I was thinking, we ought to put together a list of things we’d like to see in a whistle.
This seemed a good place to do it.
Anything’s fair game, even if the laws of physics prevent it. I never studied law.
Here’s mine for a high D:
Sweet put not absolutely pure, just a bit of bite, a bit of chiff popping in on note transitions.
No louder in the second octave than the first, and not shrill at the top. Overall a whistle of moderate volume but capable of being pushed a bit or of being played quietly and pensively.
The low D bell note should be the loudest note on the whistle. The low E should be the second loudest, and so forth.
Every note on the whistle should be pitch stable across a range of blowing pressures and attacks.
The low D bell note should be about 10 cents flat, the F-sharp about 12 cents flat, the E, G, A, and B right on as compared to a tuner, the C-sharp about 8 cents flat, and you should get a good dead-on C-natural with either ( o x x | o o o ) or ( o x o | x x x ).
The air requirements should be low to moderate; there should be medium resistance and backpressure.
Capable of being played into the third octave without damaging your ears or anybody else’s.
Just enough backpressure that I know it’s there. My Rose comes to mind. And I’d like it to lean more to the lower air requirement than the higher.
A pure, open sound. Just enough complexity to keep the sound interesting. Definitely NOT airy.
Easy and clean transition between octaves. It really annoys me when I can’t play a rocking pedal part as fast as I’d like because the whistle just won’t change the octave that fast. Perhaps it’s my playing to a degree ( ), but it’s not every whistle. My Burke is a wonderful example of what I’m looking for, in this regard.
I like a good pop on the ornaments. Think Susato pop.
Sounds like most, if not all of the requirements, except the capucino, are answered by my Sindt D. It’s the only whistle I own that has never seen the inside of my whistle jar because I never want it to be that far away.
Mike
The biggest item I can think of is that, since they’re supposed to be “tin whistles,” they should sound like they’re made of tin (or some other metal). In other words, they should have a certain resonance in the overtones that sounds like a metal instrument.
I know that many here have and love whistles made of wood or PVC, but, to me, they always manage to sound like r******rs played without tonguing each note. As a musical instrument per se, fine. As a whistle, not what I want to hear.
My Abell is as good as it gets, for me. I’ve had compliments on how it sounds from people who know nothing about music, let alone Irish music, including some nursing home residents. And that sucker is loud.
A push-button whistle that, at the push of a button, goes from the growling aggressive tone of my Copeland Low G to the angelic heavenly tone of my O’Riordan Low G and back as desired…
), but it’s not every whistle. My Burke is a wonderful example of what I’m looking for, in this regard.
