I play the Irish whistle.

I play the Irish whistle.

To my knowledge, I am not Irish – unless it is in the sense of being Heinz 57.  But I DO love the tin whistle.  I love to play the tin whistle and often play it in the car to and from work during my hour long drive  (don’t worry – I am not driving.  My husband is.). 

When I began playing the Irish whistle, I made a decision to learn this instrument more by ear than by written notes.  I first learned the scales, and then immediately began to play.  In general, if I know the tune well enough to sing it, I can play the song immediately on my whistle.  My husband is very encouraging – he is a patient, good man (most of the time!).

I own several (it comes with the territory).  Clarke (bright), set of Susato (very mellow), Feadóg, (bright, but not too bright),  Generation.  They each have their peculiarities (don’t we all!)    

Ok, so what is the Irish Whistle?

The Irish whistle (aka tin whistle, penny whistle, English Flageolet) is a six-hold woodwind instrument.  It is considered to be in the same category as a recorder or an American Indian flute.  It is often associated with Celtic music. It is frequently used in Praise Music and film soundtracks. 

The Irish whistle is a six hole, diatonic system.  It calls for very quick fingering and tongue action, and interesting breathing workarounds..  So far, I have not passed out.  My patient husband just encourages me – and never criticizes.  As I said, he is a good man!

The whistle is tuned diatonically, and each can play in two major keys, and their corresponding minor keys and modes. You identify which key it is by its lowest note (the tonic of the lowest major key).  I own C’s, D’s, and one Eb.  I am looking forward to one day buying a low D, also. (It is longer, and plays in lower keys.).  In general, a whistle plays in two octaves.  (if you have a song in more octaves, you will have a complication here.).

You play a D whistle in D and G major.  And so forth.  D  is the most common key used in playing tunes on the Irish whistle. 

To play the tin whistle it, you open and close the holes with your fingers (as you would imagine).  And to play the different octaves, you “breathe harder” or “softer” (increase or decrease air stream velocity)   It is hard for newbies to bridge the octaves, and to play the low notes.  Squeak, squeak!  Silence! Suck air!  Oops!

One reason I love the whistle is the Ornamentation.  I love the cuts, strikes, rolls and cranns. (Think coloratura soprano).  I tend to play in a legato style, mixed with embellishments.   I love airs the best.  (There are also jigs, double jigs, reels, etc).  I like the ornamentation because it is interesting to me.  I prefer embellishments in airs over sheer speed on the jigs and reels. (Even though jigs and reels do indeed have these embellishments, too).

I like the playing of Joanie Madden, although there are many good tinwhistlers.  Listen to her play! 

L.E. McCullough has some great written music and teaching tools.  Have at it!

Here is some info on embellishments. 

• Cuts - Cuts are very briefly lifting a finger above the note being sounded without interrupting airflow into the whistle.

• Strikes -Strikes or taps are similar to cuts except that a finger below the sounded note is briefly lowered to the whistle.

• Rolls -A roll is a note with first a cut and then a strike. There are two common types of roll.  The long roll is a group of three slurred notes of equal pitch and duration, the first sounded without a cut or strike, the second sounded with a cut, and the third sounded with a strike. The short roll is a group of two slurred notes of equal pitch and duration, the first sounded with a cut and the second sounded with a strike.

• Cranns - Cranns (or crans) are ornaments similar to rolls except that only cuts are used, not taps or strikes.

• Slides -Slides are a note below or above (usually below) the intended note is fingered, and then the fingering is gradually shifted in order to smoothly raise or lower the pitch to the intended note..

• Tonguing - Tonguing is a percussive action used sparingly as a means of emphasizing certain notes, such as the first note in a tune.

• Vibrato -Vibrato can be achieved on most notes by opening and closing one of the open holes, or by variation of breath pressure.

So, go pick it up and play!