music calms the savage

[sbfluter]

I've never been sure what word comes next, breast or beast. Anyway, here's my whistle story for the day.

Yesterday I was on a little day hike and brought my whistle to kill time on the downhill sections (my new C whistle -- oops, I had to buy a C and and Eb the other day.)

We were sitting at our lunch break and down the trail comes this overweight, ill-prepared woman wearing the wrong shoes. She was really struggling and holding on for dear life to her friends. She was also whining up a storm to them at the top of her lungs about how "You never told me it was going to be so bad! This is much steeper than you said." Yadda yadda.

It bugs me when people get like that because the whining just makes it seem worse than it really is. As a hike leader, the usual technique to help people through something more difficult than they think they are capable of is to distract them, usually with conversation.

So I pulled out my whistle and started playing. The louder she whined the louder I played.

All of a sudden she stops mid-whine and says, "Hey what's that flute music I hear? It's Irish music! Oh how wonderful!" Whining over. My plan worked. Before she knew it she was on level ground again.

The power of music. Do you have any whistle stories like that?

[Walden]

I've never been sure what word comes next, breast or beast.

The original quote is breast, though it's often been quoted as beast, perhaps as a misquote, but perhaps, in many instances, as an opportunity for a pun.

[brewerpaul]

good story. However, I'd STRONGLY advise against playing your whistle WHILE hiking, uphill or down. One slip, and you could end up jamming the whistle down your throat. By all means play at rest stops, but not while your're actually moving.

[MTGuru]

"Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast,
To soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak."
- William Congreve

http://www.bartleby.com/100/212.1.html

[taity]

tell that to me mrs she wants to put my whistle where the sun dont shine

[MTGuru]

tell that to me mrs she wants to put my whistle where the sun dont shine

Obviously, she prefers Keats to Congreve:

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone

- John Keats, "Ode to a Grecian Urn"

[riverman]

sbfluter,
I have many stories like that, but I usually share them on the Praise Whistlers' Abroad site. I'm glad you started it here.
My absolute best memory is from a summer two years ago. As I live on the Eel River I was sitting on a bench near my back door overlooking the water. The Eel is never straight so I could see far down a curve. I had a Clarke Original in D, (my onlywhistle at the time). I was playing praise songs and Irish tunes (nothing fast, I didn't have the skill level). It was enjoyable listing to the notes follow each other up and down river. Then I noticed two kyaks moving upriver. I had never seen that before, only canoeists paddling downriver. They were moving easily, almost without effort. I kept on playing. They were a husband and wife, and as they neared, the woman said, "Thank you."
I realized she meant the music! It was my first whistling compliment, so I said, "Thank you," in return. We shared some small talk and then they continued upriver. But as I continued playing, I noticed they stopped behind some trees and held their position, as kyakers can, and listened for several minutes.
I was so pleased that when they were gone I moved down to slope to river level so they could hear as long as possible!

[jim stone]

tell that to me mrs she wants to put my whistle where the sun dont shine

Obviously, she prefers Keats to Congreve:

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone

- John Keats, "Ode to a Grecian Urn"

wonderful

[s1m0n]

tell that to me mrs she wants to put my whistle where the sun dont shine :lol:

Obviously, she prefers Keats to Congreve:

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone

- John Keats, "Ode to a Grecian Urn"

:P

wonderful

I agree; very apted quoted.

~~

There's something magical about encountering a cliche out of it's usual context--the surprise can enable you to hear something you know well as if for the first time, and can remind you that whether you're talking poetry or tunes, cliches get that way because they're really good, not because they're bad. Danny Boy has one of the world's great melodies. Harvest Home is an excellent hornpipe, & is fun to play. Ode on a Grecian Urn moves, in only a few lines, through some really vivid and interesting ideas.

[s1m0n]

tell that to me mrs she wants to put my whistle where the sun dont shine :lol:

Obviously, she prefers Keats to Congreve:

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone

- John Keats, "Ode to a Grecian Urn"

:P

wonderful

I agree; very apted quoted.

~~

There's something magical about encountering a cliche out of it's usual context--the surprise can enable you to hear something you know well as if for the first time, and can remind you that whether you're talking poetry or tunes, cliches get that way because they're really good, not because they're bad. Danny Boy has one of the world's great melodies. Harvest Home is an excellent hornpipe, & is fun to play. Ode on a Grecian Urn moves, in only a few lines, through some really vivid and interesting imagery and ideas.

[breqwas]

...I have a few of such stories...
...alas, I have much more stories, when my whistling caused conflicts and bad attitude...
...maybe I should play better...
...still, there're too much people who think I should not play at all...

[sbfluter]

...I have a few of such stories...
...alas, I have much more stories, when my whistling caused conflicts and bad attitude...
...maybe I should play better...
...still, there're too much people who think I should not play at all...

Maybe you should play around people who have no emotional relationship with you. It might turn out you're actually not so bad!

I have found total strangers are actually much more appreciative of live music than people in your own house.

[Bloomfield]

I thought this was going to be about Gilgamesh. Oh wait, that wasn't music that calmed the savage....

[susnfx]

Occasionally people may thank you for playing your whistle out in the wilderness. There will be many other people who you will disturb but they won't say anything. Then there may just be one (that would be me) who would ask you to show a little consideration for people who appreciate, even crave, the silence in the out-of-doors and ask you to stop.

Susan

[The_Celtic_Bard]

The first time I played my didgeridoo, I mean actually played it getting the chirps the twirls the drones not the whole she-bang. Anyway, I was outside and the people in my town love to see people play music, well my elders at least, I was playing in my neighborhood on my stoop. Then I saw some birds I went over to them and started whistling but then I started playing my didge. The birds stopped whistling, flapping and flying, if was if I had paralyzed them, but once I stopped they stayed and came closer. So kept playing, it was wonderful, I hope it wasn't really scaring them, they actually looked happy.