I recently decided to take up the Irish/tin whistle. I play a few instruments to varying degrees - fiddle, clawhammer banjo, rhythm guitar, mandolin/mandola, ukulele, autoharp, harmonica. Not an expert on any of them, but well enough to play with some local guys who are also old, retired guys like me. I enjoy listening to and playing old Irish and Scottish aires, waltzes, marches and similar tunes, mostly on fiddle. I haven’t really attacked jigs, hornpipes, or reels, primarily because I prefer slower songs.
But anyway, I’m working on learning the whistle. I’ve learned that some harmonica techniques transfer to the whistle. And while I don’t want to start collecting a plethora of whistles (like I did harmonicas), I’d like to check out at least one low or alto whistle. So, asking for suggestions from you guys who are more experienced. If you could get only one low whistle, would you prefer a low D or G whistle? Not necessarily looking for specific whistle suggestions, just which key would be the most versatile for a guy who’s probably never going to get near a true Celtic session.
With just one cross-fingering, you can play most tunes in G.
Most of the fiddle tunes I’ve learned are in D. D is common in “open music-jams”.
Favorite “starter Low-D”: plastic Dixon. Inexpensive (low-cost way to try out the long finger stretch). Light (easy to play for long practice sessions).
Favorite “great voice Low-D”: MK.
I own both Low-D and G whistles. I reach for Low-D much more. Low-G only occasionally for specific tunes.
Opinion given by frustrated+failed cross-blower-wannabe-wish-I-could-play-flute kind-of-guy.
Low D here as well. You can get G on a D whistle as trill said. The Dixon TB012D is a good beginner low D and is affordable. If you are looking at an Alto whistle then A or F would be nice in addition to the low D
Each whistle give two different Major keys, one based on the bellnote and one based on the note 4 notes above the bellnote.
Low D, High D whistle: D Major and G Major
C whistle: C Major and F Major
G whistle: G Major and C Major
A whistle: A Major and D Major
etc.
Whistle players just pick up whichever size and generally aren’t concerned about which key the tune happens to come out in.
But when you need a specific key to play along with others, you usually have two choices of whistle:
D Major: D whistle or A whistle
G Major: G whistle or D whistle (sorry for my typo which I just corrected)
etc.
I’ll generally choose the whistle where the specific tune fits best regarding it’s range, or sounds best.
Low D. As you get into specific situations where a whistle in another key would be useful, you’ll find out what that extra key (or keys) of whistle will be - but a low D is the standard which will get you a long way in standard session / small group work as the majority of tunes played in their most common key will fit on a low D.
Personally I got a low C next, as I play with a singer who likes singing in C and F (and their relative minor keys); then I got a low G for a couple of specific pieces, but it doesn’t get much use beyond that.
Other players will get other keys according to their needs / local situations; but a low D is the one to start with.
You only need one or two low Ds, but if you take to playing them, you might find that several pass through your hands. Most of us have to try a few to find the one that’s right for us.
Trouble is, there’s a tendency to hang onto the others too, because they’ve all got something going for them. Before you know it, you’ve got an entire herd of leaky pipes standing drunkenly to attention on a pegboard.
If you do decide you want to play some dance tunes, you could always get a high D as well – even some of the higher spec ones aren’t hugely expensive. It’s the same fingering, but fast tempos are more playable. You might go through a phase where it feels like holding a toothbrush after playing a low D and you’re hyperventilating because you’re used to putting a lot more air through it, but you adjust very quickly and can soon switch painlessly between the two.
