The whistle in question is a Katalox hardwood whistle with brass ferules in the key of D. It was made by Mr. Tyrone Head, of TheFluteMaker.com and Handmadeflutes.com . Despite having gone through a handful of other high-end whistles (even more expensive), this little instrument is still my go-to whistle. Having prices ranging from $100USD BELOW, Mr. Head's single piece hardwood whistles are a huge bang for the buck. The craftsmanship and the playability is comparable (if not better) than more expensive whistles.
Apperance and Construction
Overall, the whistle is very well made. The body is made of a super dense Katalox hardwood. The ferules are made of heavy brass with a very nice Celtic knot pattern engravings. The fipple block is made of what looks to be delrin or some other dense black polymer. The finger holes are very cleanly cut and aligned well. The length and bore of the whistle is well polished and brought to a bit of a shine with oil. The only flaws I find are the small bits of stray glue near the ferules. They are barely noticeable though. The labium ramp is also not as smooth as the rest of the whistle, but I am okay with that. It tells you that hands-on care was taken when voicing the whistle.
Tone and Volume
The whistle is very sweet. Infact, it is the sweetest player that I have ever played. The tone is very pure and birdlike, yet it still maintains a distinct open and whistle-y sound (not at all like a nasal recorder). It plays with quiet to medium volume that plays beautifully when amplified through a mic. On its own, it also plays very well with medium sized sessions. The volume is very well balanced between octaves. It plays quiet pleasantly even in to the third octave. However, being voiced pure and sweet, do not expect the bell note to honk like a wide bore Mezzo D chieftain whistle.
Air Volume and Back Pressure
The whistle takes fairly little air to play. I am able to play very long passages without finding myself out of breath. It is very air efficient and feels as if all of the air pushed in is used as sound. None is wasted as white noise. This does make the whistle a little bit touchy in the bell note, but nothing that a beginner can't manage. Due to a medium-high back pressure, it provides a nice resistance that gives you a really good feel for octave transitions.
Resposiveness
The whistle is relatively responsive. It is good enough to play very fast tunes; but it is not as responsive as a Susato. It is just a few steps below it.
Tuning
Tuning is very good on this whistle, despite being a single piece non-tunable model, it plays perfectly in A440 (for me; your mileage may vary depending on how you blow). Infact, I use this whistle as a bench mark when it comes to tuning my other instruments. Intonation is spot on as far as I can tell. The second octave is well in tune with the first octave. Although I haven't tried taking a tuner to the third octave yet, it sounds okay to my tuning sensitive ears.
Wind Resistance
This maybe the only flaw with the whistle. It is not very resistant to wind. also since it is not tuneable, you do not have the option of turning the head upside-down to counteract that. It won't be a problem if you play indoors. Just don't expect the low octave to play as well when playing on a gusty day.
Conclusions
All in all, this whistle is probably the best bang for buck on the market. I would highly recommend it to people looking for a good wooden whistle. With the price-range, it is very easily affordable for beginners and would surely satisfy the more experienced whistlers. Drop Mr. Tyrone Head a line on his websites (mentioned above). He is a great guy to deal with, replying quick and detailed. He takes care of his clients well. Check out his websites HandMadeFlutes.com and TheFluteMaker.com . The whistles are listed in stock and are ready to ship. Should you want to see videos, a quick youtube search of his websites direct to how it's made videos and playing samples (including mine)
Cheers! I hope my first post here on the forum is a helpful one!
