busterbill wrote:
If you can return it easily I would and try another Bb. But if you mail ordered it and return postage makes it uneconomical I would try the tape experiment. Your issue could be related to not quite closing the holes. It takes a bit of practice to get that right. Sometimes we can successfully get notes out of a high D with our fingertips, but the lower whistles will need you to use more of the pads of your fingers, search "Pipers grip" you will likely find a thread on this site. Good luck to you.
For hygiene reasons they do not accept wind instruments back . I cannot try another Bb as they don't stock them. They ordered that particular one from the main store in the capital. They didn't even know that whistles come in almost any key. They only have Sweetones D and C which btw have their mouthpieces wrapped in plastic (Gen don't).
I know about the pipers grip. I 'm not worrying about it yet as I can reach the holes just fine. I might experiment with it later though since it looks more comfortable for the fingers. Thank you.
trill wrote:
...
I hadn't noticed the wind till you mentioned it. I don't mind it at all.
Trill, I have to confess that I feel stupid now.
I knew about the tuners that they use for the string instruments, but I had absolutely no idea that there are similar tools for wind ones, let alone software solutions that can work with a plain computer microphone. No book, no article, no video has ever mentioned them! They are amazing and absolutely helpful. I cannot thank you enough for that piece of info.
I checked the local shop and they have one for the price of a Bb whistle. I might get one in order to not be stuck in front of the computer
(It's this one
https://www.staggmusic.com/en/products/view/CTUC9 in case someone has experience with it)
On to the interesting part:
I used the online tuner and I ve also found another one at
https://www.alexdemartos.es/wtuner/ with the same results.
A is at 440HZ for all whistles, right?
I 've found that I have been playing the B and A with my Sweetone D as flats. I guess it has to do with my preference for lower sounds. All the rest within the acceptable ranges, but the lower the note the more I 'm closer to the perfect spot.
The Bb one:
I ' m not messing with the second octave yet. It indeed has a gray area between the two octaves and I guess that is how the conical whistles make the second one easier. They eliminate or almost eliminate that area making the transition instant. It may be something more as well, but this is my impression so far.
Keeping an eye on the tuner I stayed below that area and the cacophony which was troubling me around the middle holes disappeared. The top couple of holes didn't seem to suffer from that. So it was mainly a breath problem after all. I was clearly not blowing into the second oct or I would have realized it but not staying in the first one either. I guess I have to learn how to jump that gap.
...And finally that mysterious Bb note.
I taped the 4 top holes, keeping the bottom 2, one for each index finger. D? Fine. C? Just fine too. Bb? Pretty much spot on!
Then why does it feel so wrong?
I 've tried to record myself, but I can hear nothing wrong when playing it back. (The mic maybe cannot pick it up?) But it s always there when playing.
I m thinking that being in front of the instrument and behind and in physical contact with it may be altering the perception of the same sound.
The first notes all sound equally smooth and stable, but that Bb has some graze into it. The air in the tube vibrates so violently that sometimes I can feel that vibrating air with my finger covering the big C hole. That Bb is like coming from a different instrument, maybe a reed one to exaggerate a bit.
Is the difference from C to Bb that great that causes so many changes?
If I had an A below that I would be able to tell if that Bb is the turning point to notes with a different character (at least in the way that I perceive them).
I can't be the only one so sensitive to it and I know that I 'm not getting crazy because I don't hear voices as well. Yet.
