Hi Folks:
I’m brand new here. I’m actually a banjo picker, but I played the whistle when I was young and have taken it up again. I like to experiment with electronics, pickups, amps, etc. Here’s an example. I should point out that there was no added processing. What you hear is what was played.
Taking the bait … Can you describe your setup in more detail? It looks like simply a whistle with some sort of pickup device taped near the fipple. I’m not sure how that makes it “electric”. Also, I don’t understand the bit about “no added processing”. It sounds like there’s a ton of reverb and digital delay, to the point that you can’t even hear the whistle. Thanks for the clarification!
Full disclosure: I’m hostile to this sort of “music”, and think the clip sounds execrably bad. But I’m open to understanding the technical details, and why you think this clip is worth sharing. Thanks again.
What I meant about processing was that it was real time as I was playing, and not added with software after I was done.
The setup I’m using now is a lapel microphone Velcro’d to the barrel. The plug goes into a Digitech RP200 peddle and then into a BOSS Micro BR recorder.
I’ll simply give your last comment the contempt it deserves.
Hi and welcome to C&F,
The technical details would be interesting to discuss. I hope you won’t be too disappointed if your project doesn’t generate a lot of input. As a traditionally-oriented site, we don’t often experience that sort of thing here. But it’s interesting to hear new ideas from time to time.
Hi Tim2723:
I don’t mind in fact I’m quite used to it. I’ll just put stuff up from time to time. I like music, I like to play, I like to experiment. People are free to do whatever the like with it. 
Oh, well that’s good. The last ‘technologically oriented’ discussion I was involved with was about choosing a vocal mic to play through. I don’t know anything about processing and special effects, sorry. There’s a lot of folks around here who know about different woods and stuff like that though.
OK, thanks for the information.
Hmmm … So you bring yourself to our attention, and then respond with contempt to a polite but honest reaction? Good luck to you.
In defense of Banjo, I think your comments were more hostile than his, MTGuru, so it’s not at all surprising that he would react to it with contempt. You implied that his musical interest wasn’t even music. Golden Rule and all… With that said though, that kind of music (no quotation marks inserted) is not my personal cup of tea. When I listened to it, I couldn’t help but think of the Vangelis soundtrack to Blade Runner.
First, welcome BanjoBoog!
Second, I’ve fiddled with lapel mics on my whistles (especially my low whistle) with a band I play with at my church. I generally like the results, but personally, I do not consider this an electric whistle, and I don’t really think you’ve stumbled upon something new here. I consider this more of an amplified whistle. I’d love to mess around with a true all electric whistle; I have a Deger Pipes that I thouroughly enjoy.
I hope you do not take this as a put down, it is not meant at all as one (some folks around here are quite sharp tounged). If you’d like to talk about electronics or things of that nature, drop me an email. I mess around with all sorts of whistle modifications and “hybrids” 
Best of luck to you!
see above… 
Hi Tim2723:
I’m just interested in playing and learning how to play. Musically I follow my own path. People are free to enjoy it or not, what the heck, why not enjoy it. I’m an absolute duffer when it comes to the whistle so I’ll pick up what I can.
Cool.
Hi lordofthestrings:
I just called it electric because I couldn’t think of anything else, I just wanted to signify the obvious, that the whistle was being played through a processor … it’s rather like sticking a pickup in an acoustic guitar. I’ve switched to a lapel microphone Velcro’d to the instrument … much better idea.
One of the reasons I am doing this is to be able to do duets with myself playing the banjo. There are a couple of Bach Inventions as well as a stab at the Pachelbel Canon in the offing … but perhaps a few easier tunes first 
I’m just experimenting with this … I don’t really have a clue about whistle playing.
The truly electric whistle must be an interesting little animal, especially if you could get it bundled with some sort of Roland Package. I think you’d want to make sure it was grounded though 
Fair play to you, Steamwalker. Maybe I could have been more diplomatic. But to make a distinction, my hostility is directed not at the poster, who is probably a lovely fellow, but at the clip itself and – as I said – at the kind of exercise it represents. I think it’s reasonable to read the post as an invitation to comment, so comment I did. If “positive opinions only” was implied, I guess I missed that. Obviously, some people will feel otherwise, and that’s fine. Different strokes, and all that, especially here under the big C&F tent. If the poster expressed interest in the complex reasons for my particular strong reaction, as I had asked about his reasons for promoting himself here, I might be happy to explain, for what it’s worth. We might both learn something. But a reply of contempt seems intended to stifle that dialogue. So I’ll shut up for now!
now i have a headache
Not a problem, MTGuru. My point was simply that it’s hard not to take such a comment personally. Say, hypothetically, the original poster posted a youtube clip of him singing a song. Would the response to that clip of “I’m hostile to this sort of “music”, and think the clip sounds execrably bad” seem more personal in that case? I didn’t mean to imply that any sort of criticism is unwarranted, I just sympathize. I wasn’t trying to be argumentative or anything.
Hi folks:
If there is some weird “traditional vs. new” thing going on with the penny whistle, I could care less; I’ve already been through years of that nonsense with the banjo. I’m here to enjoy myself and hopefully learn how to become a better player. I’ve made one CD, but I’d like the next one to include something more than just the banjo, so I thought doing some duets with a whistle would be nice (especially if I can get the whistle electronically to sound like bagpipes 
).
Brings back memories…
BanjoBoog, welcome to the forum!
There are whistlers here of all levels of knowledge and experience. Many if not most play Irish trad, but there is certainly room for someone coming from another direction.
–James
Speaking as both a banjo and whistle player, I too have dealt with my share of hardline traditionalists. I’ll be the first to say that MTGuru isn’t one of them. Despite being an outrageously good trad player, he rips up the whistle in lots of other ways, including modern jazz. I know what prompted his terse reply to to the clip, but I’m sure he didn’t aim to offend. As he said, this is a discussion board, and we all post opinions and challenge each other. It’s all in good fun.
Banjoboog, I play oldtime clawhammer and 2-finger banjo. I’ll admit to having been lured into sending that stuff through signal-processing too. It’s fun and interesting. So far it hasn’t led me to anything I felt like pursuing any further, but your experience may be different. I encourage you to experiment and share your results. There’s room for threads of all kinds here.
BTW, I recall seeing actual electronic bagpipes advertised somewhere a while back. I think Lark carried them. Didn’t someone invent something similar for a whistle? I’ve seen an electronic ‘wind’ instrument a couple of times on TV that looked like it was some kind of wind-blown synthesizer or something.