Talking about whistle tone is like using a math calculator to paint a canvas. So take my words with a big grain of salt, and go listen to different whistles (in person if possible, and on recordings), and play a bunch of different whistles to find one you like.
Short of that....
Some people like a "pure" or "flutey" whistle tone--round and clean. Whistles I've played and liked that give this tone include Hoover, Dixon, Michael Burke, and O'Riordan.
Some people like a whistle with more "chiff"--a more complex or "dirty" tone. Whistles I've played and liked that give this tone include Generation, Clarke, a Walton's with a tweaked fipple, and John Sindt.
There are lots of other good makers out there, but I haven't played their whistles, so won't comment on their tone.
"To you, what are the best of High D whistles? I play on a susato which i like but i think the sound is not so beautiful..."
As a whistle player with a large collection of whistles, I find that it is not as much which whistle to use but how the player plays what they have, as being the first measure of importance. I have played my best whistle, well, not so great, and my least better than I thought possible.
The breathy quality of a "Generation" played by an expert supersedes the purity of the perfect whistle played poorly. I hope my point is well taken.
What?!!?ever you want to be called, Cnat is different on almost every whistle and Flute. Although, a Dixon is a nice sweet sounding Whistle.
As someone who has played a lot of Whistles, I have a couple to reccomend:
First, the GFM if you like pure and sweet with abit of volume.
Second, Black Diamond if you like the traditional sound but the ability to play hard.
Third, Sweetheart if you want sweet and woody with lots of volume.
Fourth, Busman if you want complexity, the ability to lean into it, and lightning fast response the only downside is it would get lost in a large session.
If you can find them I would also reccomend Whistles by the late Glenn Shultz.
Those are my four High Ds, I have an Eb by Glenn Schultz.
I've got a fair whack of whistles (is that the correct collective noun?) and I have to say the two that you canNOT go past:
Generation, a classic (might seem boring to mention it but it is THE cheap whistle. you can't get anything near it for the price) - though you DO have to play a fair amount of them in the shop (something some shopkeepers aint happy about) to find a good one...
and the premier: Overton (both his and Goldie's). I love it, can't get enough. It rules. hands down, I could play it all night (and do)
If you like the slighty, er, um, woodier sound, Mick Grinter used to make great ones (i think he's stopped now alas) and now his more-than-able-bodied assistant Ben Stewart makes champion ones.
Gary Humphrey (Tennessee, USA) makes some very nice whistles... well balanced, nice tone, not too expensive. They're like perfect Generations with a bit more volume.
I love my Tony Dixon whistles, both the high and low D's. I have gone through a few other cheap high D's without being too impressed, including Generations (several) and Susato. On a whim, I picked up a Sweetone, sorta like buying a lottery ticket...and guess what? It's my favorite, hands down. And I have played the high priced ones, too, at stores.
Overall, I'd say it's a very personal thing, if you want to spend a lot of money, hopefully you'll get something that pleases you. But, I don't think it's a guarantee...you might just luck out like me, and find a perfect whistle for dirt cheap.
I love my Abell high D, though the C is even nicer, also my Sindt Eb is wonderfull. It has more traditional tone. But I think if you push the Abell you will have a fair measure of chiff. BTW I am waiting for a Sindt D/C-set.
Like every instrument I played before (clarinet and saxophone) I experienced that higher valued instruments definitely have their merits.
Not everyone is so lucky as to find a perfect Generation, whish I was.
A few years ago in Eniskillen, Co. Fermanagh, I saw a musician playing a crooked old brass generation whistle. I had the pleasure to meet him again in a session last month, and he was playing a Susato. It seemed he really loved it.
It really does depend on what you are looking for and how much you are prepared to pay.
Generations can be fine but you might have to search through a box of them to get one that's in tune and plays well. These are at the cheap end.
Susato are fine for loud sessions and can be quite sweet with the right diaphraghm control. I particularly lijke the Bb body as it gives a real warm rich sound.
My favourite session whistle is the Syn made by Erle Bartlett [You can get a set of 4 bodies and interchangeable head for about £40].
My Burke brass naroow bore D has the sweetest sound of any whistle and retails at about £70.
Finally, the Copeland - a real beezer of a whistle and unusalu in modern whisltes in that it is a conical bore. A bit dear at arouns $350USD but one that is on my wish list for later this year.
You can find masses of whistle reviews at dale Wisely's chiff and fipple site.
Be a real "traditional" player (hey, what does "traditional" mean, by the way--ha ha), and play a real tin whistle, a Clarke or a Shaw, sheet metal wrapped around a wooden fipple! And especially with the Clarke, you will find that you can afford two or three, for far less than the price of those other fancy whistles, so you have a backup when you squish one in the door of a cab or suffer some other catastrophe.
I once tried to persuade Sligo whistle virtuoso Carmel Gunning to know T. Dixon is a lovely one, but she said to me any single plastic one is a crap and Generation is the best. Well, I'll try again next time I see her.
I wonder that none has mentioned the venerable Chieftain Soprano ?
I bought one for my wife this past Christmas, and we were blown away at the difference(s) between it and the $10.00 models we've been playing. (good differences)
About High D whistles
About High D whistles
To you, what are the best of High D whistles? I play on a susato which i like but i think the sound is not so beautiful...
# Posted on May 1st 2006 by Mattaeus
Re: About High D whistles
Try a Tony Dixon whistle, or if your prepared to pay a little more try an Overton.
# Posted on May 1st 2006 by garyfitz123
Re: About High D whistles
Talking about whistle tone is like using a math calculator to paint a canvas. So take my words with a big grain of salt, and go listen to different whistles (in person if possible, and on recordings), and play a bunch of different whistles to find one you like.
Short of that....
Some people like a "pure" or "flutey" whistle tone--round and clean. Whistles I've played and liked that give this tone include Hoover, Dixon, Michael Burke, and O'Riordan.
Some people like a whistle with more "chiff"--a more complex or "dirty" tone. Whistles I've played and liked that give this tone include Generation, Clarke, a Walton's with a tweaked fipple, and John Sindt.
There are lots of other good makers out there, but I haven't played their whistles, so won't comment on their tone.
# Posted on May 1st 2006 by Will CPT
Re: About High D whistles
"To you, what are the best of High D whistles? I play on a susato which i like but i think the sound is not so beautiful..."
As a whistle player with a large collection of whistles, I find that it is not as much which whistle to use but how the player plays what they have, as being the first measure of importance. I have played my best whistle, well, not so great, and my least better than I thought possible.
The breathy quality of a "Generation" played by an expert supersedes the purity of the perfect whistle played poorly. I hope my point is well taken.
# Posted on May 1st 2006 by windybaer
Re: About High D whistles
What?!!?ever you want to be called, Cnat is different on almost every whistle and Flute. Although, a Dixon is a nice sweet sounding Whistle.
As someone who has played a lot of Whistles, I have a couple to reccomend:
First, the GFM if you like pure and sweet with abit of volume.
Second, Black Diamond if you like the traditional sound but the ability to play hard.
Third, Sweetheart if you want sweet and woody with lots of volume.
Fourth, Busman if you want complexity, the ability to lean into it, and lightning fast response the only downside is it would get lost in a large session.
If you can find them I would also reccomend Whistles by the late Glenn Shultz.
Those are my four High Ds, I have an Eb by Glenn Schultz.
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by Unseen122
Re: About High D whistles
I've got a fair whack of whistles (is that the correct collective noun?) and I have to say the two that you canNOT go past:
Generation, a classic (might seem boring to mention it but it is THE cheap whistle. you can't get anything near it for the price) - though you DO have to play a fair amount of them in the shop (something some shopkeepers aint happy about) to find a good one...
and the premier: Overton (both his and Goldie's). I love it, can't get enough. It rules. hands down, I could play it all night (and do)
If you like the slighty, er, um, woodier sound, Mick Grinter used to make great ones (i think he's stopped now alas) and now his more-than-able-bodied assistant Ben Stewart makes champion ones.
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by SirNose
Re: About High D whistles
Gary Humphrey (Tennessee, USA) makes some very nice whistles... well balanced, nice tone, not too expensive. They're like perfect Generations with a bit more volume.
http://webpages.charter.net/raindog1970/
-Brett
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by bretton
Re: About High D whistles
I love my Tony Dixon whistles, both the high and low D's. I have gone through a few other cheap high D's without being too impressed, including Generations (several) and Susato. On a whim, I picked up a Sweetone, sorta like buying a lottery ticket...and guess what? It's my favorite, hands down. And I have played the high priced ones, too, at stores.
Overall, I'd say it's a very personal thing, if you want to spend a lot of money, hopefully you'll get something that pleases you. But, I don't think it's a guarantee...you might just luck out like me, and find a perfect whistle for dirt cheap.
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by ketida
Re: About High D whistles
I love my Abell high D, though the C is even nicer, also my Sindt Eb is wonderfull. It has more traditional tone. But I think if you push the Abell you will have a fair measure of chiff. BTW I am waiting for a Sindt D/C-set.
Like every instrument I played before (clarinet and saxophone) I experienced that higher valued instruments definitely have their merits.
Not everyone is so lucky as to find a perfect Generation, whish I was.
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by brotherstorm
Believe it or not....
Susato is getting more and more popular in Ireland in these years. Old-fashioned flute players like Christy Barry of West Clare always use Susato in sessions or recordings. You can actually watch him playing it: http://www.custysmusic.com/mall/CustysTraditionalMusicShop/christy_barry_late_in_the_night.htm
A few years ago in Eniskillen, Co. Fermanagh, I saw a musician playing a crooked old brass generation whistle. I had the pleasure to meet him again in a session last month, and he was playing a Susato. It seemed he really loved it.
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by slainte
Re: About High D whistles
Burke's are my choice- the narrow bore especially
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by I_Fel
Re: About High D whistles
It really does depend on what you are looking for and how much you are prepared to pay.
Generations can be fine but you might have to search through a box of them to get one that's in tune and plays well. These are at the cheap end.
Susato are fine for loud sessions and can be quite sweet with the right diaphraghm control. I particularly lijke the Bb body as it gives a real warm rich sound.
My favourite session whistle is the Syn made by Erle Bartlett [You can get a set of 4 bodies and interchangeable head for about £40].
My Burke brass naroow bore D has the sweetest sound of any whistle and retails at about £70.
Finally, the Copeland - a real beezer of a whistle and unusalu in modern whisltes in that it is a conical bore. A bit dear at arouns $350USD but one that is on my wish list for later this year.
You can find masses of whistle reviews at dale Wisely's chiff and fipple site.
Good whistling
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by breandan
Re: About High D whistles
Be a real "traditional" player (hey, what does "traditional" mean, by the way--ha ha), and play a real tin whistle, a Clarke or a Shaw, sheet metal wrapped around a wooden fipple! And especially with the Clarke, you will find that you can afford two or three, for far less than the price of those other fancy whistles, so you have a backup when you squish one in the door of a cab or suffer some other catastrophe.
# Posted on May 2nd 2006 by AlBrown
Re: About High D whistles
I once tried to persuade Sligo whistle virtuoso Carmel Gunning to know T. Dixon is a lovely one, but she said to me any single plastic one is a crap and Generation is the best. Well, I'll try again next time I see her.
# Posted on May 3rd 2006 by slainte
Re: About High D whistles
I own Michael Burke whistles.....they are wonderful!
# Posted on May 9th 2006 by dfbird
Re: About High D whistles
I wonder that none has mentioned the venerable Chieftain Soprano ?
I bought one for my wife this past Christmas, and we were blown away at the difference(s) between it and the $10.00 models we've been playing. (good differences)
my most humble .02
# Posted on May 18th 2006 by celticpiping