What is The Best Tin Whistle, For a Beginner?

I've been asked this question a few times.Here are some inexpensive whistles that I have. I hope it helps.
There are lots more available This post is just the ones in my collection.

[@MrCatwalkonramp]

Great video. Please don't stop. I wish to see your channel grow

[@Reeldin58]

Hi MrCatwalkonramp, thanks for stopping by. I am still going. I post at least one tune every week, sometimes more. These days I make multitrack recordings so I don't actually appear in the videos, but I like the sound quality I can achieve by recording with software called "Audicity". I don't think my channel is ever going to be big, I do it just for fun and hopefully a few people watch and enjoy the tunes. I play a few different instruments so this way I can include more of them.

[@rosemonarch4749]

Thank you very much for this, very helpful. 😊

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Ophelia, thanks for leaving a comment. I'm glad this helped a little bit.

[@bhgardeners]

Whether you are a beginner or have more ability, splash out and purchase a Killarney BRASS D whistle. probably around £80.0 with postage. Good heavens you might say i could buy 10 whistles for that! The difference is that the Killarney is easy to play, less breath required on all octaves it sounds just perfect, it will take you from beginner to session player, it is only surpassed by whistles costing 2 or three times the money paid and if you need one of those then you will indeed have totally mastered the instrument. To put it into simple perspective, when i played my Walton whistle, my wife would leave the room, it was too screechy when I play the Killarney, she actually sits and listens. PS. The brass not the silvered version which might be slippery to hold. Ps forget the adverts for the Wild whistle which is made in China.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Brian, I do agree with you about the Killarney whistle. I had been playing for a year when I got one for myself. I went for the nickel version. I based that choice on the fact that out of all the cheap whistles I had at the time I liked the slightly brighter sound of the nickel ones as apposed to brass. The choice between brass and nickel will always be very subjective and in the end boils down to individual taste. The idea behind this video was to show people that you don't need to spend a lot of money to get started on the journey of learning to play the whistle.. Just to show what is available at the budget end of the market. My Waltons whistle was retired very quickly. During my first few months my Clarke Celtic was always the go to whistle. I then got hold of a Tony Dixon trad nickel whistle in D that I picked up most of the time until I got the Killarney. Almost five years on I still play my Killarney very often. But I have a taste for vintage Generation whistles that were made prior to their changing the moulding process in 1983. You can identify them by a line that runs up the mouthpiece. I have quite a few of them now in brass and nickel in all the available keys apart from the high G which is just too small to fit my fingers on. I've just posted a couple of tunes where I collaborated with an excellent harp player from America known on KZbin as Ladyandaharp. If you check out either of the posts I played with her you will hear an old Generation F whistle that I payed 99p for from Ebay. I will always maintain that you don't need to spend a lot of money to make music.

[@fatheroblivion45]

Hi Rod. Great video matey. I was a recorder player before taking up the whistle. I learned the basics on a vintage Clarke's original C whistle that belonged to my grandfather. I then bought a Clarke's Celtic D and was pleasantly surprised at how little breath was required to play it compared to the Clarke's original. I personally prefer whistles that don't take a lot of breath to play, probably because I was previously used to playing recorder. I adore the Dixon polymer whistles and own a complete set of them. To sum up, I'd say that taking into account whether you want a soft or hard blow whistle definitely plays a big part in my choice. The one big advantage in a medium / hard blow whistle that I can see is that the bell note is often clearer and easier to sustain ( without wavering ) than on a soft blow whistle. P.S. I noticed you'd uploaded a new video today when I came online to upload my video today and imagine my surprise to hear you playing an excerpt from "The Blackthorn Stick". Two great minds eh? :) All the best, Jim

[@Reeldin58]

I agree with you about a soft blow whistle. I've got a Susato and with that one you have to blow so hard you would probably pass out if the tune was too long. The point I was trying to make with this post without sounding like an advert is when I started playing I bought a few cheap whistles but would have done much better to go strait to the Dixon Polymer. When I first started searching for whistle posts at the end of 2015 I found the one of you playing three waltzes on your Grandfather's Clarke whistle, it was one of the things that inspired me to have a go.

[@j.p.9522]

Great recommendations!

[@gk411]

Nice vlog thanks alot 😎 looking forward to playing the whistle. ✌

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Glenn, I'm glad this was a little help.I'm pleased you are going to start playing the whistle, you'll be surprised just how quickly you can pick it up with a little practice.

[@karenringer5995]

Thank you for the advice . I have 2 diffrent makes of whistles . Just love learning 🎉

[@Reeldin58]

Hi karenringer, sorry I'm a bit late replying I only just saw your comment. Be careful now you have more than one whistle you could get W.A.S (whistle acquisition syndrome) there is no cure for it and before you know it you will have dozens of whistles :) Learning to play the whistle is a wonderful journey, enjoy it and have fun.

[@Ian...]

Good advice Rod, I bought so many D whistles in my early days looking for the perfect whistle, slowly I began to realise that I was the problem and not the whistle, each whistle plays differently but most sound good once you have mastered their playing characteristics , but there is no denying that you get what you pay for, and paying that bit extra does make a difference, even for the beginner in my opinion.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Ian,I was just the same when I first started I bought a lot of D whistles because I thought everybody else sounded better than me so it must be the whistle(not my playing). When I got the Clarke Celtic D I liked that one so I bought the whole set of Generations instead and most of them still sit in my whistle case and never get touched. The whistle that changed things for me was my Tony Dixon Nickel D that I found on ebay for £7.50 that is still one of my favourites. Even now I still hear a whistle on youtube sometimes and think "I must have one" If you hadn't bought a Killarney then I probably wouldn't have either. It was the same when I heard Jim Anon play a Tony Dixon G. I suppose it's the nature of whistle playing that you can't have just one because you will always want them in different keys and that starts you off on building a collection. I still go to car boot sales hoping to find a vintage Generation, maybe one day one will turn up.

[@sapphirelewis1389]

Ian White You are right but I do think that some Generations whistles are scratchy and shrill in the higher notes. I have not found a bad bflat though; just the D whistles. Even most of the C whistles are good. I have recently found out that Generation have improved their whistles by re-working them starting with the bflat so maybe that explains why they are good? I love Tony Dixons and Dave Shaw. Sweetones are lovely as well. Are the Killarney whistles worth it? I still can't decide whether to get one.

[@user-mn6li2yv4d]

Thanks 🙏

[@mikkibates7854]

We've enjoyed the "Clarke SBCD Pennywhistle in D" It has a wooden fipple. It isn't quite as bright (or piercing) in the upper tones, so it wouldn't be the best sound for a drum and fife parade. On the other hands, it has saved a lot of mothers' ears when their 5 - 8 year old children began. It is rather hard to make a screechy noise. My son and I really enjoy playing this one together. It cost about $18, so it costs a little more. Since we are string players, we found it well worth the extra cost. Thank you for the introduction! Now I am curious about the Tony Dixon. (When we were in London, we also found some plastic tuneable Glenluce whistles. (Michael RS, thank you for reminding us that the name of that delightful shop was Hobgoblin!) We picked up a could of them in D and C. I think you've inspired us to start playing a little again. We don't have to do so in our usual class this year.

[@Reeldin58]

I think the Glenluce whistles are very similar to the Recorder Workshop ones, so I think you'll have a couple of nice whistles there. I'm a big fan of Tony Dixon whistles, I think they are one of the best affordable whistles on the market so well worth checking out. I have five of them in different keys, two D's an Eb, alto G and A. In the end though it's all down to personal preference. I'm pleased you are inspired to to play a little, it would be nice to hear you on youtube soon.

[@WoodwindSpirit]

very interesting, thank you. :)

[@Michajeru]

Of the whistles that you demonstrated I rather liked most the tone of the Clarke Celtic. I also have one and I am thinking of getting a Tony Dixon but sometimes I think the plastic whistles sound a bit like a recorder. I might give a Dixon brass whistle a try.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Michajeru, I really like the Clarke Celtic whistle, it's probably the one that really got me started. The Dixon brass whistles are fantastic, I have an Eb and and A and really like them both. I also have a Dixon Trad. Nickel D and that is one of my favourites. As you can probably tell I do have a bad case of W.A.S (Whistle Acquisition Syndrome) I'm always looking on ebay and if ever I see a bargain it gets very hard to resist. I got an old Generation D from ebay a few weeks ago and that is really good. The ones made before 1983 are very different from what we get today, you can tell them by a line that runs through the fipple, when the manufacturing process was changed the line was no longer there. The old "Gennys" have a lovely traditional sound, if ever you come across one at a bargain price snap it up (Trust me on this one). I did find another one a couple of days ago, it looks a little tatty but I got it for just £1 so we'll see what turns up. I've just recorded something with the old "Genny" it should be up on YT soon.

[@user-wu7ug4ly3v]

For a beginner I’d recommend a Becker Whistle. They play almost as well as my oz whistles and o’riordan whistles and are super cheap.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi D, it looks like you have some fantastic whistles in your collection. I've heard lots of really good things about Becker whistles but I've never tried one for myself. For this post I just wanted to stick to what was available at the time here in the UK that you could easily find on Amazon or Ebay for a few pounds. It was four years ago when I posted this one.

[@user-wu7ug4ly3v]

@@Reeldin58 - I enjoyed your review. I actually agree with your choices. I started out with the whistles you did. However, as someone suffering form whistle acquisition disorder, I just wanted to remind people of the Becker whistle. It really plays like a high end whistle for the price of a cheap whistle. II live in Australia and he posted them here for a fair price. I have several high end whistles that don’t come close to Becker. It think he easily beats, for example Burke, Abell, Milligan, for playability or sound quality or tuning. He makes them in different keys and all of them are great (except perhaps for the low D, but even that is great for the price). Bottom line, I wish I had gotten a Burke whistle before some of my other cheap whistles. If I had, I probably wouldn’t have so many whistles, LOL. Don’t get me wrong, I would still buy almost all my other high end whistles but I would have never bought my generations, or Waltons if I’d had a Becker set. I would probably still want a Clark’s whistle though (including the “original”).

[@Reeldin58]

@@user-wu7ug4ly3v Hi D, maybe I'm about to put "The Cat Among the Pidgeons" but have you ever tried a Generation whistle made before 1983? Generation started making whistles in 1966 and from that time on and right through the 70s up until the early 80s if you see old footage of bands like The Dubliners from that era then it's always a Generation whistle. When Jerry Freeman put his "Tweaked" Generations on the market trying to recreate the sound of those old whistles I decided to search through Ebay regularly and see if I could find the real thing. It took me almost three years to collect a full set, apart from the high G ones that I didn't bother with because for me they are just too small for my hands. I have all the other keys now, most of them in brass and nickel too apart from a C where I do have two of them but both brass. They are fantastic whistles, far superior to the Generation whistles we can buy today. To my ears they have the traditional sound of how a tin whistle should be. Here in the UK they still crop up now and again because back then they were so readily available in every music store lots of people bought them and just put them away in the back of a drawer when they lost interest. Maybe in your part of the world there may not be so many around. You can tell the old ones by a line that runs up through the middle of the mouthpiece. When they changed their manufacturing process in 1983 the mouthpiece became smooth. If you are ever on Ebay and see a Generation Whistle with the line, then snap it up, you might well get a very pleasant surprise.

[@darkgael0]

Yes. Good advice. Just saw this video...months after it was published and comments made. I was reminded - despite my addiction to buying whistles of all types - that the basic and often inexpensive Soprano D is the best choice for starters (and, maybe for enders). My teacher of many years, the late great Bill Ochs, played a ten dollar Acorn all the years that I knew him. He needed nothing else to perform.

[@Reeldin58]

There's an old saying, "The best players seem to have the best sounding whistles". I think the fact that whistles are relatively inexpensive makes us all keep buying "Just one more" A little over a year ago I was lucky enough to find an old nickel Generation D whistle on Ebay that was made before the fipple design was changed back in the 80's. It was mine for just £1. This has now become my "Go To" D whistle, and I haven't been tempted to another one since. It's all about finding the instrument that suits us best. What a wonderful thing to be taught by Bill Ochs

[@darkgael0]

Reeldin: Bill was a treasure, no doubt. I miss him. Anecdote: some years ago, in my craze to acquire the “Best” whistle, i had purchased a Kerrywhistles’ Chieftain Thunderbird D. I took it to Bill at our next lesson in his shotgun apartment on W.46th street. It is a loud instrument. How loud? He took it from me and played a few bars of a tune.....”well”, he said, “That is a lease breaker”. It was the only time I brought that one along. R

[@Reeldin58]

@@darkgael0 Hi Pete, what would be your D whistle of choice if you had to pick just one? Please consider your neighbours before you answer. PS my name is Rod.

[@darkgael0]

Rod: one whistle to pack along ? Usually it is a Ralph Sweet D. I also am fond of a Michael Burke brass narrow bore. Often I pack both

[@Reeldin58]

@@darkgael0 I've never had the pleasure of playing either of those. In fact the Ralph Sweet D is a new name to me. If I chose just one it would have to be an old Generation whistle, But the Killarney D whistle is one I could never part with.

[@whynottalklikeapirat]

HEy man, I bought the celtic on your recommendation, and because my first whistle was another clarke "the meg". Apperently that's supposed to be the cheap option but I kinda liked the clarity of it. Anyway - I received 2 celtic whistles in the mail today, because amazon made a mistake and one got lost in mail, they sent another and then both arrived on the same day after all - and I really like them. There is a bit more substance to the tone than the meg and they play a little easier. I think they are just a pretty version of the Clarke Sweetone, but anyway - if it wasn't for your video I would not have known of their existence so thanks. Now having two I think one sounds a little breathier and less loud than the other but both tones are nice

[@Reeldin58]

That's a bonus getting two . I've never tried a Sweetone, but I think your'e right the difference is the paint job. If you haven't done it already check out a channel called "Fiddling with my whistle" he posts about three tunes every week with the whistle tab up on screen, it's a bit like karaoke for whistle tunes and is a great channel. I left him a comment once saying how about a whistle version of "Smoke on the Water" I was just joking but a couple of weeks later there it was. I'm glad you like the "Celtic" get back to me soon and let me know how it's going.

[@whynottalklikeapirat]

@@Reeldin58 I will check it out. I am really a guitarist so the "smoke on the water" thing is extra funny I guess. I've heard a mock version played badly on a recorder once but that's about it xD Anyway the tin whistle thing came about just this summer - I went to the arctic part of northern Norway, hiking and spearfishing for a month, and I decided to bring a tin whistle as the only object of entertainment. I had never played a wind instrument before but I remember randomly crafting a flute from a piece of bamboo as a kid which sort of worked, because I found the idea of playing the whistle in nature was romantic. I guess I got derailed but 30+ years later here I am and really digging it. What goes around comes around I guess ...

[@Reeldin58]

@@whynottalklikeapirat Guitar is my first instrument too. I started playing as a young kid, and even had a spell playing guitar for a living. The whistle thing started at Christmas 2015 when my wife bought me one as a surprise. Last Christmas she got me a harmonica and I'm having fun with that as well.

[@whynottalklikeapirat]

@@Reeldin58 Haha - well that's kinda funny, because I have a harmonica sitting in my basement right now that someone wanted to throw away and that I really want get into playing. Problem is I live in a flat situation, and I am pretty sure I am already pushing it with the tin whistle in terms of my neighbours. Some day. A friend of mine who is a choreographer bought a hurdy-gurdy for one of his performances. That's sitting in HIS basement, and I'd really love to get at chance to play around with that as well. I wish life was longer really.

[@sapphirelewis1389]

This is a brilliant idea for a video. It is a shame about the background noise of the fan. It is lovely to hear the comparison of the different whistles. It is a very useful video: thankyou Rod! 🍻

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Sapphire, I thought there are loads of posts for high end whistles but not so many for the beginner, so as I have loads of them (early W.A.S.) I'd have a go.

[@sapphirelewis1389]

Reeldin 58 I am glad you did. You have a friendly manner and are very pleasant to listen to as well. I like the Clarke sweetones as well: they are a great whistle for a beginner as they are so easy to play and not too shrill at all. As you know; I share your love for Tony Dixon's whistles. I have tried loads out at music shops and I have never found a bad sounding one. I have part-exchanged all my whistles in order to buy other instruments and have just got a Dixon tunable polymer in D and a Dave Shaw G whistle. Can you believe that? Just down to two whistles and (sadly no mandolins since buying the harp) I am making a bit more progress now that I am restricted to less instruments. I can always buy a cheap mandolin later but I am keeping the harp as it is so lovely. I am going to post a fun video showing you what the harp looks like (as you expressed an interest)

[@sapphirelewis1389]

Rod: would you do a comparison of your bflat, G, A and low D whistles sometime as well please? I love this video; you could do a mini series! This is what us beginner/hobbyist whistlers need more of.

[@Reeldin58]

Yes I could do that soon. I don't have an A whistle but I'll let you know when my birthday gets close.

[@sapphirelewis1389]

Reeldin 58 😅

[@ruthgraham4313]

noice, and don't forget Johns in Perth

[@LupinosLionheart]

The Waltons is also my first whistle. Now I ordered a Clarke Original in D, since I have read that it needs more air and my worst problem is air control. Hopefully I can handle it a bit better than the Waltons.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Lupinos Lionheart, sorry I'm late replying to your comment. I hope you are doing well with your Clarke Original.

[@cpcnw]

Bought a Lark D which looks very similar to Recorder Workshop. Have trouble getting 2nd octave correctly because its so fussy over just the right pressure, to the point where by I either go into one above or stay low! Find it quite frustrating but then again I havent really persevered with it. The second whistle I bought thinking the Lark was a bit of a toy was the Clark Sweetone. Whilst I have no issue getting into the 2nd octave it does sound a little raspy to me ear - and kind of cheap, which I guess it was. Plus the end of mine is somewhat oval-ed which I don't think it should be. I am thinking that I may go for a Tony Dixon DXTRAD and see how I get on with that. They are cheaper on eBay from 1to1Music than on Amazon. Forgot to mention, years ago I had a Feadog but didnt play it much however from memory it had quite a nice tone and not to hard for a beginner.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi cpcnw, I'm not familiar with the Lark whistle but I would imagine it's pretty much the same as the Recorder Workshop. It does need a bit of a push to get the second octave, but if you stick with it a while you will get it. I'm not sure what you mean when you say oval-ed on the Sweetone. Those whistles are "Conical" so they are thinner at the bell note end. If that's not it maybe you got a damaged one sent to you. I'm a big fan of Tony Dixon whistles so I think that would be a great choice. I got a DXTRAD after about 6 months of playing and that whistle was a big step up from the cheap ones I had been playing. How long have you been playing? when I first started I bought loads of whistles because I could never sound like other players I watched here on YT. Now when I pick up those whistles they seem to play a lot better than I thought they did at the start. It's just a case of having a play every day and getting used to the instrument. Learning to play any instrument is a wonderful journey to take, it can be very rewarding, but most of all it should be fun, so try not to get frustrated. I'm now going through the same thing with harmonicas. My wife bought me one for Christmas and everybody else seems to play better than I do. I've done a few posts and it does get better. Let me know how things go.

[@michaelrs8010]

Greetings from Andy (pictured) and I in Orange County California. I have a quick question for you. First, I really enjoyed your video comparison. Mostly because the tune you played was enough to give a sample of the sound quality but not too long. Some other videos I've seen like this go on so long on any given whistle that you forget what the previous whistle or whistles sounded like. It's almost like the demonstrator is showcasing their playing ability as opposed to the whistle qualities. But now the question. Can you expand a little bit more on the qualities of the Dixon? Does it take more or less breath compared to other whistles; is it easy to overblow; is switching between octaves smooth; or whatever else you think of that is notable. The reason I ask is I can't seem to find any around here to order from in the states and it looks like I'm going to have to order from Hobgoblin music there in the UK. With shipping that's would to cost me $37 / £29. But if it's as good of a whistle out of box for the price that you say, then that would save me from having to spend another $20 for a Jerry Freeman tweaked Feadog (See link below. And if you've never heard of him you can Google Jerry Freeman tin whistles on KZbin). Thanks in advance for your help. I'm sure it will also help others to know what I've asked. Link www.thewhistleshop.com/catalog/whistles/inexpensive/Waltons/mellow_dog/dog.html

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Michael RS, thanks for getting in touch, When I posted this I was aiming it at a person who has never played a whistle and was maybe thinking about giving it a try, would you fall in to that category?. One of the most common mistakes people make when choosing their first whistle is to buy something really inexpensive thinking "It will be good enough to get me started" then in reality the whistle does not sound all that great and you get discouraged because everybody else seems to sound better. Achieving a good sound of course is in no small way down to the player, it does take a little while to get used to the breath requirements for what ever whistle you decide to get. I'm a great fan of Tony Dixon whistles in my opinion they are one of the best affordable whistles on the market. I've heard great things about the Gerry Freeman "Tweaked" whistles, but as yet I've never had the pleasure to try one. I've just had a look at Amazon.com and Tony Dixon whistles are available there so that may be worth a browse. They do have the Tony Dixon traditional D whistle available in both brass or nickel for $32.95. The polymer whistle I played in the video is a great beginer's whistle, it doesn't take a big push to reach the second octave but does require enough breath to be able to control it without overblowing easily. I would say that switching between octaves is smooth, but like I said this is down to the player in part. I would say this is true of all the Dixon whistles that I own (5 at the moment in various keys) I suggested the Polymer D whistle because that is the most inexpensive whistle in the Dixon range, however if your budget would stretch to $30+ then the Dixon Traditional D would be the one I would recommend. I,ve done a few posts with mine check out,"El Condor Pasa" I did that when I had only been playing a few months , so it may give you an idea what they are like in the hands of an inexperienced player if you put in a little practice. It would probably be a good idea to put "Tony Dixon Whistle" into the KZbin search bar and see what comes up, you should then get to hear a few different players using them and get a really good idea of what they sound like. There are lots of "Quality" whistles available so in the end it really is down to the preference of the individual. There's an old saying that is very true when it comes to whistles "Good players always have the best sounding whistles" One final warning!!! Whistles can be very addictive. I don't know any whistle players who own just one. I bought two just this week, and hopefully will get at least one more for Christmas. Funnily enough I've been dropping a lot of hints to my family about a Tony Dixon Trad. in the key of E.. Please let me know if this helps and which whistle you decide to go for. P.S my name is Rod.

[@michaelrs8010]

@@Reeldin58 hi Rod. Thanks for getting back. I would describe myself as a on again off again Lower intermediate level player. I'm pretty fair at slow simple tunes (Amazing Grace: Danny Boy, when Irish eyes are smiling, the Skye Boat songb, Scarborough Fair and so forth) but you're not going to get a decent jig out of me anytime soon. So right now I'm really trying to stay under $50 / £39. And I understand about having a lot of whistles. I too suffered at one time from W. A. S.( whistle acquisition syndrome) . But over the years I divested myself a most of all my inexpensive stuff two others I thought might like the hoppy and now I'm only left with a Sweetone; an original Clarke and a Susato Dublin ( which I hear they stopped making in favor of just the tunable version) all in D. And of those the Susato is easiest for me to play regarding breath control and moving between octaves and such. the sweetone I'm always over blowing and my Clarke falls in the middle in there somewhere. I should not say that I'm always overblowing the sweet tone, it's just that it's the one that I find I'm more prone over blow than the others So basically I'm just looking for a top-of-the-line inexpensive one, if that's not too much of a contradiction in terms. tell you if you have any further thoughts along those lines I'd appreciate your opinion. Oh BTW, what do you think of the voff the rack" Feadogs?

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Michael, By the look of things you already have a top of the line inexpensive whistle. I have only tried one Susato whistle and to be honest it's not really to my taste because of the amount of breath it requires, having said that it does sound great. I do have a Clarke Celtic D as you saw in this post, which is more or less a Sweetone with a different paint job. The Clarke requires very little breath so that's probably the reason for the overblowing now and again if a Susato suits your playing style. The last thing I'd want to do is recommend a whistle that would not be the one for you, For me a Tony Dixon is great but again they could well be something you may end up overblowing a little because they defiantly don't need as much breath as a Susato.(at least not the Susato I have, mine's an Oriole). If your Susato suits you I would stick with it for a while, to beat it you are probably looking into the more "High End" whistles which is something I really don't know a lot about. There is a friend of mine called "Ian White" here on KZbin you could find his channel by clicking on his name in the comments section for a lot of my posts.There is a comment from him on this post. He has a great collection of quality whistles and is a really nice guy so I know he could offer you better advice than me. His collection includes Gerry Freeman, Parks, and some really high end hand made whistles plus some he has built himself. I think he has a Feadog or two as well . I'll drop him an email and tell him to look out for you in his comments section. I know he'll be pleased to help. Let me know how things go and what if any you decide to go for.

[@michaelrs8010]

@@Reeldin58 thanks very much Ron. So far, and that subject to change with each bit of information I get, the plan is to order that basic Dixon, the 001 model, and see how I like it. I may then go to the Jerry Freeman "Mellow Dog" as so many people talk it up. Or maybe I will like that Dixon so well that I will figure that the next higher up or so has to be even better and so i'll drop some more money on another one of those. So far here in the states I found a place that is reasonably priced for the Dixon; Hobgoblin USA. I'm guessing since they through USA after the name it's associated with the more known stores of that name in the UK. Or maybe they're just doing it to differentiate, I don't know. Anyway, what makes it affordable is that they don't kill you out the shipping with domestic orders. So the total cost would be $23 / £18 for that 001. Still, I did find Ian's site and if I glean any additional information from it tomorrow there may be a new plan. Thank you for the guidance and benefit of your experience.

[@dimaspaulo3066]

Good vídeo. Y register You Channel. Good lock.

[@usernamemykel]

I have a John Sindt high "D" brass whistle. Would you happen to know how it compares to a John Dixon high "D" brass whistle? Thanks!

[@Reeldin58]

Sorry to be a bit late replying, only just found your comment. I've never played a Sindt whistle so I can't really comment on how it would compare with another whistle. Just to say that the John Sindt whistles are world class and very hard to get hold of these days, so hang on to it, you have a gem of an instrument.

[@usernamemykel]

Reeldin 58 Only paid $60 + $3 shipping in 1999!

[@exwhyz33]

Great review. Please update your video to 2023

[@Reeldin58]

Sorry I'm late replying this is quite an old post and I only just found your comment. I don't really do whistle reviews I just did this after a being asked by a few people to show the whistles that I first started with. Since then I've been buying some old Generation whistles that I found mainly on ebay. It took me a year or two to finally get the whole set of them so there's not much point in reviewing whistles that are not readily available. I'm sure you already know about her channel but if not check out "cutiepie" she does fantastic no nonsense reviews.

[@wadefite]

The Skellig from Amazon is not bad . It is about £10. tuneable easy to play made of PVC.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi wadefite, I had a look on Amazon. The Skellig whistle does look very similar to the Recorder Workshop and Ferris whistles. I think you'll have a very nice instrument there. I hope you are enjoying it. There are so many whistles to choose from these days it's nice to find one you like.

[@T.J]

I’ve got the same Walton’s :)

[@Reeldin58]

Hi TJ is the Waltons your only whistle or do you have others too? I was always buying whistles, about a year and a half ago I was lucky enough to find a couple of pre 1983 Generation whistles on ebay You can tell them by a line that runs up the mouthpiece. The line was no longer there when they changed their manufacturing process. I figured that when we see old footage of players from the 60s and 70s nearly all of them played Generation whistles so it might be a good idea to try and find a "Genny"from that time. They are wonderful and I haven't been tempted to buy any more whistles since I got them. Most of my recent whistle posts are played on the old "Gennys"

[@T.J]

Reeldin 58 interesting ok ! Yes the walton’s is the only one I have. I was watching the video to see if it was worth trying to find something a bit better. You are right that on old videos, the chieftains for example seem to be playing generation whistles or what looks like them ! But do you find the old generations are better than more recent ones ? I’ve never tried anything else than the Walton’s...

[@Reeldin58]

@@T.J Hi TJ sorry to be late (about a year!!!!) answering your question. Yes I find the old Generation whistles are much better than the recent ones. I first started searching for them when I came accross Gerry Freeman whistles. I figured if he was tweaking the new ones to sound the way Generation whistles used to be, then why not look around for the real thing. You can tell the old ones by a line that runs up the mouthpice which is a mark of how they used to be molded. I'm not saying they are the best whistles you'll ever find, but if you like the more traditional sound and don't want to go to the cost of what a lot of the high end whistles are these days, then it's well worth watching ebay and seeing if anything comes up.

[@T.J]

@@Reeldin58 Since my last comment I bought a new generation and indeed it is not that good. Thanks for the tip about how to recognize an old one :)

[@Reeldin58]

@@T.J Hi TJ, (I'm a bit quicker this time) here's a link to a post from about 18 months ago. You can clearly see the line on the mouth piece. I got the whistle for 99p from ebay. It's tarnished and dented but a joy to play. kzbin.info/www/bejne/hnqqo4eVn9x8hKs

[@tsmith235]

What's the name of the song your playing.?

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Tom. it's an Irish tune called "The Blackthorn Stick"

[@doublebowedpsaltery]

What is the name of the song you demonstrate?

[@Reeldin58]

The tune is called "The Blackthorn Stick" I hope this post was helpful

[@doublebowedpsaltery]

Thank you so much!

[@pnickel3059]

Is it necessary to tune a tin whistle? If yes, when would we tune it, and why would we have to tune it?

[@Reeldin58]

It's not necessary to tune a whistle if you're playing unaccompanied, or with just percussion, but if you have other instruments around you then it is useful to be able to tune your whistle if you need to adjust it slightly to be in tune with them. In my experience most whistles are pretty much in tune anyway. The temperature can effect the tuning sometimes so warm it up a bit before you play. The easiest way is to cover the fipple and blow for a few seconds or even put it up your sleave for a minute.

[@annadisabato6843]

Chiaro ed esauriente

[@Reeldin58]

Ciao Anna, ora sai come suona anche la mia voce :)

[@annadisabato6843]

@@Reeldin58 😀😀😀

[@Joy_of_Music_Kate]

You know, I used yo have a s simple models - feadog and Clarke, and it was hard to do a good sound with them, it was frustrating me a little, si I think it's better to have a good model, though here it's never sold

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Ekaterina, I was concentrating on the more affordable models here that someone who'd never played before might choose as their first whistle. If you ever thought of getting another whistle I think the Tony Dixon models are fantastic for the price. But something like a Killarney that costs quite a bit more is just out of this world.

[@michaelrs8010]

I just got the basic Dixon high D whistle DX001 on Dec. 7, 2018. And gave it a review on the Chiff and Fipple forums. forums.chiffandfipple.com/search.php?keywords=Review+Dixon+High+D&terms=all&author=&fid%5B%5D=1&sc=1&sf=all&sk=t&sd=d&sr=posts&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search Bottom line for me is, while somebody else would have to evaluate its more advanced playing capabilities, under the heading of "it is what it is", I like it and *rcommend it 👍 I just think it could be a little thicker. *And that recommendation certainly is not the last word in starter whistles. Just saying I don't think one could go wrong in picking it.

[@MissionSilo]

Its not the best im looking for. Its the most ok I can start with.

[@Reeldin58]

Hi Jules, the best whistle is the one that you most like playing. It doesn't matter how much or how little it costs or what make it is, if it suits you then you have the one that's best for you. I would recommend to anyone who's just starting out the Tony Dixon plastic whistle that I played at the end of the video. The model number is DX001D. That one is a great whistle for the money. Whistles that are best avoided are some of the cheap Chinese ones that you can find on various web sites these days. I have ordered a couple in my time to try them out and the first I got was about a semitone flat in pitch, and the next was unplayable. There may well be some nice whistles from China but as yet I haven't found one.