Hi all. I’ve been playing whistle for about 3 months. I’ve played clarinets since the 5th grade (not saying when that was ). Also the r******r for the last 2 years on and off. Reading music isn’t a problem and I can hear pretty well by ear.
Here’s my problem. Every time I get a new whistle, I expect that it’s going to sound good. But every one has things about it that bother me.
My first few whistles were cheapies. They all had weak points and strong points. Not really in love with any of them, so I decided to move up the ladder a bit. I wanted to get a Burke, but just couldn’t at this time.
I just got a Dixon soprano D, and it’s very weak on the bell note (I have to barely breathe into it), and it seems to squak often. I thought that if I had the holes covered correctly this wouldn’t happen, but it’s much too often.
I also got a tweaked Shaw soprano D. I’m sure nothing’s wrong with it–it’s got a lovely tone. But I have to blow so hard on high G and above that it’s not really suitable for fast songs that have notes that go back and forth across that break, if you see what I mean.
Is there really a whistle that you can just start playing and it makes you sound good? Am I just an impatient newbie? Should my Dixon seem this weak, and should I get it repaired? Will the whistles (or me, rather) improve with time and playing?
I just want something I can sit and play anything on. And sound good doing it.
Seriously, the Burke is probably what you’re looking for; it will sound consistently good. But here’s a suggestion: try a Sweetone first. If you find a really good one (or buy a tweaked one from Jerry), it may be all you need. If you like that kind of sound, then that’s more or less what the Burke sounds like: simple and sweet. The Burke will be better than the Sweetone, especially in the first octave, but you may be surprised to find out that the difference is not so large.
Another possibility for a slightly different kind of sound, but still very good sounding and very easy to play, is Syn ($40, i think).
What’s really funny is that i’m in Vegas for a trade show, and across the street from the hotel i’m staying in, they’re advertising Neil Diamond. Olivia Newton-John is here too, and Wayne Newton, and a bunch of other people i thought were already dead.
I have a Sweetone, and of my cheapies I probably like it the best. It is tweaked. However, it’s not as responsive as I’d like–I play cuts or taps at a fast pace, and they often don’t come out, if that makes any sense. I also squeak on the high notes more that I think I should. Again, not sure if it’s me or the whistle.
My suggestion is to stick with one whistle for a while. Yes, they do improve, as you learn their nuances, unless there’s something seriously wrong with them (e.g., out of tune). Actually, more realistically, YOU improve in your ability to get the best out of them.
I don’t know how many whistles I have these days (I’m too lazy to go downstairs and count them), but they all have their “strong and weak points,” and each is a wonderful instrument. One of my favorites, my Busman, most definitely didn’t make me sound wonderful right off, but you couldn’t take it from me with a machine gun today. I’ve got a couple that will squeak big time if I overblow, or forget that they REALLY, REALLY want to be vented on high D, but those aren’t flaws…they’re just characteristics of those whistles and, it’s up to ME to adapt to THEM, if I want to get the best they have to give.
Seriously, while some whistles are more forgiving and therefore easier for a beginner to play, there really is no substitute for you getting better. If you keep at it, your breath control will become better, and you will find all your whistles easier to control (at which point you can really start evaluating which characteristics in whistles you prefer). How about practicing until you can sound good on any whistle?! It’s not impossible, you know.
That seems to match my experience with the Dixon. I am getting better results from it now, but it can be tricky.
I have a Burke narrow-bore aluminum D that is much nicer in the lower octave, but it does get pretty loud in from second octave G on up. I really have to commit to playing it strongly when I do a tune that goes up into that area. I was having a problem starting a phrase on the high D note, because I wasn’t tonguing the note. I can get away with that on my other whistles, but the Burke really demands a rather sharp burst of air, or else it can squawk a bit on that one note. If I try to just blow, I have to blow really hard, resulting in a very loud note, but if I tongue the note nicely, the note is clear, but not overly loud.
If you just want to play by yourself, and don’t need a lot of volume, try a Hoover Whitecap on a Feadog or Generation tube. I just put one on what had been a terribly raspy, squawky Feadog, and it’s sweet and pure, and the best of the three for evenness of volume right up through the second octave B, requiring just a bit more volume to take it up to C#. However, it is extremely quiet. It can take a reasonable amount of blowing in the lower octave without squeeking, yet it stays in the higher octave without any special effort. In fact, I think that “effortless” is the best way to characterize the way it plays. In spite of being quiet, it has a very pleasing sound (to me), and can be pretty expressive. I’ll definitely be using this one for learning new tunes, since it lets me concentrate on the fingering without being distracted by squeeks and squawks.
I’m not a very fast player yet, but the Whitecap-Feadog combo seems very responsive.
Unless you have a seriously defective whistle, the only way to sound better is to learn to play better. Sad, but true. No whistle is perfect, and each will have it’s strong points and weak points. With practice you will learn to take advantage of the strong points, and minimize the weaker ones. As you become a better overall player, this learning process will become quicker.
I have the Burke D brass session, and I find it wonderfull on all notes. I would suggest you go and spend the money on one. You won’t regret it, unless it means your hydro will be cut off, but they are very resonable in price.
One of the problems with whistle is that they are soooo cheap, that people are tempted to buy tons of them and not get used to playing on just one. Think about it-would you go out and buy another clarinet right away if the one that you had just bought had certain problem notes (and they all do)? No, you wouldn’t, you’d practice and make the adjustments on the one you have. Whistle is the same.
Agreed that a Sweetone is a good whistle, especially to learn on, but a Burke is a far different beastie.
You can drive a Burke and play far more aggressively than you can with a Sweetone.
Also my Burkes are perfectly voiced…they speak with the exact same timbre all the way up and down the instrument. On most other whistles and especially conical Clarkes, there will be some notes that “stick out” or have a more shaded quality than their neighbors, such as the low E, which tends to be a bit weak and breathy, or the high G, which may be a much louder note with a shriller edge than the F-sharp right under it. None of that on the Burke.
The last session we had I was playing the Burke and punching it pretty good with some offbeat pulses, and it was sounding great! The thing about a Burke, with that sweet pure tone, you just have to convince yourself you really can play it forcefully. The tendancy seems to be to treat the tone like it’s fragile somehow and not push it to the edge.
You can’t play a Sweetone with quite the same oomph, because a Sweetone isn’t nearly so pitch-stable. You give it a good pulse and it goes way sharp, so that the Sweetone requires a different approach to play.
I agree with others who have suggested "keep practicing and the whistles will improve. I’ve been playing for about a year and amazingly I have found the flutes I had trouble with at first and almost rejected as defective, now sound good. hmmmmmm I love them all with their “flaws” and sublties. My “cheapy” Waltons are my favorites so far. They forgive my sins.
My favorite whistles in order of my playing preference:
Burke AL-PRO low D
Clarke original D
Clarke original C
Burke AL-PRO low G
Burke Composite low A
Generation B flat
Burke Brass Session Pro D
Generation D
Sweetone and Meg C and D
The rest of my whistles in my box
I probably play the Clarke original D more than any other, however because I have them lying around in convenient places so I can grab one when the mood (or tune) hits.
Are you using the correct fingering for D (oxx xxx)? A lot of whistles will let you get by with xxx xxx, but thoroughbred instruments can sometimes be picky.
I firmly believe that once you have tried one cheapie whistle and have established the fact that you can learn to play one, the next thing to do is save your pennies and buy a really nice instrument. It is so much more fun and rewarding to play when all the notes are in tune, the instrument is responsive in both registers, and the tone is pleasant. I also believe it does make a difference in how well you’ll play. Quality instruments, at least in my experience, are actually easier to play. I personally play a blackwood whistle made by Chris Abell which is an absolute dream. It was $300.00, but worth every penny. I have not felt the need to look any further (cure for WhOA’s??) and I’ve had this whistle for three years. I guess my theory is that you can quickly spend a great deal of money on numerous inexpensive whistles and never find one that you’re satisfied with. Why not invest in one that will bring you a lifetime of enjoyment?
I’m weighing in on the Burkes. I am a newbie ( 6 months) and have a very tight budget, but have managed to get two burkes by now (x-mas and the like). There is just no reason to suffer in my opinion. Its much nicer to squeek and squawk on a burke than a cheapie. For the money ( 120-200) Burkes are in a class all their own.
I think the problem is that I’ve been trying to play it somewhat softly in a tiny office where it sounds pretty loud–especially reflected off the computer screen. If I wait till everyone is out of the house and go play out over the living room from the second floor landing, I can put a little oomph into it, and it’s fine. Even the correct fingering for the D can result in an A if it’s started a bit too softly, though.
Now I have the Whitecap on the Feadog barrel to play in the office, so I can save the Burke and the Dixon for the rest of the house.
The Dixon is getting steadily better, too, so it must be susceptible to training. I played it for a couple of hours today, and it finally learned to stay in the correct octave. It’s becoming my favorite for Chinese tunes, because of the raspy timbre, and because it’s easy to bend the notes.
All in all, I agree. My Burke is just plain classy. On the other hand, it’s good to know what the cheapies are like, as it makes it so obvious that the Burke is worth the money. Also, even the narrow-bore Burke is a bit loud for my office, so the Whitecap-Feadog is great–and it’s so easy to play.
). Also the r******r for the last 2 years on and off. Reading music isn’t a problem and I can hear pretty well by ear.
Should my Dixon seem this weak, and should I get it repaired? Will the whistles (or me, rather) improve with time and playing?
and I’ve had this whistle for three years. I guess my theory is that you can quickly spend a great deal of money on numerous inexpensive whistles and never find one that you’re satisfied with. Why not invest in one that will bring you a lifetime of enjoyment?