Chiff and Fipple Forums

Pretty recently I bought a copy of Mel Bay's Complete Irish Tin whistle Book by Mizzy McCaskill & Donna Gilliam. The book comes with a CD containing all or almost all of the tunes, but this one didn't. Mel Bay's note says that you can order the CD separately, but it seems that it is no longer av...

All right then, what do you call that breathy sound that you can hear on so many whistles and always on any flute I happen to be playing, whether I want it or not, and I don't, and is it desireable or should it be eliminated, and if so, how? Try saying that at normal speed in one breath. I think I r...

I've ordered a set of Generation blues from Jerry, and the waiting is getting excruciating. I'm supposing that the high praise he has been receiving on this forum and elsewhere has backed up his orders, and he doesn't want to ship anything he isn't proud of. Assuming that you really love your Bb, ho...

The names of the tunes aren't given. Which is "Sheep in the Boat?"

Jem wrote: I was talking to an Indian producer, but I think pretty much the same issues pertain. You are right, I'm sure, that with suitable input these guys could produce something very decent - but (and it really is weird) they don't seem to want to! I reckon they could produce very usable instrum...

Tommy asked:
What is the name of that sentence that has all the letters of alphabet in it.
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"The quick, brown fox jumped over the lazy dogs" is the sentence; I don't know what its name is.

Yes, yes, I know I wrote "flutes." To employ Clintonspeak: It all depends on how you interpret the word "flutes."

A few months ago I received a bamboo flute with a seventh, thumb, hole. You will have to anchor your thumb in one place with no leak-producing shifting allowed. I plugged the hole with poster putty. If I want thumb holes I can play a recorder or the pipes. A C natural is always gettable, although no...

My tomcat does not like the whistle; he leaves the room if I pick it up. My wife's cat doesn't like me much, whistle or no. My wife doesn't like the whistle either. Maybe I should get a deaf dog/cat from the shelter so I'll have someone to play for! _________________ Are you planning to get a deaf w...

What Cranberrydog was saying in short: depends on your hands. I prefer the holes to be in a line; but when you are talking about a large D whistle, a bit of Ergonomitry for the right hand might be a good idea. I ordered a PVC flute from Doug Tipple, who gives buyers the option of ergonomic lining or...

I have a Sweetone. The tweak job is fine, but the conical body and small holes take a bit of getting used to. However, I am in the process of ordering from him a complete tweaked set of Generation Blues. Jerry can make a cheap whistle sound and play like a high-end one.

Iwanttotoot, may I suggest that next time you get a whistle that you can't cozy up to (i.e., can't get to sound right), instead of throwing it out, offer it to another whistler free of charge. I find that sometimes, a whistle that sounds awful in the hands of one player will sound pretty good when p...

I have a low D, which is longer than an A, and I find it easy to finger without the piper's grip. I like the instrument, but then it's the only low D I've played.

By the way, I have to play D flute using the piper's grip.

This might seem a cavil, but it is clearly a rat, not a mouse. My Sweetone came with its piper printed on by Clarke, and below that was the animal, printed on by Jerry. What animals did the Pied Piper of Hamlin charm?

Case closed.

Steve: Sent you a few messages off line. Get back to me please. Consider this not a nag but more of a gentle prod.