please tell me there is hope. for the last few years i have been on a quest to find, by my definition and within my budget, the “perfect whistle” in the major keys from hi to low d. after years of trading, buying and selling, i think i have finally arrived.
the journey has been fun filled with the excitement of trying a variety of whistles each designed by craftsmen, and of exploring different types of sounds from - lots of chiff to purest of pure. it also was filled with various flutes as i attempted to explore their contribution to my arsenal as well.
i now have great whistles in Hi d, Db, C, A, B, Bb, G, F, E and Lo D. And i am content.
Of course, there is the elusive Low Eb whistle out there somewhere. and occasionally there is that unique tune played in Ab . . . but those are not keys i “need.”
so from here on, no more looking at the used instrument page or pouring over new whistle reviews. i am going to focus on playing these wonderful instruments and exploring the variety of tones they are capable of producing. of course if i happen to accidentally arrive on the used instrument page i will not be held accountable.
in the spirit of, “i think, therefore, i am,” i pronounce myself cured. mission accomplished.
I am cured of mild WhOAD - I have a whistle that suits me well (Copeland low D) and two back-up whistles (tweaked Dixon TB low D and heavily tweaked Dixon 3 piece low D) that suit me almost as well.
I might be tempted to bid for a spare Copeland low D in case mine gets damaged, but other than that, I can concentrate on playing the things. I have some other whistles lying around in drawers that don’t get played. I may dispose of them when I get the enthusiasm.
It is a relief to have that monkey off your back, is it not?
A person can save a lot of money with whoad. Be glad your not collecting grand pianos.
Also by ordering two or more whistles at a time saves $$$$$ on shipping.
ok feadoggie it was hard, very hard, but i did take a look at the link you sent to the Eb on ebay. Seems someone got a good deal, but I was good and honored my committment. Of course, part of that is because I had just bought a whistle from someone on the board and had exhausted my whistle budget. so purchasing the burke was not an option.
maybe the secret is to never put funds in the whistle budget but if i do, then where’s the fun in that?
uh-oh, i’ve lasted two days . . . argh . . . maybe its time to call my sponsor. Dr Phil, where are you?
Collecting things is a common male pass-time. Stamps, tools, model trains, other peoples countries even (a favourite hobby of rulers of the British empire). It is a harmless enough hobby in moderation. I can see it being a problem when pursued to excess, as indeed can any activity. Except playing whistles of course.
I saw collecting whistles as detrimental to my playing of them, an so desisted as soon as I found a low D whistle that suited me. I now concentrate on playing that whistle almost exclusively. I think that it has had a beneficial effect upon my playing, and I feel that I am gaining skill all the time in a way that I would not if I kept hopping between instruments. Since my major pleasure is to play well, I happily relinquish the minor pleasure of trying new whistles. None of them made my playing any better anyway (though one or two made it worse).
Those are the forces that '‘cured’ me of WhOAD. I feel better for it too. So all I can say is decide what you want to do and why, then do it.
I can see the wisdom in your words, Dr. Phil. I’ve only seriously started playing the tin whistle recently (had 2 from 20 odd years ago) but I’ve been picking up whistles like they’re never making another one, and with a Reyburn D I just bought (and a Blackbird and Generation in the mail as I type), I’ll be up to 8 whistles. I think I need to spend more time playing than buying.
Go “all the way” and buy a “good” low D that comes highly recommended, if that’s what your aim is. Otherwise, it will be the same thing all over again…
But what Dr. Phil said is truth - collecting can be detrimental to the development of your playing skills as a beginner, even though your collecting may help to encourage you to remain interested in the whistle.
Could be worse.. you could collect something such as guitars, saxophones, expensive watches, or probably worst of all be an audiophile. My friend classifies himself as an audiophile- he’s got over $40,000 in speakers/sound equipment and doesn’t play a single instrument.
Then you’ve got people living in pointlessly large houses(Queue George Carlin Stuff) ranging from $300,000-$1,000,000 and driving $35,000 hybrid cars to save a few bucks on gas.(Yea that extra $15,000 could go pretty far toward gas without looking like you’re driving something out of a Minnie Mouse cartoon. )
All in all money is hemorrhaged daily and the majority of the American population is in debt/will continue to be in debt/die in debt.
Enjoy your whistle without guilt It’s 100% worth it.
People drive hybrid cars for other reasons than purely monetary. A lot of people view it as a way to support better environmental practices and preservation of the future over cheapness. It’s not the only way, and it’s not necessarily the best way to support these ideas, but I definitely respect someone for making the effort more than I respect the drivers of compensation-mobiles.
I agree that some probably do it for that reason but I’d wager the majority people on the “go green” campaign are just jumping on the latest bandwagon and waving their flag around. More people will die from obesity, cancer, and general stupidity in the next 10 years than people from lack of recycling/hybrid cars in the next 200 or more. When you look at the ingredients on a stick of meat and it’s 3x longer the alphabet forward and backwards, you know you’ve got a bigger problem than gas emissions. I also agree that gas isn’t a very effective fuel source and that electricity will likely fuel the future. Just seems to me that the majority of people driving hybrids like to brag about saving the environment/acting all smug.
If people really care about the environment they should plant a few trees or donate to a worthy cause.(It’s tax deductible.) Gas emissions wouldn’t be such a big deal if the majority of the world’s greenery wasn’t mowed down.
Personal pet peeve I guess, I hate those little toon cars. It’s like an inferior ugly version of the Beetle marketed as cheap transportation with an expensive price tag. Check out the Chevy Volt, it looks a lot better.
Personally I’ll stick with a gas guzzling stingray, a boat load of hobbies, and donations for my feel good.
[quote=“MBalance”] electricity will likely fuel the future.
Possibly, but we need to be careful about our choices of how the electricity is generated.
Back to the “cure for WHOAD” subject (and hoping no-one suggests a solution based on electricity) - I now firmly believe there is no cure. At best we can achieve remission. It will always be lurking in the darker recesses of the mind, ready to strike at the first heavenly tone from a whistle we don’t have (even if that’s down to the player rather than what’s played).
Maybe the temptation wil lessen when I have even more whistles - “…give me excess of it that the appetite may sicken, and so die.” There’s little hope for me - even friends who never play a note are apt to end an evening encouraging “G’wan, g’wan, just one more for the WHOAD”.
I’ve decided to embrace it and enjoy it while it lasts.
)
It’s 100% worth it.
Check out the Chevy Volt, it looks a lot better.
