As someone new to “tweaked” whistles, which ones would you suggest to purchase? I have students who are interested. Thanks.
Tweaked or not, the selection of a whistle should be based on what you believe is a good whistle. What whistle works best for you yourself? What whistle does exactly what you want a whistle to do? What whistle sounds just as you feel a whistle should sound? What whistle fits your style of playing best?
What whistle do you play? I wouldn’t teach someone using a whistle I would not want to play. No sense to that.
Asking those of us here just gets you a list of whistles that show our own personal preferences. And yes, I do have a preference. But I’d suggest you try what is out in the market place first and go with the one you personally prefer.
Feadoggie
My personal favorites;
The Freeman Bluebird is really good, so is the Freeman Mellowdog.
http://www.thewhistleshop.com/catalog/whistles/inexpensive/bluebird/bluebird.html
http://www.thewhistleshop.com/catalog/whistles/inexpensive/Waltons/mellow_dog/dog.html
You can also order directly from Freeman’s Ebay store, or PM him on this board.
Bluebirds, Mellow Dogs and tweaked Generations are all good for beginners (and advanced players as well).
A couple of weeks ago, I sent four of each to Annmarie Acosta-Williams, who in past years had been starting everyone with Mellow Dogs. (I didn’t have a dozen Mellow Dogs on short notice this time around, so I sent the assortment.) When I spoke to her a few days ago, I asked, “How are the whistles working out?” expecting some feedback on the three different models of whistle I had sent.
She said, “Great! They fought over who would get which color. One girl (a senior in high school) was upset because last year I only had green ones and she already has her green one and can’t get a different color.” Sigh. I put my heart and soul in these whistles, and all I get back is they fight over the colors.
A couple of months ago, I sent the same selection to Damien Connolly, who has been teaching a whistle class at Sacred Heart College in Fairfield, CT. That has worked out well for him and his students.
Last summer, I sent Mellow Dogs and tweaked Generations (that was before the advent of the Bluebirds) to the Swannanoa Gathering at the request of John Skelton and Kathleen Conneely.
At Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann events, the Mellow Dogs have been the most popular, but this year, I wouldn’t be surprised if Bluebirds overtake them, based on the feedback I’ve been getting.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Christel, check your private messages.
And by the way, in case anyone hasn’t yet heard Christel’s music, you owe yourself that pleasure:
http://www.christelrice.com/listen.html
Best wishes,
Jerry
Thank you, that was helpful!
Christel, if you’re purchasing for students, I would prefer to sell directly to you. However, if you’re simply recommending whistles for students to purchase themselves, they can buy directly from me (www.freemanwhistles.com goes directly to my eBay store) or from the retailers mentioned above. Also, I don’t yet have Bluebirds listed on eBay, but I can fix that in a day or two if need be.
Generally, it’s faster to order directly from me, as most of the retailers have to forward the order to me on behalf of each customer and then I send the whistle(s) to the customer. The exception is the Whistle Shop, which stocks my whistles, but it depends on circumstances (mainly whether I’m fully caught with filling wholesale orders) whether or not they have them in stock at any given time.
Best wishes,
Jerry
as Mr Freeman himself has offered his expertise, I am not sure my words will hold mean much as he is the master of tweaking. I own and use several of his tweaked whistles: Generations, Blackbirds and a Mellow Dog. If I was to want to teach a student how to whistle, I would select a Generation or Mellow Dog. The tuning is good on both, the breath control needed is forgiving, and the tone is nice.
Hope that helps.
Will
Thanks Will for replying to the post, I was specifically asking about the tweaked whistles and appreciate your opinion. So out of the three Mr. Freeman whistles, which one do you enjoy playing the most and why? cheers,
Jerry,
Sent you message today, thanks for taking the time to get in touch. Much appreciated!
So what is your preference on a tweaked whistle? That is what i am asking.
Christelrice, at the risk of being redundant and in my feeble attempt to clarify, Feadoggie is saying what we discuss constantly around here. Whistles are a personal choice. There are several vendors who tweak whistles, some of whom regularly contribute to C&F. But each “tweaker” (gulp 
) has their own scheme, just like each maker tries to put their personal stamp on their instruments. It’s not what we prefer but what you prefer that makes a difference.
I’ll give an example. Cillian O’briain makes a uniquely tweaked instrument that I believe is based on a Feadog. Many consider it the finest traditional (whatever that means to them) sounding instrument. Jerry Freeman tweaks lots of instruments. None of them sound like Cillian’s do but Jerry has a huge following, likely much larger than Cillians, however I have no data to back that up. Tommy Dion tweaks whistles and his are different from these other two. I forget who makes them but there is the “shush” whistle that is quieter than the rest.
I don’t have a Shush but I have instruments from the other three. All are good to excellent whistles. None are “bad”. Some sound better on certain tunes than others IMHO.
As to your question, when I’m playing tweaked whistles I go back and forth between Jerry’s Bluebird Eb and Mellow Dog D. I find the Bluebird D just slightly more stable in the low end but I find the Mellow Dog to be better balanced throughout. Either of them will satisfy a basic whistle need. But so will the O’briain if you’re looking for a “pure drop” tone. Tommy Dion’s work on the Gen Bb is really good too as is Jerry’s but that’s a really good whistle without tweaking.
I doubt you’ll find much to quarrel with on any of these instruments. But, as Feadoggie was stressing, it’s not always about tweaking. It’s about getting the characteristics that are personal to you. This weekend, I was out with my niece who wanted a good whistle to play but wanted to buy her own and wouldn’t let me give her one of mine (kids!!!). She plays a little bit so I took out my four roll cases and let her try all the D’s I had. She wanted an inexpensive one so she bypassed all my hand-mades and picked a standard Feadog Pro over all the rest, including those mentioned above. I talked her into taking a Jerry Gen along with her since I had two, and now, two days later, she can’t decide which she likes best. Good think I didn’t push her toward the Walton’s Little Black since she’s a huge Corrs fan but, didn’t know about Andrea’s connection to these.
Just pick several of one or a few of each and have your students play them till they fall apart. Jerry’s offer is likely to be generous if I know him well and I think I do.
ecohawk
Fair enough. 
To paraphrase the Most Interesting Man in the World … I don’t always play tweaked whistles … but when I do … I prefer the Cillilan O’Briain Feadog.
The Jerry tweaked Gen is attractive since it feels and sounds just like a good old un-tweaked, off-the-shelf Gen without any warts.
Oooohhh, I see ecohawk has posted as I write this.
Christelrice, I guess I was trying to say two things. As I get older (and older) I don’t always get to the point well .
First point is that you buy/try them all yourself and see what shakes out. And yes, have a bunch on hand for your students to try. One size won’t fit all, hasn’t in my experience.
Second point is that your own experience should strongly influence a beginner’s (or the unwashed long-time learner’s) choice. I have seen many players that want an easy blowing, soft and demure whistle. And that might not always be the best choice for the music - that you are teaching and that they will be playing. Sometimes you have to nudge them a bit to learn the potential of the instrument. WWJD? (Again, I’m paraphrasing)
Feadoggie
Cillilan O’Briain’s Feadog is on my short list of whistles to buy.
Woulda got one sooner but they are out of the UK and thus slightly more $$.
Here is were to look them over and purchase them;
http://www.bigwhistle.co.uk/Shop_Results.asp?Prod_id=510
I’ve got an O’Briain that I like, but in fairness I haven’t had a chance to try any of Jerry’s whistles yet.
In fact, I could use a back-up or two on the O’Briain, if anybody in the US is looking to sell. My preference is the nickel body version, but I’ll consider brass, assuming good condition.
Loren
If I may ask, what are your whistles ChristelRice?
Judging by the date of the last post here, I’m pretty late for the party. Anyway, I have the Jerry Freeman tweaked Sweetone and Mellow Dog whistles, both in D. Given the garishly amateur way I play the whistle, the Sweetone I have feels solid in the lower register and still easily playable in the upper. Personally I’d recommend this whistle, assuming you’re OK with the conical bore and everything that comes with playing it. Of course, I have no complaints about the Mellow Dog whatsoever, and it’s a great choice if you want a straight bore whistle.
What I appreciate about tweaked whistles compared to those on the low end of the spending scale is that they just seem easier to play if you’re a novice. That being said, I feel that my tweaked Sweetone would be a great choice for your students whether it’s an economic or sound issue.