Forum Activity for @keith

A Susato advertised as a high 'D' on Ebay appears to actually be a 'B', looking at the photos - so at £23 (incl P&P), it's mine - I didn't have a 'B' whistle, but will have soon, methinks.

Yeah, I mainly play an 'A', low 'G', or low 'F' when practicing/playing, just occasionally bring out the big ones.

I guess it's time to dig out the Xmas tunes again....

I've gone & done it again, an MK Kelpie low 'F' came up for sale, it will be added to my ever growing collection of better quality whistles.

So now I think I need to thin out the collection, the question is, should I try selling the Gens/Faedog/Waltons, or just find a charity to give them to.

I think I favour giving them to those who may not have the resources to buy them for themselves, or where they could be used by multiple students to learn on. (Will have to see if I can find such.)

If I post in this thread my whistle aquisition won't look so bad.

I really wasn't intending to buy any more, although I would have liked another low 'F'.....

Guess what - an MK Kelpie low 'F' just came up for sale - now these are the bees knees when it comes to whistles - so I just had to add it to my collection.

It was priced at two thirds list price, is one year old, & has been hardly played, by someone who has a low 'D' Kelpie, which s/he prefers to play in their limited available playing time.

Came across this website, really useful, lots of mainly old folk tunes.

http://folkopedia.efdss.org/wiki/Music

Scarborough Fair & Greensleeves are my harmonica forum challenge this month, so I think I'll try to get Greensleeves onto my list, I know it's a bit passe, but I like it.

I think I've come to the conclusion that the thicker walled whistles give the best tone.

My standard 'beginner' whistles, (Generations/Walton/Feadog), are OK, but my traditional brass, & my aluminium whistles have much better tone, & I find the polymers have a kind of softer/warmer tone to them too.

TD Trad brass high D piccolo arrived this morning, it plays well, & isn't at all shrill sounding, in fact, it has quite a nice tone.

Playing simple system flutes, whistles, & piccolos isn't that hard to do actually, that's probably the reason I get on with them so well.

I still like to try new things out - if at the right price.

An opportunity to buy/try a Susato Eb at a reasonable price (£19) has come up , it has been lying around the dealers for a couple of years, evidently, so I ordered it, this will be my first Susato.

I also came across a brand new Tony Dixon TRAD brass high D piccolo, going fairly cheaply too, (including postage £18.19).

I do like to play & switch between them often, as it keeps my interest up - also my harmonicas, between chromatics & tremolos.

I do like this music hobby.

Good for you, Larry, I hope it works out OK, I used to like mine, it was just a bit too quiet for me.

Decided to try out a (cheap) bamboo Chinese Dizi - it arrived with some 'membrane' in a packet, no idea what it was meant for, but there seemed to be one too many holes, so I taped it up, & now I have a spare bamboo flute in 'F'.

I have been having a good time with my M&E 'F' flute this past 2 days, seemed to get the embouchure just right, on some easy tunes.

(Have also been playing my 'A' & low 'D' whistles.)

I have a feeling that may be due to the prevalence of wound strings on guitars, my ukes have fluorocarbon strings in the main - but I will also be trying it out on my steel string electric uke, with the effects that are on my amp.

Funnily enough, I've just bought a glass slide for my ukes, I'd been been meaning to get one for ages, (about a year actually).

Thought I'd try multi tracking a tune using 3 different whistles.

https://soundcloud.com/user-604445267/shall-we-gather-at-the-river-using-3-different-whistles

ShallWeGather3.mp3 - 896KB

Yes, & I have that now - after a bit of 'collecting'.

The other day, I just opened the drawer where I keep them, took one out, & just played it.......

....then another.....& another...... but stopped after the low D, low F, & A....

I'd likely use the high G, if my fingers didn't rub together on it - the high F is tiny, but fun to play.

Well, after a period of collecting whistles, , I tend to play my low Ds, low F, As, & high F the most.

I seem to have stopped buying them!

Just need to play them more now.

I actually had to use soap & water/dishwashing liquid to get my recently obtained aluminium whistle from an Ebay seller clean.

The fipple can be cleaned out using thin flexible plastic strip, cardboard strip, or a feather - then washed through with a soapy solution.

Hope that's a help to anyone else who finds themself with a 'dirty' whistle.

Having purchased a whistle on Ebay, (that was in a sticky, smelly, filthy state when it arrived), I needed to find out the right way to clean it - so I thought others may be interested in this video too.

{url}https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO-VoaTieDE{/url}

Yes, I think I like the aluminium whistles the most , there is just something in their tone .

Had a nice afternoon of playing my Howard low D, Shearwater low F, my Thunderbird A, my TD Trad A, & a quick burst on my TD Duo C whistle - then just for kicks, put the flute head back onto my TD ally A, & had a quick burst on that too.

Really enjoying my low keyed whistles, (& my flutes, when I get the embouchure right ;) ).

Becoming a little more fluent, I think - but still the memory for a tune eludes me, I still have to use the notes.

Make that four aluminium whistles, a Chieftain Thunderbird in 'A' has just joined my collection.

Congrats, looks nice - that's got an interesting sound/tone to it, is it chromatic, with drone strings? (Is it steel strings?)

I obviously used to blow mine too hard, & it was harsh sounding, but now that I'm slightly better at playing my whistles, it doesn't seem so harsh anymore, yet I still don't really like the high ones, except this one......it is somewhat strange.

So, it seems no one here does that then.

There are a few on C&F that also use a high F to tootle on in an odd moment, so I'm not alone in doing it.

Having acquired a fair few whistles in a short space of time, I have now collected together a very nice selection, from C down to a low D - however I still seem to grab up my Generation high F's when I just want to mess around, & I was just wondering if anyone else finds a high F an ideal fun whistle.

The low F is much easier to play than the low D, without losing too much at the bottom end sound wise, so I've decided to order a low F flute from M&E next week, (should get it before any BREXIT nonsense).

Can't see me needing anything else after that, other than maybe new glasses to read the music.

Had another go with my flute head on my Dixon Duo, it was much better this time, so it was just my unfamiliarity with it.

Thanks, Martha, I think so too - & they all sound really nice.

Here are my 'best' whistles.

From the top - Dixon Brass Trad 'A' - Dixon Aluminium tunable 'A'

Dixon Brass Trad 'G' - Howard tunable Brass low 'D' - Shearwater aluminium low 'F'

Dixon Aluminium tunable Duo in 'C' - with the flute head along side it.

 P1000615.JPG - 145KB

Well, so far this year, I have been playing my instruments more than last year, & also enjoying the practicing more too - perhaps because I'm getting better at playing them, (at least my tunes are more recognizable by others now ).

I wonder how long it will take me to learn another tune to be able to play it from memory........

With practice - I'm sure you'll work out the best way to play it, Larry, I couldn't even reach the bottom hole of my low D flute when I got it.

(You can always try playing it using your pinky.)

Played a tune from memory today......

(on all my new whistles, tremolo harmonica, & my keyless flute)

.......& it's only taken me 3 years to learn it. 

My Shearwater low 'F' just turned up this morning, (nice whistle).

So my main whistles are now my Tony Dixon aluminium Duo in 'C' - my  Tony Dixon aluminium (low) 'A' - & my Shearwater (aluminium) in low 'F' - with my Howard low 'D' (brass) as back up.

Now, I must go concentrate on my music reading & play them.

Yippee!

My (made to order) Shearwater low 'F' just arrived....... so after checking it over, & warming it up..... I gave it a blow.......

It's comfortable to hold, has a lovely tone, & a fairly easy second octave - I'd say it is well worth the money.

It's more breathy than my high 'D'  ABS piccolo & my delrin low 'D' flute, but may just be down to my technique with it.

Early days....