I always play "The Butterfly" slipjig when I'm testing the sound of a new whistle, because it's the first thing that pops into my head. Does that happen to you? What song or series of notes do you play?
"It's the Great God Bird through it all!"
-Sufjan Stevens
I'll admit to "Danny Boy" being one test tune for new whistles. I like to know how a whistle handles jumping from D to high B. The fun tune I play is "The Battering Ram" .... but the first tune is generally "Amazing Grace".
I like The Kid On The Mountain-- it hits almost the whole range of the whistle, has ample spots to see how ornaments "pop", and I just plain love the tune. If I want to play something slow, I like the Air from Bach's Goldberg Variations. Again, it hits the whole range of the whistle, plus it has a couple of notes that need to be half holed, which is a good thing to test out. With a couple of Celtic ornaments, it makes a smashing slow air.
It's a funny thing. I mostly play original compositions. When I get a new whistle I sound out a few notes. Often times a tune will appear and that sometimes becomes the signature tune for that whistle.
kinda do the same thing as billchin....i play random notes and see what tune comes because of that..if i;m looking for a specific tune usually the butterfly or fools jig..orr harvest home
HampshireWhistler wrote:Usually Kesh jig or Cook in the Kitchen
On that wonderful Burke no doubt You know, HW, I've been playing for WAAAAAAAAY longer than you have. It's totally unfair that you play WAAAAAAAAY better than I do.
Someday, everything is gonna be diff'rent
When I paint my masterpiece.
You know, HW, I've been playing for WAAAAAAAAY longer than you have. It's totally unfair that you play WAAAAAAAAY better than I do.