Hello there. Glad you dropped in. I'm guessing you are curious
what this page is about. Maybe you've never heard of Irish Whistles
before, or maybe you have. Either way, hopefully you'll leave this
page a bit more informed than when you came. But before you read,
let me explain my why. I personally play a Low Whistle, and love it,
and think more people should know and love them too. So, now on to
the actual content.
The Irish Flute
Let us start off by talking about something that isn't an Irish Whistle
at all. The Irish Flute. Before you raise your eyebrow, let me explain.
The Irish Flute, very similar to the Irish Low Whistle, is oftentimes
mistaken for the Irish Low Whistle. Aside from the fact that you play the Irish
Flute sideways and the Irish Whistle straight up and down, I suppose that is
an understandable mistake. Here is a picture of the instrument in question.
Allow me to quote Wikipedia. 'Despite the implication of this commonly
used name, the Irish flute is not an instrument indigenous to Ireland.
The simple system, conical-bore flute is what people played before the
advent of the modern, Boehm system, Western concert flute in the mid-19th
century. Simple-system flutes are usually made of wood (cocus, grenadilla
(African blackwood), rosewood, ebony, etc.). There were several manufacturers
of this type of flute, among whom was English inventor and flautist Charles
Nicholson Jr, who developed a radically improved version of the transverse
wooden flute.'
If you wish for a more detailed, technical explanation of the instrument, I suggest
you go read the Wikipedia article. My sources will be listed at the bottom. Anyways,
so in sound the Irish Flute sounds pretty cool, like a smoother more controlled version
of an actual flute. Actually, after hearing the Irish Flute, I have a really hard time
listening to a normal flute because the ones I've heard sound so much more jerky and uncontrolled
than an Irish Flute does.
It also sounds very similar to an Irish Whistle, and as I mentioned earlier in this article,
very often the two are mistaken for each other by uninformed people.
The Tin Whistle
I know what you are thinking. First we talk about flutes, now what's this about tin whistles?
Well, tin whistles are important for this article because Low Whistles are a variation of
tin whistles, so we need to talk about tin whistles first.
Allow me to once again quote the learned Wikipedia(who knows more than I ever will).
'The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, flageolet, English flageolet, Scottish penny
whistle, tin flageolet, Irish whistle, Belfast Hornpipe, feadóg stáin (or simply feadóg) and
Clarke London Flageolet is a simple, six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a type of fipple flute,
putting it in the same class as the recorder, Native American flute, and other woodwind instruments
that meet such criteria. A tin whistle player is called a whistler. The tin whistle is closely
associated with Celtic and Australian folk music.'
Here is a picture of the small instrument.
So, tin whistles have a high, kind of piercing sound, depending on how you are playing it. Good for Celtic
folk music.
The Low Whistle
At last, here we are. The Low Whistle. Now, the Low Whistle is really an interesting kind of
instrument. With its deep, haunting sound, it's really unlike most wind instruments I've heard.
Naturally, it's perfect for Celtic music, and honestly I think once a person hears it, they
love it. At least, if that person is anything like me. Here is a picture of this facinating
instrument.
It might not look like much from the picture, but go look up videos of someone playing one. It's awesome.
Here is the obligatory quote from Wikipedia. 'The low whistle, or concert whistle, is a variation of the
traditional tin whistle/pennywhistle, distinguished by its lower pitch and larger size. It is most closely
associated with the performances of British and Irish artists such as Finbar Furey and his son Martin Furey,
Old Blind Dogs, Michael McGoldrick, Riverdance, Lunasa, Donie Keyes and Davy Spillane, and is increasingly
accepted as a feature of Celtic music. The low whistle is often used for the playing of airs and slow melodies
due to its haunting and delicate sound. However, it is also becoming used more often for the playing of jigs,
reels and hornpipes from the Irish, Scottish, Manx, Welsh and English traditions.'
End
Well, here we are. The end. Well that was short, I can see you saying. Sorry, there's only so much
one can say, or only so much you can quote from Wikipedia. At some point, some things require your own
investigation. It's true of the Low Whistle, and it's true of life in general. And with that bit of
sage advice, I leave you to go explore on your own. Happy whistling my friend.
