Luckily I decided to stick with it, decided it was probably the whistles (it's always they're fault) and ordered a Dixon. The thing is really beautiful, it just always sounds good. When I first played it I distinctly remember thinking "Wow, this is really a nice whistle!" Having played it for a while and learned the basic technique I'm starting to get a little annoyed that I can't make it do anything really interesting, but that's the price that has to be paid. For a kid just starting I'd really recommend one, as from my experience younger people have a harder time getting into things. Dixon's also look like real instruments, which probably lessens the "forget it and lose it in the couch" possibility (that's what happened to the Clarke I got when I was about 7. Poor whistle
) Anyways, the plain high D non tunable ones go for something incredibly cheap like $15, and they're pretty darn durable (they're PVC whistles). Having one sitting in front of me, I highly recommend them to anyone picking up (or being coerced into picking up) a whistle for the first time.
Edit: Oh yeah, they're quiet. From all I've heard about Susato whistles, they're pretty loud instruments. For anyone learning, this is a bad thing (especially for anyone near them), for kids it's probably even more important. Unless you're a vengeful grandparent. In that case get a Susato =).
-Gabe
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Stacey has the most bodacious fipples! & Message board
Well, the possibility of a similar scenario always exists. Since there's just a tad bit of sibling rivalry, they may try to outdo each other playing it. But at least the things aren't quite large enough for a serious weapon. Though others may disagree