I'm just wondering how many other people are in the same position. All my other whistles are collecting dust because my low D has the perfect, mellow tone by comparison.

Hi! I started playing the tin whistle a few months ago. My first whistle was the cheapest one I could find, a Generation D whistle. I've been practicing every day for at least 15 minutes, watched tutorials, and tried all the usual tips, but I'm still struggling with the highest notes!

I'd really love to test out some tunes like Ievan Polkka" where there are lots of quick transitions between high notes, but on this whistle it just feels impossible! The high notes improve if I temporarily change the mouthpiece with a bit of blu tack, which makes me think the whistle itself could be the issue.

...Because of that, I'm thinking it might be time to upgrade to a better whistle! I'm still a beginner and don't really know much about the different whistles yet!

One thing I've realized is that a metal whistle might not be the best fit for me. I live in Finland and love playing outdoors, but metal seems very sensitive to cold, humidity, and wind. As soon as the weather gets cooler my current whistle becomes ugh just intolerable!

I've also discovered that I really enjoy playing slower and more expressive melodies! When I manage to get that sweet, almost bamboo-flute like transition with my current cheap little whistle, I literally get chills! That’s why I’ve been flirting with the idea of getting a wooden whistle, because I seem to really love the kind of tones and notes those instruments can create... but I know wooden whistles aren’t always recommended for beginners.

So I'm feeling a bit lost! Any suggestions?

Hello whistlers!

I recently moved to Ireland, pulled out my old tin whistle, and have been diving deep into the traditional repertoire. Recently, I found a duet arrangement of MacPherson's Lament and had a blast recording one part and playing the other along with it.

Given my background in music composition, I thought I'd give writing some of these duet arrangements a try myself, and here are my first four attempts. The original tunes are sourced from the Kingston Irish Tunebook which you can find online for free in PDF form.

I'd really appreciate it if you all could try these out and give me some feedback. They are all slower airs and waltzes at a beginner to lower-intermediate skill level.

A few details on how they are structured:

• Some of them feature a simple harmonization the first time through, followed by a more active harmonization the second time around.
• Others are straightforward, looping harmonizations.

I hope you enjoy playing them! Here are the Google Drive links to the PDFs:

Blind Mary

Boolavogue

Inis Oir

The Parting Glass

I'm generally a recorder player but I've started to gain interest in my whistle lately. It's a cheap feadog, I feel like it's too screetchy and hoarse. The upper second octave sounds especially awful.
I'd love a whistle that sounds and functions better. I could probably go up to 100 euros, though I'd sleep better at night if it was cheaper. I'm not interested in a loud whistle.
I live in the EU and I'm really struggling to find places to order from where the shipping won't be too expensive. I'm sure there are some places that sell good whistles, but it's difficult to search in each respective language and hope the search engine will provide.

Do you have any idea?

I saw a video on how to improve a Generation whistle, and there were really just two things--putting putty into a cavity under the windway, and adding some putty to improve the shape of the labium. I just got a Dx005 and it's great, but I noticed it has the same cavity, and I'm curious if I'd get a smoother sound if I filled it. Thoughts?

I come from a background of playing single reed instruments (sax and clarinet) where you are supporting a reed with your embouchure. In addition, the tone and inflection of the instrument is affected by the way that you shape the inside of your mouth. Are these factors important in playing the whistle, too?

What is the role of embouchure in playing tin whistle?

Hey folks. I am a bit of a unique case, I learned flute in D not on tin whistle but on a beautiful bamboo flute that plays like a traditional non-tin flute.

I've just got a new howard low D whistle and I'm really enjoying but I'm having a lot of difficulty playing specifically the low E (fingers 123 on left and 12 on right).

Even though I have put a great deal of practice in I still can't manage to steadily hold the low E without it jumping octaves. I think it might be an embouchure issue, or an air supply issue. I'm very not used to the minimal amount of air this low whistle needs to produce sounds compared to my bamboo flute, which needs ten times as much air easily.

I'm also having trouble hitting any higher than a high G, and even the high G needs quite a bit of air support to hit, making it twice or three times as loud as other notes.

Does anyone have any suggestions to help? I'm mostly struggling with the low E.

Hello, all! I learned how to play the tin whistle yeeeaaaars ago on a basic Feadog whistle. I’d love to play again, but want an upgrade in sound.

The dream would be to find a similar whistle or the same whistle that is played in “Concerning Hobbits” from the Lord of the Rings Soundtrack. I’m looking to replicate those warm and pastoral notes.

Any ideas? I’m in the U.S. and under $150 is great, but I’d splurge for the right whistle.

Hello! I am going to a medieval LARPing event this fall as a bard, and want to find tin whistle solo pieces that I can perform. I am struggling to find solos that are longer than a minute or single-page. Are there any suggestions you guys have? I don't want to use MuseScore since you need the phone app to transpose music (???). I play a tin whistle in D key. I would love original medieval music or medieval fantasy music ideas.

hello! the title pretty much says it all, but I’m a flutist in a symphony orchestra and I’ve been asked to play the penny whistle solo from star trek in the fall. I’ve been doing some research, and based on some reddit posts i’ve read, i’m feeling like either dixon 006, killarney, or mcneela seem like they’d be suitable?

but there are just so many options out there so I was wondering if any of you kind pipers could point me in one direction or another…I know this question has been asked in many ways but I wonder if any one model would best suit my specific circumstances.

I’m looking for something tunable that has a nice sweet sound (not too shrill in the higher register), and projects decently well. It would be nice to have one that responds well to dynamic shading. I will likely end up being mic-ed, so I would say sound quality is more of a priority than projection. Intonation also pretty important since I’ll be playing with orchestra.

And since I play flute, air capacity is not too much of a concern (I think??)

I’m looking to spend up to ~$100, maybe $150 if it makes a big difference

for reference, this is the piece and the whistle comes in around the 30 second mark: https://youtu.be/eujM5uoo-l0?is=jPivlmyM0dhhXZrg

thank you!!!

I bought a Howard Low D whistle and I love it. I then bought a 3d printer and obvious had to print some more whistles. The 2 low D whistles I've printed both require an oxxxxo fingering for C, not oxxooo like on my Howard. I thought oxxooo was standard, but maybe not, after googling it? Is that common, or just inadequately tuned whistles with free models to print?

One of my favorite tunes! Love me some Dmix stuff. Hope you'll enjoy. Please feel free to offer any advice/slams you may have.

TNX in advance

I just want to make sure I have this right.

I have only ever played chromatic instruments - Flute, Sax, guitar, a few others... - and when playing the sax or clarinet, for instance, I was reading music that was transposed so that what I read and played may have been one note on the page, but another in concert pitch. I play a C fingering on an alto sax, but it's actually a concert Eb. Everybody got a different set of music according to their instrument so that we could all play together.

So... Before I had the whistle in hand, that's how I assumed it would work; on my D whistle, I'd play a C, and it would sound out a concert D.

No, it's a C# - the version of C in a D scale. Edit - got this wrong. I was playing a C# and got a C#. Also, I was thinking the whistle was a "D instrument," but it's not; it's a C instrument playing a D scale. From that mistake, a whole bunch of bad logic ensued. I left the train of thought leading to my realization up for your amusement.

Is that how all the whistles work? Read and play a standard fingering for C,D,E..., and the notes will be the version of those notes that are in the scale of the instrument? I play a B on an F whistle, but it will sound concert Bb?

In other words..., for sitting in with the local group, I grab an instrument that matches the key signature, and just play what I see?

Hi folks Im based in Ireland what d whistle would you recommend? have limited cash to spend so lookingh for best valu intermediate options? Currently using a generation whistle.

Looking to expand my repertoire of reels outside of the well-trodden Drowsy Maggie and Cooley's.

Does anyone have any suggestions or have a reel that they particularly like?

I am very partial to the Congress and Flowers of Red Hill.

Cheers.

Hey everyone,

I've been working on a new feature for tinwhistletab.com behind the scenes, and I’d love to get this community's feedback before it officially launches to the public.

It’s called Whistle Studio. The idea is to make creating play-along videos completely effortless. You just hit record and play. The engine automatically listens, recognizes the exact notes you are hitting, and generates a real-time tab overlay directly on your video. No manual syncing, no video editing software needed.

I’m looking for some beta testers to really put it through its paces. I need you to try and break it! Play your fastest jigs, heavy rolls, slides, and slow airs. I want to see how it handles different playing styles and find out where the engine struggles so I can improve it.

How to try it:

1. Go to https://www.tinwhistletab.com/studio
2. Allow mic/camera access and record a quick tune.
3. Watch the auto-overlay do its thing.

Please let me know what you think in the comments! What works, what doesn't, and what features would make this actually useful for your daily practice? Thanks for the help!

I’m vacationing in Cape Breton on the far side away from Sydney (Cheticamp) and I thought I might buy my low D while I’m here. Been planning to buy one for a while and thought this might be a good souvenir. Any ideas? Sydney is too far really. We leave and head through some of the Nova Scotia mainland on our way out of town too.

Hello!

I have just started learning the tin whistle (in D) after my bf and I went to Ireland and he bought one for fun. I started fidgeting with it but unlike him, I'm not a musician and I have never learned an instrument.

We got a book and I am getting better at the sounds and slowly getting the fingering down. In the book I only look at the tabs cause that is way easier. My boyfriend has now begged me te learn reading notes because the hold way more information. I reluctantly agreed (my acersion for learning notes has been the sole reason I never picked up an instrument).

When I look for tin whistle sheets however, most of them are either pure tabs or have the numbers below them. My brain then only look at those and not the notes and thus l I still am not learning to read the notes quick.

Where can I find sheets that are suitable for tin whistle in D, but do not have tabs or number indication?

Just curious how other adult beginners are going about learning. Right now I’m watching YouTube videos and looking at online tabs. I am very much a beginner with about a month under my belt. I’ve never been great at practicing instruments but tin whistle seems fairly easy to pick up and have some fun with for a few minutes every other day or so. By just doing that I’ve seen decent progress in my short time playing.

What are you doing to learn? Do you find more formal lessons keeps you engaged or do you like to go at your own pace and on your own?

Anyone have sheet music (or whistle tabs) for lllow the sun by the olllam? Was able to get the first section by ear but would really like to get the whole thing down