I’m looking for a whistle with a good amount of chiff (kind of like the Thin Weasel whistles.) Any suggestions? Thanks!
EDIT:
Here is my definition of chiff:
Pipes that have a clear edge to the sound are often described as having “chiff.” Any kind of pipe can have chiff but principals almost always have this clear attack point.
Attack Point: The moment at which the pipe begins to speak, when the key is pressed, is the attack point. Different kinds of pipes have a variety of attack points ranging from soft to strong and clear.
I am not completely sure at this point what “chiffy” means exactly since I’ve heard several different descriptions but as was mentioned in a recent post, Greg (Wanderer) Mahan makes some whistles that have been described as “chiffy”. In this regard, I would think whistles with wide bores help fit that description and Greg’s does as well and has a nice sweet airy tone. I don’t have many high end whistles that I would describe as chiffy though.
Assuming that your definition of chiff is the same as mine, my favorite whistles are Generations and Feadogs because of their chiffiness and character. I’ve posted recordings of myself playing a Burke whistle and was told that it was chiffy. I wouldn’t say that Burke whistles are known for being Chiffy but they are responsive and can be played in a manner that allows for chiff. My Sindt whistle also has some chiff to it but it’s a pretty focused sounding whistle.
Wide bore whistles and Clarke whistles are prone to being soft and breathy but for a whistle to be chiffy I’d say it has to have a bit of a rough edge to it. Chiff refers to the distinct noises that come from the whistle between notes, almost like little popping sounds. Chiffiness, in some ways, helps to exaggerate ornamentation and can give it an almost percussive sound.
Pipes that have a clear edge to the sound are often described as having “chiff.” Any kind of pipe can have chiff but principals almost always have this clear attack point.
Attack Point: The moment at which the pipe begins to speak, when the key is pressed, is the attack point. Different kinds of pipes have a variety of attack points ranging from soft to strong and clear.
One of my real treasures is a Hoover A whistle with a delicious amount of chiff. This is a wider CPVC tube with a thicker wall, so that might have something to do with it.
I suggest you contact Mack and ask if he can build what you want.
I play pipes (never heard your description) and whistles. I also have a Thin Weasel and Water Weasel and each have zero chiff. They do have an edgy attack with a dark and reedy character. These attributes are musical components. I usually refer to the non-musical components as chiff; like the white noise aspects that can be present in the attack. I have found that Overtons are similar to Weasels in attack.
So if the question is which whistles are most like Weasels; I would say Overtons.
I think I saw the movie. David Carradine played Nan-in. Donald Sutherland probably played the professor. If memory serves, the title was something like “Kung-Chiff, Land of the Dragon Whistle.”
From what I understand of chiff, it is the non-musical sound produced by a wind instrument. I’m guessing (guessing) that an airpassage not quite focused on the blade of the whistle is letting air pass without producing a musical note. The more air that passes this way, the more chiff. A well designed fipple uses the airstream more economically and therefore, produces less chiff. I imagine that there are other factors also…I’m just thinking about my Clarke that has a blade that is simply bent down into position, very chiffy, and my Burke that is machined to close tolerances, very pure sound, little or no chiff.
Kevin
If you look at Dale’s tweaking instructions on the main site the first thing he says to do is make a cup of tea! It’s all so clear to me now. I swear that guy has more zen in his little finger than I have in my whole fipple!
Non-musical…on a guitar, the sound of fingers squeeking on the strings as they move over the frets or the clack of a thin pick produced during strumming, on a harpsicord, the sound of the jacks falling back into place, on a whistle, the air that escapes from the whistle that has no particular pitch, I guess you could call it hissing although chiff is a more colorful word.
I should know by now not to talk about chiff on this forum without defining it first. I would be curious to know how many threads we now have that try to define “chiff”.
Kevin, like you, a lot of people use chiff to define a background sound – non-musical or not – that helps to characterize the overall sound of a whistle. I was using “chiff” as the term applies to pipe organs. As the distinctive sound at the attack point when a note starts to sound. It’s more like an articulation and is not a constant background sound.
So if you go back to my first comment, I was trying to say that my Hoover has nice “attack points” at the beginning of each note that I can bring out with the proper breath control. This whistle does not hiss and I think this kind of “chiff” is just as musical as any other kind of articulation.
Getting back to the original question, I guess we need to ask which kind of “chiff” is the target of this search.
I should know by now not to talk about chiff on this forum without defining it first. I would be curious to know how many threads we now have that try to define “chiff”.