Whistle for beginner

[StefD]

The little daughter of our bodhrán player (she's 11) wants to start playing the tin whistle.
She plays in a very professional children-folk-group (The Young Folks) and she need something
that is loud (she plays together with pipes) but also very easy to play.

Now she was thinking about buying a Goldie High D (just because she saw me playing it).

In my opinion this is a fantastic instrument for more advanced players but it is very difficult
to play for beginners. I haven't any experience with that, because I've first touched a Goldie
when I've played tin whistle for many many month (and recorder for about 13 years).

Can you tell me your experiences? Or is there someone who has started with a Goldie?
Or do you have other loud and easy whistles? What shall I tell her? (She plays the
recorder for about 5 years, if that'll help you...)

Thx

[Hotblack]

Personally I would have thought a straightforward (or maybe a tweaked) Generation or Feadog style would be best to start. A Goldie seems a bit......well......excessive........for an 11 year old.

[DrPhill]

People with far more expertise than I speak highly of the Dixon Trad. I have one, and found it a lot easier than the susato that preceeded it. And it is not hugely expensive. I also have a Dixon solid brass which I prefer to the trad, it is louder, sweeter, heavier, and far more robust than the trad. Plus if you shut it in the car door (a common fate of whistles, I am told) then its a new car door, not a new whistle. Seeing as I drive a Skoda, the car door is probably cheaper......

(Oh, and Tony Dixon is one of the many whistle makers/sellers who are a pleasure to deal with).

I have no other high whistles to compare those two with, so my opinions may not help that much.

[StefD]

@Hotblack: A Goldie.......excessive for an eleven year old girl?
..............not really if Daddy is paying

@DrPhill: I should try shut my Goldie in my car door..........I think
I will need a new car than .

I have a Dixon Trad too and I love this whistle. It is very easy to
play and very good for practising late at home because it is very
quiet. But that is a problem for playing with pipes.
Do someone have any experiences with susatos? They are loud
enough I think but how difficult/easy are they to play?

[MoonMind]

For loud and standing its own against a set of pipes, I'd say a Feadóg will do well. However, in my experience, it's not the easiest whistle to start on (nor is a Generation, btw). But it's reasonably cheap, and it encourages practising since it rewards it graciously with sweeter, more solid sound, apart from everything else. The Pro has an even nicer voice, but for loud and clear (even piercing if need be), I'd recommend the Feadóg original (my favourite for this kind of setting being the plain brass).

The Dixon Trad is a wonderful whistle, but as the OP mentioned, it's rather quiet.

That said, I can make my Parks Every Walkabout go really, really strong... but I can't comment on the Susatos, sorry.

M.

[plunk111]

I think I would lean toward the Susato - it's pretty cheap, fairly easy to play, plays in tune, is tuneable (if you get that model), and is LOUD.

[Hotblack]

@Hotblack: A Goldie.......excessive for an eleven year old girl?
..............not really if Daddy is paying

I wasn't really expecting an 11 year old to pay for it. I just think a Goldie is wrong for someone so young and starting out.

[Tootler]

If you want something loud and inexpensive, then a Susato is as good as any.

Geoff

[tucson_whistler]

susato's are nice (and loud but if she's seen you play a goldie she might not want one made out of plastic (i wouldn't you might try the freeman tweaked mellow dog; it has a wider bore so it's a little bit louder than the feadog or a tweaked generation. it's a nice whistle, i think he only charges about $40 for them and it's a nice starter whistle (before you spend $300 on a goldie

if you want to spend them money and want something loud, i can also recommend gene milligan's whistles; he makes them out of wood (so there's a durability and maintenance issue for a small child, but the dymondwood version is fairly maintenance free), you can read of review of them on the wandering whistler's website:

http://www.genemilligan.com/products.html
http://www.tinwhistler.com/reviews.aspx

good luck!

[plunk111]

Sorry about the OT, but I just went to Milligan's website... I found the gallery and product pages incredibly annoying! He should have clickable thumbnails SOMEwhere in his pages! Having to sit through a bunch of string instruments to get to the (one picture of) whistles was, well, annoying. Some closeups and sound clips would be nice, too. On the plus side, the whistles DO look nice.

[crookedtune]

If she's truly playing with pipes, then go with a loud whistle -- Feadog, Susato, Overton, session-bore Burke, etc... (I really like David O'Brien's whistles). These are all a bit more demanding, but I think needing to lean into the whistle is a great way to become a strong player.

A nice Generation, Dixon, Hoover, etc., is great to have at home for practice, but will be a bit harder to hear over the pipes, probably.

[Scott McCallister]

'nother vote for susato. Respectably loud, and priced right for the responsibility level (no matter how professional) of an 11 year old. Practically indestructable. Not too heavy in smaller hands. Wouldn't have to be thought about twice for being tossed in a backpack on her way to rehearse.

[tucson_whistler]

Sorry about the OT, but I just went to Milligan's website... I found the gallery and product pages incredibly annoying! He should have clickable thumbnails SOMEwhere in his pages! Having to sit through a bunch of string instruments to get to the (one picture of) whistles was, well, annoying. Some closeups and sound clips would be nice, too. On the plus side, the whistles DO look nice.

i totally agree, it annoyed the crap out of my to look at all the guitars, banjos, etc to get to the whistles. so i downloaded the photo from his flash app as a pdf so i don't have to anymore. also, he sent me a GORGEOUS photo of his red dymondwood whistle when i asked about it... anyway, i can send it to you if you pm me with your email addr.

[tucson_whistler]

If she's truly playing with pipes, then go with a loud whistle -- Feadog, Susato, Overton, session-bore Burke, etc... (I really like David O'Brien's whistles). These are all a bit more demanding, but I think needing to lean into the whistle is a great way to become a strong player.

i just traded my burke composite session whistle away, but i asked the person who got it what they thought about it and they said they really liked it b/c it was louder than the sindt whistle they were playing and could carry over other instruments in a session. the session whistle is louder, and my experience was that the composite is the easiest whistle to play i've ever owned, so it would be great for a beginner (i only traded it away b/c i liked the sound of my wood milligan better--beautiful sound, not as easy to play, but i got used to it .

anyway, i should have thought of it before but it would be a great whistle for a starting player (easy to play) who needs a louder whistle. also, it's a composite black material so i think it might survive abuse better than some other models (it doesn't scratch or bend).

[Tucson Whistler]

Maybe it's just me, but I think Susatos sound kinda recorder-y. If she was listening to your Goldie, she might not like it at all. I was also thinking a Freeman Mellow Dog might be good.