I’ve just started to learn the low whistle on the new and wonderful Kerry Optima, so good for beginners and high whistle players. It makes a great sound. As a beginner I’m struggling to understand all the whistle terminology regarding tone/sound. I just know that once I’m a little more confident, I’d to get a whistle that has that distinctive Davy Spillane Riverdance ethereal sound but since he makes his own I’m wondering what low whistle makes out there are closest to capturing that sound however you want to describe it. It would also be helpful to know HOW to describe that sound accurately in whistle parlance. Thanks.
there are tons of stuff about DS & his whistles in the archives…
alas, the search is dodgy. I’d try Google cut & paste this: “Davy Spillane” whistle site:forums.chiffandfipple.com ah, 3,920 results!!! ignore the 1st one 
if you would be so kind as to reduce it to a managable size, with index, by Christmas - I’d think it would be a lovely prezzy for the whistle forum.
Sticky even?
A bit of the ‘ethereal’ quality you hear in Spillane’s studio recordings comes from reverb effects added in post production.
It has been said that Davy plays an older ‘big hole’ model Overton low D, and I’m inclined to believe this for reasons I won’t go into detail here.
I’ll just say that I have a ‘big hole’ model Overton low D made by Colin Goldie, and with a bit of reverb added it sounds just like Spillane’s studio recordings.
In fact, I can play along with the CD tracks even without any post production effects, and my playing blends in with Davy’s almost seamlessly.
I’m not sure if Colin still makes the ‘big hole’ model per special request anymore, but no harm in asking him if you’re really looking to duplicate the Spillane sound.
Be warned though, the ‘big hole’ model really does have BIG HOLES!
My hands are quite small, and it’s all I can do to manage the necessary finger spread and hole coverage.
Not a whistle I’d recommend to a beginner, but one of the most rewarding you’ll ever play, and well worth the extra effort.
Hi Gary,
Thanks for the interesting reply. In research, I discovered Colin’s web-site and like the fact that he can tailor a whistle to the buyers requirements. I’ve not seen that elsewhere. That would certainly tempt me. My hands are big I think (8 inches from wrist to top of middle finger) but fingers slender so I’m not sure how I would cope with big holes but can you tell me what difference they make? What would the tone lose by being smaller?
Thanks again.
Mike
Otherwise known as “reverb”. 
Seriously … it’s not the whistle. It’s the player plus a ton of studio effects.
Any low whistle, plus 7 years of practice, will give you the sound you’re after. Master what you have before embarking upon a snark hunt.
As for Spillane making his own whistle … let’s not go there. 
Bigger holes impart a fuller and richer tone than smaller holes. They also make bending notes and half-holing easier.
Thanks. That’s a great help.
Mike
MTGuru, I take your point about studio effects for his album but check out his sound on something like http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhEYoA5Xp-U&feature=related where he plays in a studio after an interview. He may have had access to some reverb but much much else I don’t imagine but the sound is still there.
Mike
You’re kidding, right? There’s absolutely masses of reverb on that clip plus you can hear that there’s a fair bit of electronic manipulation over and above that (though I wouldn’t know precisely what because I’m not a sound engineer and don’t know enough about such stuff). Don’t get me wrong - the guy’s great. But that sound on that clip was well and truly ‘treated’. It’s hard to disentangle the actual whistle sound from that clip.
You can get some of that sound by seeking out places to play that are as acoustically “live” as possible. Stairwells, churches, parking garages, empty gyms, etc. It’s a treat when you discover a good one.
Best wishes,
Jerry
That would produce a nicer, more natural sound than the electronic version, though. Much nicer.
Well, there is a lot of reverb in that performance. Judging by the proximity of the whistle to the mic, I’d have to say that it is surely reverb applied through processing and not the acoustics of the room. As for additional processing, I’d wager that there is some compression and nothing more. The vibrato is all Spillane. Davy remains close to the mic throughout the performance. And while there is noticeable difference in the dynamic levels between the lowest pitches and the highest, it’s not what you would hear live in the room. So the top end is compressed to even out the difference with the bottom end. (And then the overall volume level can be lifted) Pretty standard stuff actually. Compression doesn’t alter the sound of the whistle in terms of filtering overtones or adding anything. It is fairly transparent when applied properly.
I’ve met Spillane (years ago) and heard him play in person. I’ll repeat pretty much what MTGuru said. The most important piece of equipment used to achieve the sound in that video is Davy Spillane.
Feadoggie
Perhaps it’s my ears, Feadoggie. But I just can’t hear the whistle in that. With so much reverb and other processing - compression or whatever - my brain just can’t unscramble it. And, as I implied in answer to Jerry’s point, the thing is, to me, that electronic reverb doesn’t sound remotely like natural reverb. I can cope with natural reverb. I can cope with a very small amount of electronic reverb. But the sort of levels of artificial reverb on that television studio clip just mask the sound of the instrument, to me. I wouldn’t know what it sounds like.
Now, I’ve sat next to Davy Spillane when he’s been playing, both pipes and whistle - no-one else playing, everyone wrapt and listening to every note. So I know what he can sound like. But I wouldn’t know from listening to that clip.
Bathrooms and kitchens… which don’t give the same sense of space, but are still the most flattering acoustics in most houses!
Thanks for all the posts. Obviously Davy Spillane’s consummate skill plus the added effects make up a good percentage of the sound. Nevertheless, there will be certain whistles that contribute to that sound, maybe Overtons for example, and others that would give a different sound e.g. MK Pros and Susatos. I think in writing the request, I was seeking to find the type of whistle that would that, given the skill and the effects, give a Spillane-like tone.
Don’t prematurely discount your Optima from being that type of whistle because (without having tried one myself) the design appears to be closely related to the Kerry Pro, which in turn is closely related to the Overton. And, having largely reverted to my vintage Overton for low D jigs and reels because it takes much less air than my (equally lovely) Chieftain V3, I’d think their playing characteristics may be more closely matched than you imagine…
Thanks Peter.
One of the nicest places I “fell into” was a cave… a cave large enough to warrant it’s own state park. St. Anne’s Reel became a shimmering waterfall ! Got lots of warm+fuzzy comments from others passing through !
Last week, I was at the doctor’s office for a pre-op visit for a minor medical procedure.
I bring whistleheads to work on whenever I expect to spend time in a waiting room.
The surgical nurse who met with me was interested in my work, so I assembled a completed Blackbird whistlehead on a nickel D Generation tube, which was the only complete whistle I could show her.
As it happens, the surgical group had just taken over the third floor of a rather large medical building, moved up from more crowded quarters on the second floor, and hadn’t yet moved most of the furniture. Many empty rooms with open doors, large open spaces, lots of hallways. Wonderful acoustics for a whistle.
I played through Ashokan Farewell, which most Americans recognize and love, thanks to Ken Burns’ use of it in his documentary on the Civil War. By the time I got to the end, there were two nurses’ heads poking through the doorway. “Play it again!” they said excitedly. By the time I got to the end the second time, there were two more heads in the doorway, this time, both silver haired surgeons in long lab coats. Big smiles. “You can come here and play any time,” one of them said.
I’m tempted to take them up on that, except by the time I get back there, they’ll probably have the rest of the furniture moved and the acoustics will have changed.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Sounds like it was a good day ! 