Mikethebook wrote: ↑Sun Mar 06, 2022 12:35 pm
In terms of the effort required to get up to the higher second octave which would you suggest is easiest Tremendouz: the Dixon, Carbony or Goldfinch?
I don't have the Carbony anymore but I'd perhaps say that Dixon is a tiny bit easier than Goldfinch and Carbony but they are really close.
I find Dixon and Carbony much easier to play overall cause of the narrower, tapered bore and smaller holes while Goldfinch has a thicker, cylindrical bore that makes me feel a bit less agile when talking purely about fingering.
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Thanks! Very helpful. Given the price of the Carbony I think I will be going with the Dixon! At the price, I can't really lose. The Goldfinch is also good value but I prefer the Dixon's tapered bore.
Tell us something.: I've been playing whistles since 2010. I love how varied whistles are in their design, construction, tone, and handling. Though I've largely settled on what I enjoy playing, I'm still a sucker for an interesting new design.
Hey Mike, reading your description, two whistles came to mind.
First, I'd look at a Goldfinch low D. It takes very little air to play and has a nice focused tone with a good bit of backpressure (though not as much as a Goldie, but the air efficiency is similar). The tone is warm and thick, due to the PVC.
One other whistle might be even easier to blow that also has a bit of backpressure is the Dante collapsible low D. It's super thin aluminum and therefore extremely light weight. I never played the standard low D and the collapsible side by side, but my impression is that the collapsible is a bit lighter playing than the standard, possibly because the collapsible design gives it some slight conical bore or narrow bore characteristics. It also has the advantage of collapsing down to a length shorter than that of a high D, but I don't do that regularly out of concern for longevity of the friction fittings.
Price wise, it makes a lot of sense to try the Goldfinch first, unless you absolutely don't want a plastic whistle. Another consideration is availability. Dante whistles have vanished from eBay, and since they're made in Russia, I suspect they are yet another casualty of Putin's war.
Goldfinch (see 16:19):
youtube.com/watch?v=Z44SxYUbjo0&t=722s
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Thanks for your ideas. I may well try a Goldfinch some time and I'm curious about the Dante. But I've moved on since I wrote the thread after a recent long conversation with Colin Goldie. I can manage the first octave of my medium Goldie Low D though getting used to piper's grip and the largish holes again is taking longer than I anticipated. So I got to wondering about a small-bore Goldie since they are obviously easier to play and favour the upper octave. He's not making many of the small-bore Low Ds; with the collars at the third and sixth holes, they're time-consuming to make and he has to charge more. But he suggested a small-bore Low E. It will be about a month before I get it but I'm hoping it will be a good intermediary as my lungs strengthen and also enable me to play dance tunes faster, I think. Have you ever played a small-bore Goldie like the E or Eb?
Tell us something.: I've been playing whistles since 2010. I love how varied whistles are in their design, construction, tone, and handling. Though I've largely settled on what I enjoy playing, I'm still a sucker for an interesting new design.
Mikethebook wrote: ↑Sat May 14, 2022 1:06 am
. Have you ever played a small-bore Goldie like the E or Eb?
I haven't, but I've heard great things. In the last few years, I've started appreciating narrow bore low whistles more. I have a Reviol alto set (one whistle head plus A, G, F, and E bodies), and when I first played them, I felt the E body was a bit too narrow, but it's really grown on me. It's sensitive to overblowing, but the combination of effortless play and rich tone is fantastic.
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Yeah, I guess the Reviol could be considered a small-bore. I owned a Reviol Low D for a while but just couldn't take to it.
According to Colin, he's had great feedback for his Low E small bore. He'll be picking out a medium or soft/medium head to see which works best to get the right balance—solid first octave but easy to reach second. I'm looking forward to playing it and the different tones it will have. It's also close enough to a Low F to play tunes normally played on that but with the advantage of the easier second octave.
Meantime Colin's small-bore Low D is proving very popular and one of his professional customers will only play the small-bore Low D now. Whereas another enjoys the small-bore but also likes to play the standard bore and big hole Low D too depending on the music. That's my eventual hope, to play all three Goldie Low Ds (the big hole is my favourite whistle but I couldn't play it right now). I won't have any whistle ambitions after that.
Mikethebook wrote: ↑Sat May 14, 2022 9:13 am
According to Colin, he's had great feedback for his Low E small bore. He'll be picking out a medium or soft/medium head to see which works best to get the right balance—solid first octave but easy to reach second. I'm looking forward to playing it and the different tones it will have. It's also close enough to a Low F to play tunes normally played on that but with the advantage of the easier second octave.
Mike, that sounds like a great compromise, since the E is only an interval up from the D. Hope it works for you!
AngelicBeaver wrote: ↑Fri May 13, 2022 7:04 am
First, I'd look at a Goldfinch low D. It takes very little air to play and has a nice focused tone with a good bit of backpressure (though not as much as a Goldie, but the air efficiency is similar). The tone is warm and thick, due to the PVC.
I recently got a Goldfinch alto G whistle that I'm liking a lot. Maybe not as sweet in the upper register as some others, but as you say, it has a full, robust tone that I didn't expect in a PVC whistle. And Jakub was absolutely fantastic to deal with, even in the throes of all the chaos in eastern Europe lately.
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Hi Stephen,
The small-bore Low E seems like a great compromise to me. As you say not far from the Low D but also close to the Low F while having the small bore and the easier upper octave. I'm looking forward to getting it and will report back when I do.
The Goldfinch brand has always fascinated me though I've never bought one. Everything I hear about them suggests a high-quality whistle that transcends the PVC material they are made of. I can't see an Alto G on their website but when I think of their low whistles, I think of them as having big bores and being quite bulky. Perhaps I'm wrong. Maybe I'll get to play one of their whistles one day.
Tell us something.: I've been playing whistles since 2010. I love how varied whistles are in their design, construction, tone, and handling. Though I've largely settled on what I enjoy playing, I'm still a sucker for an interesting new design.
Mikethebook wrote: ↑Sun May 15, 2022 4:19 am
I can't see an Alto G on their website but when I think of their low whistles, I think of them as having big bores and being quite bulky. Perhaps I'm wrong. Maybe I'll get to play one of their whistles one day.
They can do any key. I've got an alto G from them, as well as an Ab and F# (plus a bunch of other keys). They only use three sizes of cPVC, so some end up being narrow bore and some end up wide. They use the small tubing for high Eb down to C, the medium (alto) tubing from Bb down to G, then the large tubing from low F down to low C. I got the F# in the alto tubing, so it's more of a narrow bore. From F down to low C, they use the same larger tubing.
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Mikethebook wrote: ↑Sun May 15, 2022 4:19 am
Hi Stephen,
The small-bore Low E seems like a great compromise to me. As you say not far from the Low D but also close to the Low F while having the small bore and the easier upper octave. I'm looking forward to getting it and will report back when I do.
The Goldfinch brand has always fascinated me though I've never bought one. Everything I hear about them suggests a high-quality whistle that transcends the PVC material they are made of. I can't see an Alto G on their website but when I think of their low whistles, I think of them as having big bores and being quite bulky. Perhaps I'm wrong. Maybe I'll get to play one of their whistles one day.
Goldfinch seem more than happy to try new things that are not listed on their website. I got "mid" F and E whistles which use the same bore than their other "mid" whistles. G seems like a nice sweet spot for that bore but the F I have also plays nicely. The E is pushing it a bit, they had to place the lowest hole very low and make it large which isn't ideal for ergonomy but that's really my fault for taking a risk with such a strange request. It still plays nicely overall.
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
That's great that they're open to experimenting! That's so rare. Beyond Colin Goldie and Mack Hoover I can't think of any whistle makers offering a bespoke service. I find that very attractive and a great selling point and makes me want to try a Goldfinch at some point.
Mikethebook wrote: ↑Sat May 21, 2022 4:56 am
That's great that they're open to experimenting! That's so rare. Beyond Colin Goldie and Mack Hoover I can't think of any whistle makers offering a bespoke service. I find that very attractive and a great selling point and makes me want to try a Goldfinch at some point.
Renaldo Reyburn will also make custom whistles. I got a custom low C# body with my low D, which I think is better than the low D (which is very good). Also, he can make either of his mouthpiece designs for any key. So he could totally make a small bore low D, etc.
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.