2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A

[Sedi]

Very true. It seems my interest in ITM is broadening. And I picked up the flute again, which opens up a whole new cosmos for me. Much more music to listen to and research.

[killthemessenger]

Ocarina for folk, anime, and some movie scores.

That's intriguing. I'm sure you know the wonderful ocarina scene in Bertolucci's Novecento.

[pancelticpiper]

...where to find those recordings? Because, I agree to what you have been writing about the style and the influence of other instruments on the flute...

This is the recording that, for me, set the flute apart from other instruments and said "a flute can do flute things".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQnhJVMc5CE

Note the fascinating sort of variation he does at 0:22, 2:17, and 2:33 when he plays a series of staccato eighth-notes.

It's so flute-specific! If a fiddler did it, by bouncing the bow on the strings, it would sound "classical" (non-ITM) to most players but when Morrison does it's wonderful.

My favourite modern player is Conal O Grada, whose playing is most like that of my first teacher and mentor, and has (to me) echos of Morrison running through it.

Note the honking on closed D's on the off-beats to give syncopation and lift to the tune

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShB1iCLZzvs

[PB+J]

I switched seriously to the flute this year, partly because the whistle can be a little too piercing for my tastes, and I find the low D whistle uncomfortable to hold and I like the wider expressive range of the flute. The ability to change the timbre of a note, as well as the volume, is really appealing. I stopped practicing the whistle, mostly. The flute is a very demanding instrument. I got a Low Bb flute which has been really great and has improved my playing on the standard D flute.

Lately I've been going back to the whistles. A whistle can do things a flute does not do so well, like the "slides." And the speed and low air requirements of the whistle offer some interesting possibilities.

The Killarney D is still my go to whistle. After that i have an old feadog I like a lot, partly because it's quieter and a little more gentle. I also have an old Generation from when my grandfather took my brother and I to Ireland when I was 13--a VERY long time ago. It's a good whistle and has a nicely softer tone. Some of the modern whistles get really shrill.

I find that even though the fingerings are the same I have less dexterity on the whistle since playing the flute--there's been a bit more adjustment than I expected.

[Mr.Gumby]

I'm sure you know the wonderful ocarina scene in Bertolucci's Novecento.

Now there's a memory. I saw that when it first came out, wonderful stuff.

[TheWanderer]

My music goals, are to learn a few tunes on ALL my instruments (6 string, and another on the way, 4 wind, and 2 keyed) by the time I'm 50, which is late 2023. ...

With that variety of instruments, you probably play a number of different styles. What musical genres do you play on whistle?

Correct, I'm not in the slightest bit loyal to any musical genre's. I mostly listen to rock, pop, and classical, but I'm open to anything I like the sound of. On the whistle, I've been playing tunes from the Low Whistle Book (even though I don't have a low whistle yet), and melody lines from other songs like Fields of Gold.

Generally speaking, traditional music is quite low on my radar, but I do like some of it in small doses. I can tire of it quite quickly. If I went to listen a session (I wouldn't play at one), four tunes would probably be my limit. That can happen with other genres too though.

I don't believe in restricting certain instruments to certain types of music. I like several different types of music, and several different instruments, and will mix and match according to range, so if a tune/line on a score is within one and a half octaves, then it might work on a whistle, but if it spans three or more octaves, I'll just choose an instrument accordingly. So long as an instrument has all the right notes for a particular piece, I'm happy to try and play it, and don't care how many purists I upset along the way. I'm doing it for my enjoyment, not theirs.

[Maddie]

Ocarina for folk, anime, and some movie scores.

That's intriguing. I'm sure you know the wonderful ocarina scene in Bertolucci's Novecento.

No, but it sounds like something I should know. This scene? It's like an ocarina flash mob.

About playing different genres on different instruments, there are some movie scenes that are iconic for specific instruments. Gabriel's Oboe in The Mission. Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in Out of Africa. I've played those pieces on recorders, and they were only weak approximations of the originals. The same thing happens when playing ITM on recorder. Lackluster results. That's why I picked up tin whistle, and I'm still in the infatuation stage of learning a new instrument.

[KarenE]

1. What did you accomplish on whistle in 2019?
I started playing this time last year! I've learned about 40 tunes so far.

2. What are your whistle-related goals for 2020?
To learn more reels (I seem to know a lot fewer of these than jigs, hornpipes, polkas, airs, etc.) and to get more adept at rolls especially at faster tempos.

3. What tunes are you learning this month, and which is your current favorite?
I'm working on Kid on the Mountain (fave at the moment), The Old Grey Goose, The Ash Plant.

4. What whistles are on your 2020 Wish List?
I'd like to get a C whistle. Not sure which make yet. And though I like my D Clarke fine, I'd also like to find a used Freeman tweaked Generation D if I can.

5. What do you enjoy most about playing tin whistle?
I'm learning so much about ITM through whistle. I enjoy being able to play with friends. And I love that it's the easiest instrument to carry around ever

[Maddie]

1. What did you accomplish on whistle in 2019?
I started playing this time last year! I've learned about 40 tunes so far.

Hi, Karen, and welcome to the forum . That's excellent progress. What learning methods are you using? Videos/ books/ lessons?

4. What whistles are on your 2020 Wish List?
I'd like to get a C whistle. Not sure which make yet. ...

I just bought an inexpensive C whistle this week to test the size, although I haven't played it much yet. The finger stretch is easier than the Generation Bb, and I'm hoping that will help make the transition to Bb easier. As a beginner, I'm still getting occasional squawks on the Bb from leaking lower holes, and that doesn't happen on the C whistle.

[KarenE]

1. What did you accomplish on whistle in 2019?
I started playing this time last year! I've learned about 40 tunes so far.

Hi, Karen, and welcome to the forum . That's excellent progress. What learning methods are you using? Videos/ books/ lessons?

4. What whistles are on your 2020 Wish List?
I'd like to get a C whistle. Not sure which make yet. ...

I just bought an inexpensive C whistle this week to test the size, although I haven't played it much yet. The finger stretch is easier than the Generation Bb, and I'm hoping that will help make the transition to Bb easier. As a beginner, I'm still getting occasional squawks on the Bb from leaking lower holes, and that doesn't happen on the C whistle.

Thanks, Maddie! I started with online tutorials, mainly those of Ryan Duns and some of the OAIM intro lessons. Brother Steve's tin whistle pages also had helpful explanations. Now I add more tunes whenever I hear one on YouTube that I like and think I could learn. It's not always from whistlers but often fiddlers too (there are so many fiddle tune tutorials). For videos that are straight performances rather than instructional, I'll sometimes slow down the tempo in the settings to .75 (or even .5 to really hear the fine details). Sometimes I'll then check it out on The Session if I want to see notation.

A Bb would likely be a stretch for me too since I have fairly small hands. Relieved to know the C doesn't cause any lower hole issues for you! I'm hoping it will be a relatively easy adjustment.

[vigaglum]

1. I got back into whistling and memorised a fair few tunes.

2. Practice more.

3. Currently, Greensleeves to a Ground.

4. Probably a low D.

[Maddie]

1. I got back into whistling and memorised a fair few tunes.

You raise a good point about memorizing. When I say I've learned a tune, it means that I can read through the sheet at a reasonable tempo with a minimum of errors. But the tradition is to play by ear, from memory. Given that criteria, I really haven't learned any of them.

2. Practice more.

I'm surprised more people haven't listed "practice more" as a 2020 goal. You're the first to mention it.

4. Probably a low D.

I want to eventually play a mezzo G, but I have no plans to go lower than that (famous last words). However, I love the sound of low D . Are you going to jump straight from a high D to a low D, or have you already played some of the in-between sizes?

[Wanderer]

1. What did you accomplish on whistle in 2019?
Learned tunes. Played in lots of sessions.

2. What are your whistle-related goals for 2020?
Learn tunes. Play in lots of sessions.

3. What tunes are you learning this month, and which is your current favorite?
working on these Sliabh Luachra polkas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VGwMnppEOQ

4. What whistles are on your 2020 Wish List?
None really. I tend to collect a number of whistles, but I'm happy with the ones I have. In all likelihood, I'll collect more, but I'm not jonesing for anything in particular.

5. What do you enjoy most about playing tin whistle?
The fact that I can play it all. When I was younger, I tried my hand at a number of instruments, and none of them really 'took'. The whistle was the first instrument I tried that I really felt a connection to and enjoyed playing--even when I sucked at it.

I enjoy those moments when you're playing with others, and everything syncs up just right, and you feel in the moment with them, and you can tell by the knowing look they give you that they're in the moment with you. It's a grand feeling.

I enjoy it when the audience/bystanders/what-have-you get really into the music you're playing and are appreciative and enthusiastic.

[Maddie]

... I started with online tutorials, mainly those of Ryan Duns and some of the OAIM intro lessons. Brother Steve's tin whistle pages also had helpful explanations.

I've looked into all three of those, too. They are all excellent, although I've only done the free OAIM lessons so far. Have you been using any books? I'm working through the Bill Ochs tin whistle handbook, and I'm already looking for my next book, even though I'm not ready for it yet. This one by Grey Larsen looks interesting because it includes ornamentation and phrasing: 150 Gems of Irish Music for Tin Whistle (Amazon link).

Now I add more tunes whenever I hear one on YouTube that I like and think I could learn. It's not always from whistlers but often fiddlers too (there are so many fiddle tune tutorials).

Uh oh. I'm not sure I should thank you for suggesting that quest . Tracking down fiddle tunes sounds like it is going to take hours. Hours!

For videos that are straight performances rather than instructional, I'll sometimes slow down the tempo in the settings to .75 (or even .5 to really hear the fine details).

Good point. Slowing things down is really helpful. The Bill Ochs audio files are in mp3 format. I'm using this online tool to slow them down: https://29a.ch/timestretch/

[Maddie]

5. What do you enjoy most about playing tin whistle?
The fact that I can play it all. When I was younger, I tried my hand at a number of instruments, and none of them really 'took'. The whistle was the first instrument I tried that I really felt a connection to and enjoyed playing--even when I sucked at it.

I think of the whistle as enabling. It's the first instrument that I've been able to build up speed on, assisted by the ease of fingering.

I enjoy those moments when you're playing with others, and everything syncs up just right, and you feel in the moment with them, and you can tell by the knowing look they give you that they're in the moment with you. It's a grand feeling.

Beautifully stated. But now you've done it. You've made everyone who has never played in a session want to join one, so they can experience that grand feeling at least once in their lifetimes.