Lofgren Whistles

[Lars Larry Mór Mott]

Out of curiosity what did the set cost you . . . and are they brass? I've been waiting on the review too from Sirchronique but wonder how this set would compare with the aluminium high D both in terms of tone/playability but also price.

Cheers

Mike

P.S. You mind telling me who the piper is?

Yes, it's brass and blackwood. It was around €140 + postage
Perhaps i should've said "great piper and whistle player" playing in a trio with another piper and whistle player and a guitarist/singer

[Sirchronique]

I did away with my response, as I would rather just give a full reviewal after I have the other lofgrens I am waiting for.


For now, I will just say that my impression is very favourable. The brass/wood one is my favourite D whistle, and I've been picking it up constantly. The alloy D is also very good.

I am waiting on an alloy G (Might come in the mail today!), and also an alloy A, and brass/blackwood C,D, and Eb. I will post a full review when I have them. I prefer to not write too much when I'm so tired, as the post just ends up being too rambly and not very well written! I will probably elaborate on the ones I have later this weekend, though.

In short, yes, they are very good! I definitely recommend them! I know I shall be buying many more of them.

[Mikethebook]

Looking forward to your reviews. I'm after a D, C and possibly Low A & G myself.

[Sirchronique]

Looking forward to your reviews. I'm after a D, C and possibly Low A & G myself.

I'll get back with you after I have all of those keys from him! I can say so far that you won't go wrong with either of these D's , though! I've lost many hours of sleep due to the brass/wood D I've been playing! Both whistles sound amazing, and I love the way they play. They are up there with the best of em. The brass one has become my primary whistle since I've recieved it.

I'm hoping the alloy G will arrive today, as my USPS sixth-sense is telling me that it will.

[Lars Larry Mór Mott]

Looking forward to your reviews. I'm after a D, C and possibly Low A & G myself.

I'll get back with you after I have all of those keys from him! I can say so far that you won't go wrong with either of these D's , though! I've lost many hours of sleep due to the brass/wood D I've been playing! Both whistles sound amazing, and I love the way they play. They are up there with the best of em. The brass one has become my primary whistle since I've recieved it.

I'm hoping the alloy G will arrive today, as my USPS sixth-sense is telling me that it will.

I don't think your USPS-radar is way off since another US citizen just received an alloy soprano D sent at the same time as yours

[Mr.Nate]

I tried to contact Marc about putting in an order but he hasn't responded yet!

He must be busy making whistles.

Glad to hear you guys are having better luck.

[Sirchronique]

Looking forward to your reviews. I'm after a D, C and possibly Low A & G myself.

Alloy G just arrived! Unfortunately I must be getting ready for work.

I can say that I strongly like it after 20 minutes of playing it. I will elaborate more later. It's pretty consistent with the alloy D in most every quality, really. However, I think this type of sound and playability really translates well to a low G, especially.

It's a very lightweight whistle, responsive, goldie-esque in tone of lower octave, with a pretty smooth upper octave that's easier on the high notes (without being so much that it's boring in the second octave. Some breathiness is present in the tone of the 2nd octave, but not overly so, and it blends well with the root tone), it's what I would consider to be a fairly easy blower. That being said, it has a much stronger bell note than the soprano lofgrens, which I find is especially desirable in a lower key. Overall I find it plays like butter, yet without being weak in any area. The tuning on it seems very good to my ears, so far. The low end is not weak in the least, and the very high end is easy, which seems to be a combination many people might want with such a whistle. This whistle has good volume, yet very smooth and not overly so in the wrong areas. The balance on this instrument is really fantastic.

Anyway, that's just my quick 20 minute analysis of it. This is going to get a LOT more playing this week. I'll let you know any updates, or if my thoughts change, or I have anything to add to that.

Usually whistles take some time to grow on me. Everytime I've instantly liked a whistle from the very moment I tried it, it has ended up being one of my favourites, as I usually only grow to like it more. The only other whistles I've liked so instantly were the Reviol, Sindt, and other lofgrens.

I'll also add that the alloy D lofgren has grown on me very much, and I like it about equally with the brass/wood one now, although they are so different that I can't say one is better than the other. The main similarity between thoe two is quality.

Now I'm extremely excited for the A to arrive!

[Lars Larry Mór Mott]

My guess is you will find that the only real difference is the pitch/key
Your description fits to a tee with my findings.
Cheers!

[Mr.Nate]

That's a great review for only playing the whistle for 20 minutes!

Thanks!!

[thomasaasen]

How can I get a whistle ordered from him? Really want one of his brass/wood ore all brass in D. Someone help me.... I live in Norway.

[saintninian]

Probably your best bet would be to send him a PM with your whistle request. I tried emailing him twice and received no response. I then sent him a PM, but again heard nothing, as he is on the Chiff & Fipple website infrequently, apparently (I'm on practically every day!). Finally, I saw someone was selling a set of Lofgren whistles on Ebay, blackwood/brass and alloy, both D, and I bought them. Then I sent Mr. Lofgren another PM saying never mind about the previous request, and of course that day he popped on to Chiff & Fipple and got my PM's. So at least I know that that way of contacting Mr. Lofgren works. Give it a try, and best of luck.

Concerning the whistles, I love them. The brass barrel is somewhat thicker than, say, a Feadog or Dixon Trad, so it takes a bit longer to warm up, but it is a well-made whistle with a beautiful sound. Same with the alloy whistle. Stumbling across them on Ebay was a real surprise. Now if I could only find someone to sell me a Harper Classic D, I'd KNOW the whistle gnomes are looking out for me...