I am trying to decide which Low F to go for. I don’t have a fortune to spend, nor do I have huge hands. Both the Low Ds I have owned in the past have proven too big a stretch (Silkstone and Alba - Alba being the more difficult of the two). So right now I’m thinking Susato, or maybe Hoover (if I can wait that long). I have a Hoover CPVC high D that I love, and the whitecap sounds great on an old feadog body.
So before making any decisions I thought it would be a good idea to ask people who know their whistles. How do people find these to play? Are the holes quite reachable, or really far apart? Do they take a lot of puff? (I would be considering Shaw in that list, except that I’ve read that it takes a pretty high lung capacity.) Are they very loud? Also, would you recommend any others that I haven’t mentioned? (I can’t afford Overton, Chieftain, etc)
Once I’ve setup my recording equipment I’ll post a review of my GFM</a](http://www.whistlemaker.com/">GFM</a)> low F. I simple adore this whistle. It’s beautiful to look at, has a lovely tone, and is very easy to play. The maker (Chuck Tilbury) was a pleasure to deal with, and I’m eager for him to start marking low Ds. It’s very reasonably priced ($95 USD) and a good quality aluminum whistle. I definitely recommend it!
Everyone should have at least one Low F whistle. It really is a beautiful key.
I have an Alba Low F that I think is just fantatic. The reach is quite comfortable, and I have rather short, stubby fingers. The tone of the Alba is beautiful - it’s much more flutey than any other whistle I’ve played. It also has a good bit of backpressure and takes a good volume of air to keep it going.
The only things I don’t like about it is that it takes a significant amount of warming up to get the best sound out of and minimize clogging. The other thing is that it is LOUD. I mean like “guide ships through dense fog” loud.
I really do like mine though. Since we’ve gotten used to one another, it’s been a wonderful instrument to have.
The Susato wouldn’t be a bad bet either. I have a non-tunable Susato Low Eb that’s a very easy player and the finger reach on it isn’t bad - like I said, I have very short-stubby fingers and I can play it without any difficulty at all. A Low F Susato would be an even easier reach. The Susato might be a good way to go to start and then you could “upgrade” later on if you felt the need.
I don’t have any experience with Silkstone, so I can’t advise anything there.
With the Susato you can get keys added for 3rd and/or 6th hole. I have one in F with key for the 6th hole and it’s quite comfortable to play. Reyburn can have offset holes which might be another option. I have heard nothing but good about his whistles. I have a Hoover CPVC low E which is one of my favorites and the reach is doable for my small fingers so an F would probably be even easier.
I have the Alba low F, and it’s absolutely wonderful. It’s my favourite whistle, and I play it every day. The stretch is very comfortable to me, though it may take som time for a beginner to adjust to it if he or she hasn’t played other than high whistles before. The sound of this beauty is the best thing about it. You should really take this low whistle into consideration.
Check with Burt Ruttan, or the Russian space agency.
The price tag on the Grinter might be a (little) less than a moon shot, but you can probably book and make the trip to the moon and back a good deal quicker than you can take delivery of a Grinter low whistle.
I just received an Alba low F a few weeks ago. It is a beautiful whistle. Stacey does wonderful work. It has a strong low end and a little backpressure. I have no trouble with the reach. I can play it with my finger tips. It is slightly more than the price you stated but worth the extra. I absolutely love mine.
I have a number of Low F’s. I have a Susato which I never play, although, in fairness, I guess I’d play it more if I didn’t have better ones in that key. My favorites are, no surprise, Copeland, Overton, and Burke. Can’t rank them for you, because they are so different. Alas, never played a Grinter F.
I would consider an Alba, but I’m slightly put off by hearing it’s so loud. When I got my Low D, I picked it up from Stacey myself. She was really nice, and I got to try out my whistle, and a couple of others, before buying it. She actually tried to steer me in the direction of a slightly smaller whistle (a Low G, if I remember correctly), but I wanted a D and (stupidly) stuck to my guns. She even gave me a bit of a discount!
The low F I liked best (and probably never should have parted with) was a Goldie Overton non-tuneable; Brigitte anodized it a nice blue color and Colin played it for me over the phone among several others so I could select one. A non-tuneable wo anodizing won’t entirely eat up your life savings and is a really fine solid whistle in that key.
