Choice of High Whistle

[DrPhill]

If I still had a Bm whistle I would pick it up to play a Bm tune, but would have learned it with the fingerings I would use to play it in D on a D whistle.

Interesting concept there (major and minor whistles), but think you might actually find that disturbing in practice!

Whoops, Bb not Bm. That is because I am musically illiterate. Another reason for simplifying everything!

But what would be wrong with a minor whistle? I am happy playing minor keys on the major whistle, and I am sure that my brain would cope with the change. Maybe you mean that someone with a huge amount of practice under their fingers would find the effect disturbing because it jars with learned expectations? Being a relative newbie I might have an easier time adjusting.

I wonder if there would be any practical advantage? And what would happen if I used a minor fingering (Em or Am on the D whistle) on a whistle that was itself minor?

[Peter Duggan]

But what would be wrong with a minor whistle?

Well (assuming bell note as tonic), you couldn't get the melodic minor scale with six holes + all fingers off and no half-holing, so you'd have to go harmonic minor or maybe 'cheat' with Aeolian mode (aka 'natural minor'). But the former's not going to suit many trad tunes and the latter's going to leave you no option for a sharpened leading note because you can't half-hole with all fingers off!

I wonder if there would be any practical advantage? And what would happen if I used a minor fingering (Em or Am on the D whistle) on a whistle that was itself minor?

Take a hypothetical Aeolian whistle in D (scale = D,E,F,G,A,Bb,C,D), play it with quasi-E minor fingerings and you'll get E Locrian (E,F,G,A,Bb,C,D,E), or half-hole to sharpen the leading note (in this case the bell note) and you'll get goodness-knows-what (E,F,G,A,Bb,C,D#,E). Likewise your quasi-A minor fingerings will produce A Phrygian (A,Bb,C,D,E,F,G,A) or who-knows-what-again (A,Bb,C,D,E,F,G#,A) with half-holed leading note...

Or maybe just talk to Hans about his 'Gypsy whistles', which seem to avoid the bell note as tonic and look like a far more considered concept!

[DrPhill]

OK, thanks; as I suspected, the theory goes way over my head. I will not be making any minor whistles! I have enough to do leaning to play those that I have.....

[MTGuru]

Of course, you know you can instantly turn any standard whistle into a Dorian whistle by the use of Shift Fingering. Also known as the whistle capo.

Just shift your fingering up one hole. Bottom ring finger on the B2 hole. Top index finger on the "phantom" hole above T1, and top middle finger on T1. And the pinky to cover B3 (which now feels like B4) for your new 7th scale tone (and your new register break). Voilà Dorian.

[Peter Duggan]

Feels weird but lets me try my LH sans pinkie if I ignore the 'phantom' hole!