technically correct, “hoisted” is almost always how you’ll see it nowadays. (I use it that way because that what everybody thinks is right.) Most people who use it don’t really know what it means, so you find amusing variations on it. It’s certainly a clichee, and I don’t I could say it with a straight face.
You can probably run a search on the expression, and find some stuff, but you can’t always trust the web, remember. You’ll find the authoritative account in Brian Garner’s Modern American Usage.
Thanks Jerry. I followed the link. It appears you have to get your photos processed through Snapfish in order to post it. I was hoping to just use my cheapo digital camera to upload an image.
No. You can upload your photos to snapfish and never order any prints…BUT, a link to snapfish will not work on a forum such as this, because your photos would be password protected. Best bet, if available, is webspace provided by your isp.
Unless they’ve changed their format, that’s not the case. It’s a come-on to get you to use their processing services, but there’s no obligation to post for free. I use them all the time.
Here’s a picture I have on Snapfish.com, of a traditional Chinese folk whistle (I assume that’s what this is; it has “China” embossed on the mouthpiece). As you know, in my research, I’m collecting authentic traditional whistles.
Although they have ads all over the place, you can indeed host your pictures on snapfish without having to order any prints. Just register and start uploading your photos. There is no obligation to order if you do that. You can just leave them sitting there as long as you want. I have had photos up for maybe a year and never bought anything from them. Unless things have changed, you should still be able to do this. Anyway, I don’t know a whole lot about this sort of thing, but I hope that helps, and I look forward to seeing a picture!
(edit: oi, jeez, I take too long to post and look how many people post in the meantime! Sorry for adding to the repetition…)
“There’s letters seal’d: and my two schoolfellows,
Whom I will trust as I will adders fang’d,
They bear the mandate; they must sweep my way,
And marshal me to knavery. Let it work;
For 'tis the sport to have the engineer
Hoist with his own petard: and 't shall go hard
But I will delve one yard below their mines,
And blow them at the moon: O, 'tis most sweet,
When in one line two crafts directly meet.
This man shall set me packing:
I’ll lug the guts into the neighbour room.
Mother, good night. Indeed this counsellor
Is now most still, most secret and most grave,
Who was in life a foolish prating knave.
Come, sir, to draw toward an end with you.
Good night, mother.”
Here is the picture that Aldon sent to me. I added a little sharpen filter to it.
It seems to have quite an intricate design burned or painted on it. It also looks like it goes from here to WAY over there in length. Is that the mouthpiece cap with it Limu?
Thanks NorCal, I’ll send the picture soon!!!