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What is a Tin Whistle?
Mary Elizabeth
Mary Elizabeth
The tin whistle, as pennywhistles or Irish whistles made of metal are called, is a six-hole straight woodwind instrument which is played in a position similar to that of a recorder, rather than that of a flute. Unlike the recorder, there is no thumb hole on the tin whistle, and the upper octave is reached by overblowing. The tin whistle is generally held with the left hand above the right hand, and with the index, middle, and ring fingers of the left hand covering the top three holes, while the same fingers on the right hand cover the bottom three holes.
The tin whistle, like all pennywhistles, may be conical, with a bore that is tapered, or cylindrical, with a straight bore. While "tin whistle" clearly refers to a metal instrument with a mouthpiece made of molded plastic, identical instruments in all but materials, called whistles or pennywhistles or Irish whistles, are made entirely of wood or plastic. The plastic whistles claim to have more pitch stability in the face of changing air temperature.
A tin whistle may or may not come with a thumb rest, but some companies sell a detachable thumb rest that can be added. Some tin whistles are tunable, but others are nontunable, and there are one-piece and two-piece models. In addition, some brands of tin whistle are available with 1 or 2 keys, rather than just open holes, making the holes easier to reach.
Popular keys for the tin whistle are low and high D and high C, but a number of other keys are available. The so-called “low whistles” have a place of their own in the repertoire. Storage bags for multiple whistles, extra mouthpieces, and polishing cloths are popular accessories.
The whistle is often used to play the melody line in traditional types of Irish music, such as airs, hornpipes, jigs, polkas, and reels. Embellishments or alterations, known by the name of “Irish whistle ornamentation,” are popular playing techniques.
Noted tin whistle players include Mary Bergin Feadoga Stain, Cathol McConnell, Willie Clancy, Paddy Moloney, Davy Spillane, and Sean Potts. Noted bands with tin whistle include The Chieftains and The Boys of the Lough.
Mary Elizabeth
Mary Elizabeth is passionate about reading, writing, and research, and has a penchant for correcting misinformation on the Internet. In addition to contributing articles to WiseGEEK about art, literature, and music, Mary Elizabeth is a teacher, composer, and author. She has a B.A. from the University of Chicago’s writing program and an M.A. from the University of Vermont, and she has written books, study guides, and teacher materials on language and literature, as well as music composition content for Sibelius Software.
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Mary Elizabeth
Mary Elizabeth is passionate about reading, writing, and research, and has a penchant for correcting misinformation on the Internet. In addition to contributing articles to WiseGEEK about art, literature, and music, Mary Elizabeth is a teacher, composer, and author. She has a B.A. from the University of Chicago’s writing program and an M.A. from the University of Vermont, and she has written books, study guides, and teacher materials on language and literature, as well as music composition content for Sibelius Software.
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Discussion Comments
@Lostnfound -- Unfortunately, I didn't have anyone to tutor me in playing. I've learned mostly from books and DVDs. So I don't have much of an Irish music repertoire. I usually play old hymns, Christmas carols and American folk songs. It's suited very well for those. Civil War songs sound especially nice. I'm sure many soldiers carried a tin whistle in a pocket or knapsack, so the popular songs were often played on whistles and banjos.
@Grivusangel -- That's interesting. Do you play Irish folk songs on your whistle? Are you in a band?
My first whistle was a Clarke tin whistle. It's in C because that's all the music store carried. It has the traditional wooden block fipple, which gives it a breathy sound, which is very traditional.
I also have a Feadog C whistle with a brass finish and a plastic mouthpiece. I like the mellower sound of a C whistle, but D whistles are usually better suited to Irish music. I've got two D whistles, too: a Meg by Clarke and a Susato Kildaire. The Susato is made from PVC and it is a wonderful whistle. And no, plastic doesn't change pitch. I have to warm my metal whistles in my hands before I play them to "true" the pitch.
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