Resonance? Or is it all in my head?

[squidgirl]

I was playing around with my whistles in my friend's garage the other night, being kind of uninhibited and a little late-night slaphappy, and found myself changing the shape of the inside of my mouth to make my head resonate with the notes the whistle was playing. It really seemed to make the notes sound sweeter and, well, more resonant.

But in the morning I tried doing it again, and couldn't seem to make it work. Since then I seem to be able to do it sometimes and not others -- so am I intermittently hallucinating, or can one actually change the shape of one's mouth (throat, sinuses?) to resonate with the notes being whistled?

[MTGuru]

so am I intermittently hallucinating, or can one actually change the shape of one's mouth (throat, sinuses?) to resonate with the notes being whistled?

It's probably those garage fumes. Sometimes you can see pretty colors, too.

But seriously, it's an interesting question! There was a related thread a few weeks ago:
http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php ... ht=#641890

I guess there's still no solid agreement. But I tend to think the shape of your mouth cavity can affect the tone, directly or indirectly, or your perception of the tone.

Another thing is how different a whistle can sound when you're playing it vs. listening to someone else play that same whistle at a little distance. With the fipple right in your face, you hear and feel breath noise and overtones that may not carry very far, and be absent in the sound heard by others. Try recording yourself with a good microphone placed a few meters away, and you'll hear if that's the case with your instruments. Try changing your mouth resonance while recording, and check if it comes through on the recording.

In any case, if the resonance trick makes the whistle seem sweeter and more satisfying to play, then why not?

[Carey]

changing the shape of the inside of my mouth to make my head resonate with the notes the whistle was playing. It really seemed to make the notes sound sweeter and, well, more resonant.

Watch Ryan Dunns videos on WhistleThis.com. He has a distictly different mouth shape when he plays the low notes vs. the high notes.

If it's not resonance in your head, which I am not discounting, it's the resonance of the whistle being affected by the speed/angle of the air you are putting into it. I also suspect the garage was "tuned" to reinforce the tone when you got it.

I bet it's all of the above plus a couple more things we don't know about all working together to make the effect you heard.

[Tim2723]

The science of acoustics is complex and dynamic. It's very difficult to say just what you might have experienced, although it's fair to say that many of us here have done likewise.

For the majority of musical instruments, and most certainly for those played with the mouth, we get some percentage of our perceived tone via the inner ear through the muscles and bones of the jaw and face. It is a most common reaction for one to not recognize one's own voice the first time it is heard on a recording, and we often have a similar reaction when hearing the reflections of an instrument. When the input of our inner ear exceeds the input of our outer ears we hear a very different sound indeed. I have read a number of comments here and elsewhere recommending that we have another player demonstrate a new instrument before we purchase it. This is wise because we can seldom judge the qualities of an instrument ourselves, as we cannot truly hear it ourselves.

I think this has a great deal to do with your experience.

[Anglorfin]

Good points everyone. I've experienced a similar thing although at the time I just attributed it to me being WUI (Whistling Under the Influence). I guess maybe it's not in my head?

As for different mouth shape I've been wrestling with it for a day and a half now and besides my normal (and what I assume is the natural or average mouth shape for all players) I can't ever make a consistent sound let alone a cool resonance effect. I've tried puffing my cheeks to give my mouth a larger cavity and I've tried loosening my lips but the tones I get are inconsistent at best, waaaay off key at worst.

As far as I can gather, changing mouth shapes is required for achieving good level tones and is also a personal preference. I've not yet been about to change mouth shapes to achieve a different quality of tone. But that's just me. I'm not saying it can't/hasn't been done

So as of now I'm going to have to agree with Carey's statement about the garage itself. It must be the acoustics of the place you were in and not your own mouth shapes that produced the cool effects.

[Guinness]

... and found myself changing the shape of the inside of my mouth to make my head resonate with the notes the whistle was playing. It really seemed to make the notes sound sweeter and, well, more resonant.

Try slightly dropping the jaw and relaxing the tongue (let it roll over and play dead). Think AHHH instead of EEEE to open up the throat. Blow just enough to get the "ideal" tone.

I find this consistently makes for a purer tone, less breathy over most of the whistle's range. Repeatable for other whistles. However, I have doubts that this is some sort of resonance effect.

(Even if you find this little exercise doesn't have any effect on tone, it's good to be relaxed anyway ).

[greenspiderweb]

I was playing around with my whistles in my friend's garage the other night, being kind of uninhibited and a little late-night slaphappy, and found myself changing the shape of the inside of my mouth to make my head resonate with the notes the whistle was playing. It really seemed to make the notes sound sweeter and, well, more resonant.

But in the morning I tried doing it again, and couldn't seem to make it work. Since then I seem to be able to do it sometimes and not others -- so am I intermittently hallucinating, or can one actually change the shape of one's mouth (throat, sinuses?) to resonate with the notes being whistled?

No, I don't think you've lost it yet, Noel! In fact, you probably just hit the next level (or two) of performance technique-the uninhibited side that allows you to discover new things and go with it as you play. Not many are able to experience uninhibited playing. Kind of like a dot player doing improvisation.

Everyone is built differently, and has unique abilities, so I think it's very possible you've really just connected with yourself and the whistle-in ideal conditions. In the morning when you tried again, I think you were just missing some factors that you had that night-uninhibited play and maybe also the whistle (and you) being warmed optimally too.

Colin Goldie once told me that everyone brings a different sound to the whistle, and I do believe that is true, and also applies to the flute (maybe even moreso). Also, Grey Larsen also talks about shaping the mouth cavity for different tonal results.

Let it all hang out, and play from your heart and soul, and no doubt you'll get great results, if only occasionally. But that's worth playing for, I think!

[Denny]

...and never rule out
d) all of the above
as the answer.

[The Weekenders]

Squidgirl is a cutie-pie.

I think a lot of us change the shape of our lips and mouth subconsciously anywayl I am trying to get used to a new whistle that is more unstable at the upper register and I am positive that I grimace when I approach the high A and B. But that's not for sound, but because of it.