The eternal search..

The Ultimate On-Line Whistle Community. If you find one more ultimater, let us know.
Tyler DelGregg
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Tell us something.: Whistles are fun, whistles are charming, whistles sound nice, whistles are affordable, whistles make us smile, whistles make dogs bark, and whistles upset some neighbors.
Location: Middle of Virginia

Re: The eternal search..

Post by Tyler DelGregg »

You make some good points, Sedi, regarding favoring certain whistles depending on your mood and situation. Sometimes, I just want a brass whistle, and other times, aluminum. And there definitely are times when the pvc Goldfinch is just the ticket. Late at night with a steady rain falling, the quiet, Clarke Original is ideal. As long as one is not frustrated nor regularly disappointed in a futile search for something ideal and illusive, I see no harm in having a large collection. The collection should be enjoyable, not a distraction. However, I too, have only one whistle in low G, a Freeman, because I am very satisfied with it. I actually find the concept of one whistle per key interesting in a Zen-like focused way to get really competent and skillful. But whistles being relatively affordable, the temptation for me to have several voices per key is too great to ignore.
Dan A.
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Tell us something.: I can only hope that my proficiency with the whistle is steadily improving. A few of my whistles get a workout on an almost daily basis. And I'm almost certainly afflicted with WhOAD.
Location: Detroit Metro

Re: The eternal search..

Post by Dan A. »

I have never played a PVC whistle, and I don't think I've even watched a YouTube video of one being played. I have also only played soprano D whistles, mostly because Irish traditional music is typically in the key of D and soprano D whistles are the most widely available. When I bought my Feadóg, I chose a green one. The reasoning behind this was twofold: I wanted to see if the painted finish had a discernible impact on the sound and test its durability (especially since some of the lacquer has worn off my Walton's). I see no impact on the sound, and it's held up pretty well thus far. Though I still want to add a few more whistles to my arsenal, I'm quite happy with the Feadóg and, to a slightly lesser extent, the Walton's.
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pancelticpiper
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Tell us something.: Playing Scottish and Irish music in California for 45 years.
These days many discussions are migrating to Facebook but I prefer the online chat forum format.
Location: WV to the OC

Re: The eternal search..

Post by pancelticpiper »

Hooleh wrote: it would make sense to own a few whistles of the same key side by side, not for regular playing but for comparison, and then keep the one that is best of those.
Yes that's exactly what I've done.

A dozen years ago I decided to get out of fluteplaying (due to physical issues) and sold off all my flutes. With the money I went on a Low D Whistle buying spree. My goal was to get hold of one of each Low D I'd heard good things about and put them through their paces. It was very helpful to be able to compare batches of whistles, due to having a half-dozen different makes to hand at any given time.

I was able to get a clearer picture as to what was being made, and what the parameters of Low D Whistle design were.

Now I have one Low D.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
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pancelticpiper
Posts: 5298
Joined: Mon Jul 10, 2006 7:25 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Playing Scottish and Irish music in California for 45 years.
These days many discussions are migrating to Facebook but I prefer the online chat forum format.
Location: WV to the OC

Re: The eternal search..

Post by pancelticpiper »

Sedi wrote: in Germany we say: "It's not like they eat grass"
That's a useful saying. I can't think of an English equivalent.

About my own buying and selling, it was almost exclusively Low Whistles, for which I paid $150 to $700 each, not inconsiderable sums.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
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