What's with Eb whistles?

[Nanohedron]

I find that the higher than D whistles either grate on my ears, or sound very sweet and birdlike.

For sweet and birdlike I had a Gen soprano F, and apparently I totally lucked out getting it straight off the shelf, for report afterward suggested that its attractive character was a matter of sheer happenstance. Hornpipes in particular became something extra-special on it; fairy-like, if you will. It was sweet even into the full extent of the 2nd octave. Now that was a whistle.

Of course for general purposes you can't use a whistle in that pitch all the time. Unfortunately I don't recall what happened to it, but I think it adopted the bodhrán player.

[Flywhistler]

[quote="tstermitz"] Maybe I should rephrase the question: "Why do you have an Eb whistle?"

Because I really like Eb whistles. I like the way they play, and I like the way they sound. They tend to be bright and responsive. I love my Killarney Eb, and my Dixon Trad Eb. I wish Clarke made an Eb whistle!

[sfmans]

Maybe I should rephrase the question: "Why do you have an Eb whistle?"

Well I have an Eb because I occasionally play music with people who play in Eb (and the relative minor of Cm, which crops up a fair bit in French music thanks to the way that many French tunes tend to be drone-based and therefore modulate to the absolute, not the relative, minor). If I find myself in an English session that goes Eb/Bb I'll usually play concertina tbh, but it's nice to have the whistle on standby for any tune that I just really love playing on whistle.

My (Dixon) Bb actually gets more work than my (Generation) Eb and is a permanent occupant of the whistle bag, whereas the Eb only gets put in for special occasions and when I'm pretty sure I might need it. And, as others have said, you never know what key a singer might ask for accompaniment in.

[pancelticpiper]

many French tunes tend to be drone-based and therefore modulate to the absolute, not the relative, minor

Thanks for that info, I hadn't thought about that.

I have a number of albums of Central French music, either bagpipe solo and duet, or bagpipe/hurdy gurdy, but I've never played the music and didn't notice the key relationships.

A Cabrette in G would have the 4th of C, and seems that many tunes use this as the tonic. I did notice that many of the tunes have a minor 3rd but a sharp leading tone.

Interestingly the drones (if present) play G, not C.

Bulgarian and Macedonian tunes modulate from, say, A minor to A Major (or Mixolydian) to A Hijaz quite commonly.

[MarkP]

my Eb whistle has a lovely bright sound for a change but mainly just handy to have one for occasional sessions that are tuned up (either for a D# box or for Northern fiddlers, or to keep out the riff raff). I carry an Eb, D and C whistle in the flute case but probably use the Eb maybe a handful times in a year. Fun at home sometimes. Lots of recordings in Eb so it's handy for picking up the odd tune on the radio or if no slowdowner available.

As noted earlier, the whistle would be a relative newcomer to Irish trad and the variety of keys has little if anything to do with historical pitch variation (they're all pitched to 440Hz). The Bb whistles were popular in other genres (notably Kwela).

[kenny]

1 - my favourite whistle, certainly for solo performance playing, is a Generation Eb.

2 - I often learn tunes from recordings from the repertoire of the Highland bagpipes - for that I need an Eb whistle.

3 - very occasionally - not so often as in the 1980s - you may come across a session in Ireland where instruments are tuned a semi-tone sharp of concert pitch. An Eb whistle allows me to join in, [ when I think it appropriate ].

4 - many commercial recordings made in the 1980s, even into the 1990s, were pitched a semi-tone sharp of concert pitch. If I wish to learn a tune from these recordings and have to do it by ear, [ Harry Bradley's "Bad Turns And Horseshoe Bends" comes to mind ], I use an Eb whistle.

[Mr.Gumby]

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[An Draighean]

I was noodling away and this thread came to mind. And as I said : nothing as lovely, bright and sweet as an e flat whistle.



Green Linnet / Gan Ainm

(I am not sure what the second tune is, The Bow House Quintet played it on their CD and today it arrived out of the blue and slightly clumsily for it)

Lovely!

[ytliek]

Sweet!

[tstermitz]

I appreciate the discussion, and all the different ideas.

While very interesting, I don't agree that musical history helps us too much, other than the need to match tunings in an old recording.

I think I'm personally too old-school for the low-D Riverdance phenomenon; but, I intend no slight against anyone of you who play low-D.

As to the "just in case" theory, I have this vision of a D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) whistle minstrel wandering across the moors, and forced to engage in musical battle with another minstrel. For this encounter, only the Eb whistle will save the day.

I did not realize there were sessions in Eb. For playing in all the sessions I've been to, the D is most useful, with occasional need for the C, but I don't know those tunes, so it never really crossed my radar.

Certainly, using a whistle in a band, orchestra or performance setting, I can see the need for specific keys.

The most persuasive explanation for me, is the simple idea that different whistles sound different. This is certainly put to great effect on Mary Bergin's albums. Played all in D, the sets would lose their punch. Contrasting keys or tonality between adjacent sets makes both of them more interesting.

[Brus]

Because of this thread, I bought a Susato Eb whistle from a vendor at the Celtic Fling in Mannheim PA.

Curse you, WHOAD enablers!

[ytliek]

Because of this thread, I bought a Susato Eb whistle from a vendor at the Celtic Fling in Mannheim PA.

Curse you, WHOAD enablers!

That's all?

[MarkP]

...four Eb sessions in the last three days, just saying...

[Mitch]

Eb fits nicely under the fingers.

For myself, the Eb seems to make a better whistle - it seems to be less effort to get an Eb cooking. Both in the making and the playing.
It's a very individual thing I suppose.

Context is important.

I am reminded of the Indic tradition where all the musos have to tune to the singer.
Some music is for sharing, some is for show-casing, some is for ritual setting, some is for sale.
It's not a thing to judge - all are valid.

It's the context ..you should have an Eb - it's a great key . I also like B-Nat . but you have to have a piper with a Harrington set for that to work right rare but good!

it's all fluid - pick the time and Eb will go great!

[Mitch]

I also like B-Nat . but you have to have a piper with a Harrington set for that to work right rare but good!

That's a pretty silly remark unless you have actually sat wit ha fully working Harrington B set with its original, undamaged, chanter present.


How many can you think of?

Well Ian Mackenzie has one. Mind you, he had to replace the Woof chanter with one of his own to match that velvet drone-set.
Like anything worthwhile - there's a looong story under all of that
Suffice to say there were some very nice sessions played in B .. and there will probably be a few more!