I’m looking for a pure toned (not chiffy) sweet, responsive high d whistle with a non-piercing upper register, not the quietest, because I still want a nice, full tone, not nasal or constricted sounding, especially in the upper octave. This is for solo, indoor playing.
I seem to prefer the tone of aluminum barreled whistles, and they seem to be in the minority. I have a Walton’s LBW that is very good, no tweaking was needed, but I’m sure there are others with more to the tone.
If you know of other higher keyed (down to about A) feel free to comment if you think they belong here.
And if you don’t know of an aluminum that works but you do know a brass, pvc, composite, or wooden barreled whistle like this, please list it. Let’s say under $150.
So, list your favorites, please, and if they happen to have some chiff, but you think they deserve mention, just say, this is chiffy. And more people can benefit by the post that way.
Based on your preferences, I’d say #1 Burke session, #2 Burke narrow-bore, #3 Water Weasel. I’d recommend the session over the narrow-bore because of the good cross-fingered Cnatural, and over the Water Weasel because the Burkes are more balanced over the octaves. If sweetness is more important than volume, I’d reverse the order.
#1 Burke DAN - If the price is no big deal, I’d say go with the Burke. It’s the most responsive whistle I have, in terms of being able to modify the tone of a note with my breath. Playing it feels more like singing than any other whistle I’ve tried. If, as Charlie says, the session differs mainly in having the better C-nat fingering, I’d probably pick that one.
#2 Syn aluminum - slightly quieter than the Burke. Tone somehow different, not quite as “pure”, or maybe less “open”, but I wouldn’t say “chiffy”. (That’s assuming I understand what “chiffy” really means, what with my limited exposure to other whistlers.)
In addition to being about 1/3 the price of the Burke, the Syn is a tough little whistle. The tube is thicker than that of the Burke–almost twice as thick, I’d say. I think you could step on the tube without hurting it much, but I wouldn’t say the same for the Burke.
I have a Bleazey blackwood that has a relatively pure tone, but the second octave is a bit more difficult than the Burke and the Syn. The Bleazey seems to be the loudest of the three.
In fact, this is what got me interested in a high d again. To me it almost sounds like a Sweetheart rosewood d I heard once, and thought it was the best sounding and sweetest (ha ha), high d I had ever heard in person, not in a recording.
Then, of course it was on the tail end of the time they were discontinued by Ralph Sweet, and replaced with the more powerful Pro model in “diamondwood”. I didn’t find one available after that. I understand they were somewhat louder in the higher octave, but I still would like to play one and see!
Hands down . . . what you want IMHO is the DBSBT for $140. You can’t beat it, not even with a stick
I have a water weasel high d which is a very nice whistle, but the Burke has a sweet pure voice that is great indoors and in very large areas. The transition and volume through the octaves is the best of any whistle I have played, and it comes with a really nice case. The Water Weasel requires more play time to learn it’s nuances in breathing between octaves, whereas the Burke is more forgiving.
I have tried a Sweetheart Pro in the diamondwood. It was nice too, but I still like the Burke better. The funny thing about the Burke is that I had several experienced people recommending the Burke to me, and I bought the Water Weasel instead, only to buy the Burke a couple of months later. The Burke is my favorite whistle by far.
Yes, they’re louder than the Burkes, esp. at the high end, although I think it’s more of a piercing than screaming loudness. That’s why I said Burkes if you want moderate volume, WW if sweetness is more important (not in so many words ).
The absolutely sweetest sounding high whistle that we have within your specs is our Weston High D in Sapele. This is a wooden, non-tunable whistle. It has a very pure, but well rounded sound that is VERY pleasing to the ear.
All of this for around $100 to your door.
The absolutely sweetest sounding high whistle that we have ever had is our O’Riordan set. The first time I played the high D I got goose bumps!! No kidding. Phenominal. Now, if you consider the makers retail price, if falls within your range. Considering current street prices…
That’s sounds interesting. Does Mr Weston make a tunable model also? From what I could find, he doesn’t have a website, is that correct? Does he use other woods? Sapele is a fairly porous softer hard wood, very similar to mahogany. I haven’t heard of others that use it, has anyone?
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