Kerry Pro Low D - Overtones on low notes
Posted: Fri Mar 01, 2024 4:08 pm
Hi guys, first post here, pleased to meet you!
I recently got back into whistling after rediscovering my NR Chieftain low F that I got 18 years ago, in the back of a cupboard.
I love this whistle. It's so easy to play, soft to blow and sounds beautiful.
I also have a brass Howard Low D that's around the same age. It's also quite easy to play, but cannot play notes above high B, and I've never really been in love with the sound, or the plastic mouthpiece. I've always wanted a low D all-alloy Chieftain that plays like my lovely NR low F, and I haven't been able to find an NR in low D for sale anywhere. After listening to his various YouTube demos, and finding the V5 a little soft and breathy for my liking, I thought the Kerry Pro sounded amazing. Fat and rich, with a little breathiness, which was exactly what I was looking for.
So I took the plunge after seeing that Phil had a Kerry Pro available, and treated myself.
It arrived the next day and I must say it's an absolutely beautifully made whistle. It's gorgeous looking too. The problem is I'm finding it quite tough to play. I've found that it's a very different animal to the old Chieftain. It takes a much harder blow to get the notes to sound (higher back pressure?), and I'm having a bit of difficulty with the low E and D notes. They seem to have a very raspy metallic (I hesitate to say 'screechy') overtone that's hard to shed. If I start the notes with a soft blow then increase the pressure of the blow I can kind of out-blow the Overtones, but I have to be very deliberate with this, and when I'm playing a tune I almost always get this scrapy sound on those two low notes.
Is this a normal phenomenon with aluminium 'Overton-style' low Ds? Is this what people mean by 'Cosmic Drainpipe'? This is only the second low D I've played, but I have quite a few whistles from different brands in higher keys. (I really like Shaw whistles in high keys).
One thing that I'm unsure of is that after I'd paid for the Whistle and it had been dispatched, Phil told me that he had made this one slightly different to the usual Kerry Pro in that he'd made the blade more curved, rather than flat. I confess I have no idea about the physics behind this, or what such a modification might have on the sound or now easy the whistle is to play. Any ideas?
While I'm a realitively amateur whistler, I've played the great highland pipes for many years, so I'm no stranger to 'piper's grip', or playing wind instruments that are a hard blow.
I'm persevering for now, hoping it's just a matter of getting acquainted with the whistle. It really is a beautiful thing, and I must say the service from Phil was absolutely top notch. I had the whistle in my hands less than 24 hours after my first email to him.
I recently got back into whistling after rediscovering my NR Chieftain low F that I got 18 years ago, in the back of a cupboard.
I love this whistle. It's so easy to play, soft to blow and sounds beautiful.
I also have a brass Howard Low D that's around the same age. It's also quite easy to play, but cannot play notes above high B, and I've never really been in love with the sound, or the plastic mouthpiece. I've always wanted a low D all-alloy Chieftain that plays like my lovely NR low F, and I haven't been able to find an NR in low D for sale anywhere. After listening to his various YouTube demos, and finding the V5 a little soft and breathy for my liking, I thought the Kerry Pro sounded amazing. Fat and rich, with a little breathiness, which was exactly what I was looking for.
So I took the plunge after seeing that Phil had a Kerry Pro available, and treated myself.
It arrived the next day and I must say it's an absolutely beautifully made whistle. It's gorgeous looking too. The problem is I'm finding it quite tough to play. I've found that it's a very different animal to the old Chieftain. It takes a much harder blow to get the notes to sound (higher back pressure?), and I'm having a bit of difficulty with the low E and D notes. They seem to have a very raspy metallic (I hesitate to say 'screechy') overtone that's hard to shed. If I start the notes with a soft blow then increase the pressure of the blow I can kind of out-blow the Overtones, but I have to be very deliberate with this, and when I'm playing a tune I almost always get this scrapy sound on those two low notes.
Is this a normal phenomenon with aluminium 'Overton-style' low Ds? Is this what people mean by 'Cosmic Drainpipe'? This is only the second low D I've played, but I have quite a few whistles from different brands in higher keys. (I really like Shaw whistles in high keys).
One thing that I'm unsure of is that after I'd paid for the Whistle and it had been dispatched, Phil told me that he had made this one slightly different to the usual Kerry Pro in that he'd made the blade more curved, rather than flat. I confess I have no idea about the physics behind this, or what such a modification might have on the sound or now easy the whistle is to play. Any ideas?
While I'm a realitively amateur whistler, I've played the great highland pipes for many years, so I'm no stranger to 'piper's grip', or playing wind instruments that are a hard blow.
I'm persevering for now, hoping it's just a matter of getting acquainted with the whistle. It really is a beautiful thing, and I must say the service from Phil was absolutely top notch. I had the whistle in my hands less than 24 hours after my first email to him.