Dixon Low D duo

Blaine McArthur · Post by **Blaine McArthur** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 12:46 am

I received my Tony Dixon Low D duo today and I like it a lot. I am still new at this whistle stuff so I won't pretend to be able to give an authoratative review, but it seems to be in tune, I like the way it sounds, and I am happy

Blaine

DaveO · Post by **DaveO** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 11:13 am

I agree. I'm also new at this (2 1/2 months of whistling), and I play my Dixon Low D every day. It's very easy to play, and I like the sound. I can't get anything out of the Low D when I use the flute head joint, but the whistle is great.

Dave

jduffy · Post by **jduffy** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 12:24 pm

I've been playing the high D whistle for about 2 to 3 months and its been going pretty well. I got my Dixon this weekend and it's my first Low D. I can't say its been too easy so far. I manage to play it to a degree but I'm having a lot of trouble getting consistant tones to come out of it. It seems like I'm having trouble sealing the holes but sometimes I believe I have them all sealed and the note just won't sound. Sometimes I try sounding a good strong note in the low octave and while keeping my fingers as intact as possible I try to blow the upper octave and the whistle just puts out a mix of air and some much higher than desired pitch no matter how soft or hard I blow. I'm trying to use the piper grip. I read that you shouldn't have to press down very hard with it but sometimes the problems go away if I press down much more firmly.

Now I know it's not the whistle that is the problem here.

So any suggestions? Did you have similar problems at first?

Post by **rich** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 12:41 pm

It's all about practicing. Working on long tones and slow scales and arpeggios would probably be a good place to start. Your hands have to learn what works; until they do, you actually have to think about it consciously, but eventually it'll become as subconscious as it is on the high whistle.

If you find it seals better when you press firmly, that's because it's not sealing when you're pressing lightly.

You'll figure out what works for you and that instrument, which will be different than anyone else's experiences on it since their hands will be different -- on my hands alone, I have one finger which I can seal the hole with the joint on one hand but have to use a more fleshy bit on the other.

It took me a couple of weeks to get used to my Howard low-D after a year with the high whistle, and if I don't play it regularly it takes me a bit of time to get used to it (and it's become worse since I've started playing flute!).
<ul>-Rich</ul>

rodger · Post by **rodger** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 12:55 pm

Dixons!

I can't believe how worked up I've been, anticipating the arrival (scheduled for yesterday) of my new Dixon Duo's (both high and low D). After reading other people's comments, I was pretty sure I would like them, but then again it's buying something sight unseen (& sound & feel). I have a bit of a problem with plastic things in general, but have been convinced otherwise at times.
So as I walked home, I worked myself into quite a state, wondering if they would have arrived, and if so, if I would actually like them.

Well, they weren't there. So I quickly moved into chore mode to keep myself from black depression (c'mon now... it's only a whistle!) But then a little after 6 pm, the UPS man showed up. I ran to the front door, and found a smallish tube (I thought, Is that all??) So I brought them in and carefully opened the tube. Yup... they were both there, intact.

As I looked them over, I felt OK about the material. Not heavy, but substantial (thick-walled enough to be strong and have some heft to it). Not glossy and plasticky-cheap feeling, as I feared, but pleasantly textured, similar in feel and look to a very smoothly-sanded wood. The blade and window are clearly hand-cut (but that's a plus in my book). The fipple appears to be of the same material, not hardwood.

And then I played them. And it was good. I have never played whistles that moved so smoothly from lower to upper register, nor ones that reached high notes so easily without deafening everyone within a quarter-mile. The tone is somewhere in the middle... I still have a soft spot in my heart for the breathiness of my Shaws, and there are certainly tunes that sound better with the clear tone of a Generation. But I like the Dixon tone... it's mellow: clear but full with just a hint of chiff (who says you can talk like that only about wine?).

I am pleased... and I haven't even gotten to the flute heads yet!

Rodger

rodger · Post by **rodger** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 1:24 pm

Another thing I discovered about my new tunable Dixons (or any tunable whistle, I imagine). The tuning slide works well and has a considerable range. So of course I maxed it out to see just how big the range is. When I played a scale, what a surprise! Some notes were way off! So obviously there's a limit to how far you can tune the whistle before some notes get weird. I'm still trying to figure out how far I can move it and still maintain acceptable tuning. News to me.

Rodger

Post by **rich** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 1:38 pm

Yeah, the tuning slide is just for adjusting tuning, but not for putting it in a different key. Anything over a quarter-tone in either direction is bordering on a different key.

Oh, and for posterity, since Mr Dixon just answered my question on it -- the lubricant he uses between the headjoint and the tuning slide is silicone grease.
<ul>-Rich</ul>

Blaine McArthur · Post by **Blaine McArthur** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 6:50 pm

When I first discovered Dale's web site, one of the first pages I explored was the one on deciphering whistle keys. He mentioned on this page that it might be wiser to first move from soprano D to a Low F whistle, rather than a Low D. I took his advice and purchased a Dixon Low F. This whistle was a good introduction to the piper grip. The stretch is wider that the soprano D, but not nearly as wide as the Low D. After playing the Low F for about four or five months I felt ready to move on to the Low D,and have not had too much problem adjusting to the wide stretch.

I think I would have had a mch harder time moving straight from High D to Low D. You two challenges really: you have to get used to the piper grip, and you have to really spread your fingers to properly cover the holes. If you already have the Low D and moved to it straight from the High D, I guess all I can say is stick with it - it will come eventually.

I have been told by everyone I know who plays the flute that you should spend the first few weeks just trying to get a sound out of the flute head alone. First just get a sound - know how to position your lips, how to blow etc.; then try to get that sound consistantly and for longer and longer periods. Then, and only then, they tell me, should I attempt to blow through the head with the whistle attached.

The Low D is nice; it is assuredly no work of art when compared to a $1000 or even Dixons own $300 blackwood/ebony Irish flute, but it is by no means shoddy either. It does what it is supposed to do and does it very well. Mine won't have time to sit in a display case anyway, it is going to be played a lot.

As far as tuning, this whistle, like my Dixon soprano D, is in tune relative to itself all they way up to and beyond the first octave. The long range of the tuning slide is a great plus however; especially when compared to the Susato, which is a joke - it's not really tunable in my opinion.

I hesitated at first to post another pro Tony Dixon tirade, that is why my initial post was brief and to the point, but I suspect that eventually these whistle are going to be the working man's whistles. If the Irish musicians are gradually turning from Generations to Susatos, what is going to happen when they discover Dixons?

Rich, any suggestions as to brands of silicon available in the U.S.? What should we look for?

Blaine

Post by **rich** » Tue Jul 31, 2001 11:51 pm

No idea, what with not being in the US and all.

I plan on going into Reno-Depot, and stumbling through "I need silicone grease" in broken French.

NicoMoreno · Post by **NicoMoreno** » Wed Aug 01, 2001 8:12 am

What, Rich, you live in MONTREAL and can't even speak french?? Come on man, get with the picture here... We're in CANADA, you should be able to speak both french and english fluently!!

I am, of course, joking...

Nico

jduffy · Post by **jduffy** » Wed Aug 01, 2001 9:09 am

Thanks for the all the encouragement on learning the Low D--I think everything said about practice and sticking with it is what I needed to hear. I was starting to "freak" a little bit when I was seeing posts that talked about how easy the Dixon Low D is to play.

Thanks,
Joe

Brian Lee · Post by **Brian Lee** » Wed Aug 01, 2001 10:11 am

On 2001-08-01 11:09, jduffy wrote:
Thanks for the all the encouragement on learning the Low D--I think everything said about practice and sticking with it is what I needed to hear. I was starting to "freak" a little bit when I was seeing posts that talked about how easy the Dixon Low D is to play.

Thanks,
Joe

Hey Joe,

I went straight from high to low D's and it took a bit of getting used to that's for sure! After about two weeks of sore wrists and horrid tones, I was able to manage my first few shaky tunes. I can play most anything now, although fast tunes are still pretty tough. Stick with it just a little bit longer, and you'll nail it no sweat!

Bri~

Blaine McArthur · Post by **Blaine McArthur** » Wed Aug 01, 2001 10:16 am

I am curious, is there a "speed limit" for Low D's? Maybe it is just my blowing technique, but sometimes the whistle doesn't respond as fast as my fingers do.

Blaine

Loren · Post by **Loren** » Wed Aug 01, 2001 12:22 pm

Blaine,

In the hands of a highly skilled player, a good Low D can be played as fast as you'd ever need to play virtually any trad type tune.

Sure, the lower whistles are more difficult to play at high speed, but it can definitely be done - I've heard at least one person on this list play blindingly fast, accurate, tunes with lots of ornamentation on Low D, C and even A (below low D) whistles. You just have to be willing to put in the practice time.
As my dad used to say "It's really just about you and the clock."

Well..... you do have to have the right Low D as well - I mean low whistles are just like the high whistles: Some are simply much easier to play fast tunes on than others. As you get the opportunity to play more Low D's, you'll see what I mean.

Have fun!

Loren

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Loren on 2001-08-01 14:27 ]</font>