Chiff and Fipple Forums

Hello!

I'm hoping to find a whistle that can be played, unaffected, in really windy places. To be more specific - I live close to the coast and have long noticed that my Killarney D can become almost silenced in even a light breeze, while my older Clarke Sweetone doesn't seem to be perturbed at all. When I say "almost silenced" I don't mean the volume of the whistle necessarily, and but rather that if any outdoor wind interacts with the fipple then the sound is almost immediately "overpowered" by the wind and quieted for a moment until the breeze dies down (which makes playing in constant, coastal trade winds on the Killarney not very satisfying...). To be clear, the Killarney is absolutely wonderful at home or in non-windy situations, and the "quieting" is most pronounced in the first octave, but I've really been enjoying playing outside near the water recently and am considering ordering another high whistle that can hold up in the wind (ideally an Eb, but a D would be fine too). Has anyone here experienced this in the wind as well - it's very noticeable to me when comparing the two, as the Clarke can even be played facing into the wind... I'm assuming it has something to do with the fipple curvature, as the Killarney has a slight curve on the fipple ramp(?), while the Clarke is completely straight...

Thank you for any recommendations you may have - I would just stick to the Clarke for these windy times, but it's getting pretty beat-up from living in my work truck and I would be excited to try a new whistle anyway... As a side note, I like louder whistles and don't mind blowing harder, and would like to spend under a $100....

Thank you all for reading this long post and for your thoughts!

Rich

I don't know about being in windy places, but Generation & Feadog are generally louder than the Clarkes, from my experience, which I admit , isn't a lot, but I thought I'd just mention it, in case you haven't tried them yourself.

moonlitnarwhal wrote:I'm hoping to find a whistle that can be played, unaffected, in really windy places.

There isn't one. Some may be affected more than others, but all whistles are susceptible to interference from wind.

Peter Duggan wrote: There isn't one. Some may be affected more than others, but all whistles are susceptible to interference from wind.

Agreed. I think generally, though, the louder the whistle, oftentimes the better wind resistance. To the OP, My Milligan has withstood decent wind. I never tried playing out on the ocean (any Irish trad players see what I did just there? ), so I can't really speak to coastal winds. I payed about €162 (or about $185 USD) for my Milligan, so It's a little over the price range, but I really like it and it plays brilliantly for me.

moonlitnarwhal wrote:Hello!

Has anyone here experienced this in the wind as well - it's very noticeable to me when comparing the two, as the Clarke can even be played facing into the wind...
Thank you for any recommendations you may have -
Thank you all for reading this long post and for your thoughts!

Rich

In the C&F archives this has been discussed. I think it was Greg that spoke of doing the ''wind dance''. I believe it is a two step waltz either to the left or right till the wind is not affecting the whistle.

Susato...case closed.

Hmmm, I have heard that the Susato whistles are known to be really loud, and being all plastic could be an advantage where I'm thinking of playing it...

Are there any used high D or Eb Susatos needing a new home here? I can offer sandy beaches and a fair price!

Yes, I can understand that all whistles would be affected by wind to some degree, but this really makes me respect the Sweetone, as it sounds (very nearly) unaffected by the wind, even facing directly into it in the lower octave... again, I'd just stick with this one, but I just crunched it in the truck the other day, and the interior is now abundantly rust-coated - all good excuses to start seeking a new toy!

Thanks again for all of your wealth of knowledge and input!

Rich

I looked for, but could not find the picture I remembered seeing of Kevin Crawford playing whistle with a bucket on his head. It was on tour Stateside outdoors in the wind. . .
Bob

an seanduine wrote:I looked for, but could not find the picture I remembered seeing of Kevin Crawford playing whistle with a bucket on his head. It was on tour Stateside outdoors in the wind. . .
Bob

That's because it's a video, about 30 seconds in:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixckTW21e4I

Tidy Cats.

If your whistle is tuneable flip the head upside down. It helps but might not keep all the wind out.

Wasn't there a thread about this some years ago? I remember the 'upside down' trick being discussed there too. But I also remember something about whistles built with a little 'wall' around the windway and that they may be more "windproof".

Thank you Kevin. My 'senior moment' had it as a 'still-photo'.
Bob

kkrell wrote:

an seanduine wrote:I looked for, but could not find the picture I remembered seeing of Kevin Crawford playing whistle with a bucket on his head. It was on tour Stateside outdoors in the wind. . .
Bob

That's because it's a video, about 30 seconds in:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixckTW21e4I

Tidy Cats.

Appears to be a Burke whistle.

For some reason, my Burke NB D brass does better than my other whistles on a breezy day. When it's really windy, nothing works other than playing behind a tree.
However, Burkes cost way over $100.

an seanduine wrote:I looked for, but could not find the picture I remembered seeing of Kevin Crawford playing whistle with a bucket on his head. It was on tour Stateside outdoors in the wind. . .
Bob

As I was reading this post I was wondering if anyone has tried anything as a simple wind break for these conditions. A handkerchief would likely be too stifling... But something else as a barrier for the windway...? A piece of gauze lightly looped over the whistle...? It is winter here so any wind strong enough to test this theory will be too cold for me to enjoy this experiment for awhile. But it would be fun to see what others come up with.