The Lochlan - Review & PICS ARE UP

[pancelticpiper]

Thanks Gerardo for that very clear and informative comparison.

Your comments about the Burke seem bang-on. I've been using the Burke as my primary session horn for about the last year and a half and it seems that you sum up its sound and performance very well.

Your description of the Lochlan is likewise so clear that I can almost feel like I'm playing it.

The pros of the Burke Viper are great volume, powerful booming bottom D, great tuning, and (this is very important to me) the thing never clogs with moisture. I can play for hours at a session without clogging. Oh, and it looks great too, especially when I take the time to polish it.

The cons are (and some might disagree)
1) a tone which is a bit colourless compared to many other Low Ds. But I noticed when playing at sessions where Irish fluteplayers are present that the tone of the Burke is amazingly like that of the flutes, and I blend in as just another fluteplayer, which is a good thing I think.
2) a high B, and to a lesser extent a high A, which is a bit too loud, a tad harsh, a bit wild. This last definately gets better the more playing time I spend on the Burke. But nevertheless many other Low Ds have a creamy-smooth 2nd register in comparison.
My belief is that the harsh/wild high B is the price which must be paid for the booming bottom D, and I can live with the compromise.
It would be interesting, certainly, to have the opportunity to play 10 Burke Vipers side-by-side and discover to what extent this varies from whistle to whistle. In other words, this last quibble might be unique to MY Burke Viper. I don't know.

But the Lochlan sounds very intriguing.

[whistlegal]

Ahhh! The quest for the ULTIMATE low whistle. Is'nt it fun! I LOVE the low D whistle. I like the way they sound and the way I feel when I'm playing one. I like that depending on which one I pick up, I can create an entirely different mood/sound. This is truthfully the only area where I allow myself the luxury of owning several. If I had to choose just one, I'd throw myself from a tall building. . I'm content to have only one of everything else with the exception of an A whistle which I do use frequently. I have two, a Burke brass and a Sindt.

[hans]

2) a high B, and to a lesser extent a high A, which is a bit too loud, a tad harsh, a bit wild. This last definately gets better the more playing time I spend on the Burke. But nevertheless many other Low Ds have a creamy-smooth 2nd register in comparison.
My belief is that the harsh/wild high B is the price which must be paid for the booming bottom D, and I can live with the compromise.

I don't have a problem with the high B.
Have you tried fingering high B like XOOXXX ?

~Hans

[Mikethebook]

[ Revival ]

I'm opening a very old thread here, I know but in reading it I was surprised that nobody had compared the Lochlan to the Overton/Goldie big hole Low D which is a fairer comparison. The bore on the Goldie is I think slightly larger than the standard though I may be wrong but I imagine the hole sizes might be similar to those on the Lochlan. And there's no doubt the Goldie has the richer smoother tones and resonant lower notes that the Lochlan has. A detailed comparison of the two would be very interesting since they appear to be the only two big hole Low Ds on the market . . . that is if the Lochlan is still made . . .

[hans]

What do you call a big hole low D please? Do you refer to the bore? For example a bore (inner diameter) of 1" instead of the usual 7/8"?

[Mikethebook]

I'm not referring to the bore but to the holes. The Overton big hole Low D had holes of 12mm & 10.5mm and I think the Goldie version must be similar.

[Feadoggie]

I'm thinking you are chasing ghosts here.

You can search the board for all the posts on the Lochlan whistle and Greg Russell. Which you probably have already done. You know the old Lochlan website is defunct. That should tell you one story and unless you can get a hold of Greg Russell you won't know if there will be any more Lochlans. So you may have little to compare on that side of the equation barring someone giving up their Lochlan.

On the "Overton/Goldie big hole Low D" there may be some confusion as well. Bernard Overton did like big holes in his whistles. He's gone now. Colin Goldie makes his own whistles to his own specs and preferences albeit based on the Overton format. So what exactly is a big hole Overton/Goldie low D? But if you can spec it, I would think Colin could tell you if he would make you one.

There are maybe a handful of Lochlans out there and they didn't gain wide acceptance for whatever reason. There are about a gazillion Overton/Goldie whistles out there in use and being played in the studio, on stage and at session. That's a detailed comparison in my book.

So what's to compare?

Feadoggie

[whistle1000]

I believe that you are definitely chasing a ghost here. Gregg came to Newfoundland a few years ago with dreams of setting up shop and mass producing the next great whistle...I tried his whistle and didn't like it at all. True, it had a unique sound(?), but I found it near impossible to play due to it's enormity. I can play the hell out of a Copeland and could do nothing with this whistle. No bother because I doubt that you'll ever see his whistles again [...] I know him personally and worked with him.

[Edited for personal content. - Mod ]

[Mikethebook]

Thanks guys for laying that ghost to rest.

[Gregrussell]

Personally, I don`t believe in ghost as people term them in stories and such. I do however believe ghost exist as misrepresented entities or simply put, (being slandered) . Why, I myself as an example have been misrepresented by what I believe to be a Ghost or two. I think these ghost cause people to believe things that you really cannot see for your self. Believing gives life to these ghost that can haunt the hell out of us and create unrest. PLAH!!!! LOL
As for whistle makers, These guy`s love what they are doing and the money they actually live on must come from a real job. So the fact is most whistle makers actually give more then they recieve when it comes down to money earned for labour. He has to find time away from real life to fiddle away with whistle making, avoiding angry wives, bills and real life
I will one day hope to put everything I have learned into the next great Whistle....but for now it`ll have to wait!

Thanks to everyone here on this forum for all the awsome knowledge toward whistle making!

[MTGuru]

For better or worse, I think there were just not enough of the Lochlan whistles in circulation to form a broad consensus. No matter. If Greg decides to start making again, there will be an opportunity to push the reset button.

And I'd guess that the situations of different instrument makers are as varied as the players who play their creations.

In any case, I think we'll officially put this thread to bed, with good luck to everyone.