What is "chiff?"

Kendra · Post by **Kendra** » Sun Mar 24, 2002 12:10 pm

Ok, I checked Search and got just about every thread that has ever been posted. So then I checked my own and all the major on-line dictionaries I could find. There seems to be no such word as "chiff" but it gets used here a lot

Would somebody like to tell me what it means? Is it wind instrument or whistle specific? Thanks.

ndjr · Post by **ndjr** » Sun Mar 24, 2002 12:25 pm

"Chiff" is a term that can have a number of meanings, one of which refers to the non-musical rustling sound a wind instrument may make as a note is blown, but in the moment before the note actually sounds. It describes the sound made during the "attack," if you are familiar with that term. Some whistles have more chiff than others.

The note itself commonly drowns out the "chiff," but not always, so the term can also refer to breathy sounds that may accompany the note in some whistles or other woodwinds. In my experience it is less commonly used in this way.

Kendra · Post by **Kendra** » Sun Mar 24, 2002 12:54 pm

Ah! Thanks! That's pretty much what I thought it was, but am wondering if the sound my D whistle makes if I tongue it too hard is considered chiff. It's a disgusting sharp sound just before the note plays and slightly delays the on-set of the "real" note.

ndjr · Post by **ndjr** » Sun Mar 24, 2002 1:23 pm

On 2002-03-24 13:54, Kendra wrote:

Ah! Thanks! That's pretty much what I thought it was, but am wondering if the sound my D whistle makes if I tongue it too hard is considered chiff. It's a disgusting sharp sound just before the note plays and slightly delays the on-set of the "real" note.

You're welcome.

I'm not sure of the cause of that sharp sound, but will hazard a guess that you may be attacking a note in the lower register with a little too much breath pressure for your whistle. If this is correct, then what's happening is that the whistle is almost, but not quite, jumping to the second octave until your lowered breath pressure drops it back to the first. You might try playing the passage without tonguing ( <i>legato</i> is the term ) and see how that works. When you've got the change down smoothly, then bring back the tonguing if it's necessary for your interpretation of the piece.

If it's happening in the second octave, which I doubt because you said you were tonguing too hard, then you might not be using <i>enough</i> breath pressure. In this case the whistle would drop towards the first octave until you corrected it, and the remedy would be similar to the first case.

Others may have good advice to offer you as well.

mike.r · Post by **mike.r** » Sun Mar 24, 2002 1:27 pm

I would describe chiff as a percussive tonal quality inherint in the whistle itself much like the `chop´rhythm sound sought after by bluegrass mandolin players and is extremely subjective and open to interpretation.Neil has described it well.

Peace,Mike

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Sun Mar 24, 2002 6:38 pm

The breathy sound of organ pipes;
also of whistles. A large part
of the meaning of life, too.

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 7:53 am

Chiff is the deep awareness of whistlers that all things are transitory and that human ambition is vanity, just like "chiff before the wind."

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 8:04 am

Gawd, that's beautiful! And
whistlers who lack that profound
awareness get into
'misschiff.' Get it?

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 8:07 am

Chiff off, mate.

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 8:24 am

Bet your favorite group is the
Chifftains. Oh, this is wonderful!

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 8:58 am

No, but they do play a nice version of "Chiffs of Moher".

JohnPalmer · Post by **JohnPalmer** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 12:04 pm

Gee, aren't you a chiff off the 'ol block.

Kendra · Post by **Kendra** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 12:11 pm

Tee-hee-hee!! I just LOVE those puns!

StarrM · Post by **StarrM** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 1:22 pm

Hello there Jim! Was good meeting you on Saturday. You surely do have some gorgeous whistles. Thanks for recommending that I visit this message board!

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Mon Mar 25, 2002 1:33 pm

StarrM, welcome aboard. Did Jim show you the sterling silver Copeland with engraved leaf-patteren that he bought secretly? Does it have a lot of chiff, Jim, eh?