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The Irish Tin WhistleAncient WhistlesThe Irish tin whistle is one of the oldest Irish musical instruments. At the very least it is the descendant of a whistle mentioned in Irish myth.
The story goes that Aileann a chief of the Tuatha de Danann came to Tara every November eve to burn the town. He would enter the town playing fairy music on the timpan (a stringed instrument) and a sweet sounding feadan (whistle). This would put all of Tara's defenders to sleep leaving Aileann free to do his evil work. He was eventually defeated by Fionn Mac Cumhail (Finn McCool). Fionn was given a special spear. When the sharp edge of the spear was held to his forehead the fairy music had no effect on him. Fionn was able to follow Aieann to his fairy residence and kill him.
Centuries later a whistle was unearth in the High Street section of Dublin. This is in one of the oldest quarters of the city. It is believed to be from the twelfth century. It is made of bone and only has two finger holes. As you'll see the Irish tin whistles of today have six finger holes.
There are records of Feadanaigh players of the whistle in ancient laws. These laws pertained to musicians that played at sporting events and fairs.
Irish tin whistles go by many other names. Besides tin whistles they are called tin flutes, penny whistles, vertical flute, fipple flute, and flageolet. A fipple is the block in the mouthpiece that constricts the air to produce sound. A flageolet was used to describe a whistle with four finger holes on the front, and two thumb holes on the back, common in the seventeenth century.
Before I move on I think this is a good place to put a tin whistle video. Don't you think? This video is of Joanie Madden of Cherish the Ladies. She plays an excellent Irish tin whistle.
The Irish Tin Whistle TodayThere are two types of whistles today, one is the cone-shaped and the other is cylindrical. The Clarke 'C' whistle is the only conical or tapered whistle used today. It is made of tin with a wooden mouthpiece. The purists say this is the only one with the pleasing tone of traditional music.
However, now days the most widely used whistle is the cylindrical shaped whistle like the ones made by Generation. These have straight metal tube with a plastic mouthpiece. The metal is either brass or nickel-plated brass. The plastic mouthpiece has been widely accepted because it doesn't change pitch with added moisture like a wooden one.
You can buy whistles in the keys of B flat, C, D, E flat, F and G. The D whistle is the most commonly used in group playing. The F whistle is becoming very popular for solo play. Another whistle gaining popularity today is the Low D whistle. The Low D is for more experienced players. It's longer with a deeper sound than the others.
Ok, time for another video. This one of Mary Bergin considered to be the best player today.
Learn to Play the Irish Tin WhistleIt's said that the Irish tin whistle is the easiest of all the Irish musical instruments to learn to play. You can play all the traditional ornamentations on the whistle. It's also the most inexpensive to buy. You can buy one between 7 to 10 U.S. dollars. Don't fall for the old adage that expensive is better. In this case that isn't necessarily true. The inexpensive models play just as well as the so-called "high end" or "professional" models.
It is suggested that beginning players start with a Generation brand whistle in the key of D. Any brand can be used as long as it's in the key of D. It's just the Generation brand is a very popular brand now days.
First I'll show you a video of Ryan Duns, SJ playing "The Kesh Jig". He is a Jesuit at Fordham University where he teaches Irish tin whistle. He is an excellent player. Then I'll point you to his website where he can teach you to play.
I told you he is an excellent player. You can learn to play the whistle at his Blog where he has a series of free video lessons. You need to go to the bottom of the page and click on the "older posts" text link to get back to his first video lesson called "Tin Whistle: Week One. Then you can work your way forward one weekly lesson at a time.
I'm so impressed with the site that I ordered my own whistle and I can't wait to give it a try. I haven't told my wife yet. I suppose she'll find out soon enough. I'll let you know how things turn out, with my wife and the lessons.
I hope you are inclined to give these lessons a try. If not you can at least enjoy the above videos.
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