flute vs. low whistle

[WhistlinBob]

Try a Copeland very flute like sound and volume

[Borderpiper]

I have been persevering with the flute for the last year on and off. I play low whistle pretty well but I loved that extra depth to the sound of a flute. I bought a folk flute to start with then sold it once I’d got the hang of it and after buying and selling flutes for a bit settled on a gorgeous Ormiston flute I bought off ebay. It has taken practice but when you start getting a good sound on a flute you want to play it more. . Compared to a low whistle (and I've owned and played quite a few) my flute is stronger on the low notes and so much more versatile. When I go back to my low whistle it's like going back to instant coffee after drinking great fresh Italian coffee, it just lacks the depth and the it just isn't as satisfying.

Dave

[Loren]

When I go back to my low whistle it's like going back to instant coffee after drinking great fresh Italian coffee, it just lacks the depth and the it just isn't as satisfying.

Dave

You know, this is a very common experience, and I can totally relate, however, and this goes back to my comment about whistles and flutes being different beasts and needing to be approached as such, it is interesting to note that some of the finest flute players still play lots of whistle/low whistle - McGoldrick, Finnegan, Mayock, Crawford, and so on. I do agree that given the choice between the instruments, flute wins over whistle hands down, for many reasons, but still, the whistle is a unique instrument that has it's place, which is I imagine, one of the reasons these great flute players don't simply pack away the whistles for good, in favor of a case load of flutes in different keys.

For myself, I did go through a long period of time (several years) after getting into the flute, where whistles seemed completely uninteresting to me, and I hardly even bothered to pick one up. However, the more I learn to play the flute the way it should be played, rather than like a transverse whistle, the more interesting, and in many ways challenging, the whistle becomes. I say challenging not in the physical sense that playing the flute is, but in the sense that, as others have mentioned, the range of what you can do on the whistle, compared with the flute, is quite limited, and so the challenge becomes doing as much as you can with "less" in a sense. It also puts you in a frame of mind to look much more closely for what it is that the really fine whistle players are doing that makes them able to produce music on the instrument that has great lift and feel - because this is more difficult to do on the whistle, with it's limited ability for breath emphasis and volume dynamics, if you see what I mean.


It's an intersting subject. Well in my mind anyway, but then my mind is strange



Loren

[Talbert St. Claire]

Very interesting subject .

I have played Low Whistles for over 15 years. I started out with Flute for 5 years before taking to the Low Whistles. When I first heard the sound of the Low Whistles I was extremely taken back!! I removed the Flute playing entirely and started learning Low Whistles. It's all personal preference really. I agree with much that has been said here regarding the differences between the two. They are both unique.

However, even though Flutes are much more flexible than whistles, whistles are no easy task to master. There are a number of Flute players that related to me in the past that they would love to play the Low Whistles but they cannot seem to get the right sound out of the instrument. It can be very intimidating to learn. To get the passion and sheer power from low whistles is very complicated. It takes years for most to capture that certain magic that we have all heard from some the best Low Whistle players!

It reminds me of the notion that a reel is harder to play than the slow air. There are so many that still feel this way. On the other hand, when one attempts the air they are very surprised at how difficult airs can be. Especially on the Low Whistle. To drive it is hard enough.

Based on my own experience both the Low Whistle and Flute are great instruments. They complement one another. But, a good Low Whistle player will tell you that it took much time to get that special sound from it. Not to be underestimated. In the hands of great players they can sound like sheer, MAGIC!!!!! If you can do both equally well then I TIP my off to you .

[jim stone]

I think the point is well taken that low D whistles have
a limited range but still do something extremely well
that isn't so easy to get on the flute. If I may say so,
I think low D whistle is a sort of niche instrument.

Opening up to higher whistle keys, I think soprano whistles
are lovely (obviously) and are capable of a sublime
goofiness hard to get on the flute. If I'm going for
a soprano sound, I personally prefer whistle.

And in the middle keys A and G, I can get a good deal
more out of Copeland whistles than I can out
of my A and G flutes, at least so far.

But nothing compares to a D Irish flute.

[WyoBadger]

So, Loren, you've personally taken on Mothra, too? Wow, man, you really have done it all!

One of the most important things to know about flutes is that lip shape drastically influences the ability to make a sound on them. When I'm fitting beginning band students with instruments, I can watch them blow out an imaginary candle and tell, with around 75% accuracy, whether they'll be able to get a sound out of a flute or not.

Try this: Look at yourself in a mirror. Tilt your head back slightly and blow a long, very thin stream of air toward an imaginary candle somewhere just above your head. Don't blow too hard, just enough to ruffle the flame a good bit. Don't puff your cheeks; keep the corners of your mouth firm.

If the opening between your lips is very small (a quarter inch across or less) and shaped very much like an American football, lucky you: It's just a matter of getting your lips placed correctly, directing the air the right direction, and you should get a decent sound right off the bat. If the opening is any other shape, though, you'll probably find it hideously difficult.

If you try this, I'd be interested to know if your results are consistant with mine. Masters' Thesis, anyone?

Tom

p.s. "Sublime goofiness." Now there's a phrase I don't use often enough. I love the way you write, Jim.

[ketida]

I like the way Jim writes, too, and I like this thread, even though I have not (previously) been tempted by the flute. I played clarinet and other woodwinds, including flute way back in high school. High and low whistles have satisfied my ITM needs so far....until this thread, that is!

So, I have to ask, what is a Mothra?

[Denny]

[WyoBadger]

From Wikipedia:

Mothra (モスラ, Mosura?) is a kaiju (monster) that has appeared in several Toho tokusatsu films since her introduction in Mothra (1961). Generally regarded as female by English-speaking audiences, she is a giant lepidopteran with characteristics both of butterflies and of moths. The name "Mothra" is the suffixion of "-ra" (a common last syllable in kaiju names) to "moth"; whereas the Japanese language does not contain a /θ/ ("th") phoneme, it is approximated "Mosura" in Japanese. In the American dubbing of Mothra vs. Godzilla, Mothra is also referred to as the Thing.

About Mothra
Since her first film, Mothra has been depicted in various stages of the lepidopteran life cycle: Mothra's mammoth egg is decoratively colored in blue and yellow waves. The egg hatches into her larva, a massive brown, segmented caterpillar (resembling a silkworm) with glowing blue—sometimes red—eyes. In rare circumstances, twins may emerge from the egg. The caterpillar eventually spins a silken cocoon around itself (the pupa stage), and from this cocoon the imago (adult) Mothra emerges, a gigantic moth-like creature with brightly-colored wings. Mothra's life cycle—particularly the tendency of an imago's death to coincide with its larvae hatching—echoes that of the Phoenix, resembling resurrection and suggesting divinity. Though having wrought more destruction than most Toho daikaiju, she is almost always portrayed as a kind and benevolent creature, causing destruction only when acting as protector to her worshippers on Infant Island or to her egg.

Mothra has proven a formidable adversary in combat: in larval form she may use her silken spray to wrap and immobilize an opponent, and has a knack for biting and clinging to foes' tails. In imago form her powers vary widely from film to film, including very animalistic scratching and dragging, incorporating several bolt and beam weapons in the Heisei era, and often concluding with a poisonous yellow powder (or "scales")—her last defense.


Mothra is one of the most powerful psychics in the Toho universe. She has had the ability to use this power benevolently, to communicate with humans, or defensively, to destroy her enemies. As suggested earlier, Mothra is assumed to be divine and draws many parallels to the Phoenix, which makes her one of the more powerful kaiju of the Toho universe.

Mothra has become one of Godzilla's most challenging opponents, having achieved the greatest success rate in battle[1]: She has once overcome Godzilla in imago form, and twice Godzilla has fought her to her death only later to be bested by her newborn larvae. It should be mentioned that Mothra has never beaten Godzilla alone (in her Imago Form). The only victory by an insect(s) over Godzilla were the Mothra twin-larvae in Mothra vs Godzilla in the Showa Era, Imago Mothra and Imago Battra in Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle for Earth, in the Heisei series and the twin-larvae and Kiryu (MechaGodzilla) in the Shinseiga (aka Millennium) Series.




But anyway, back to that flute/whistle discussion...
T

[Denny]

From Wikipedia:

ya...if ya click the picture ya get the Wiki page...

ain't near as funny....

[C age ing]

If Mothra, in any form, crawls up your flute or whistle, can you still sound it?

[Loren]

So, Loren, you've personally taken on Mothra, too? Wow, man, you really have done it all!

Dude, have you not looked at my picture to your left in the avatar box? Everyone knows I've mixed it up with Mothra, duh.





Loren

P.S. Ignore The Badge's well intentioned theory on lip shape relative to flute playing ability, it's hogwash - any professional flute teacher will tell you so. Unless you've been born with a cleft palate, are missing or have VERY messed up front teeth or lips, you should be able to play the flute without it being "hideously difficult" Those who have a pronounced "V" in the top lip, often need to blow slightly to one side of that, but many, many flute players, of all ability levels have this, and other non-football shaped lips, and get along just fine. Sorry Badge, it has to be said. Fortunately for you, you didn't post that bit over on the flute forum

[Loren]

If Mothra, in any form, crawls up your flute or whistle, can you still sound it?

Well I can, but then I breath fire and all so........


Loren (Godzilla is just my "stage" name) B.

[chas]

Well I know one thing that my daughter's getting for Christmas. Every so often a moth gets into the house, and we have to catch it and put it in her butterfly house and name it Mothra. She absolutely LOVES the original movie with Mothra as a caterpillar. Sadly she hasn't seen Godzilla vs Mothra yet, but then she's only 5.

[riverman]

I became curious about the flute, and a friend on the Praise Whistlers Abroad site very generously sent me a PVC flute (not a Tipple). If I practice EVERY DAY, I can hit most of the notes in the low octave ALMOST every time. I can't seem to make the high octave work, except for once when I was playing high octave and couldn't get back into the LOW!
And as someone with very little spare time who can already whistle, I wonder, "Is this worth it?"
My wife doesn't think so--she says, "You're a whistler."