Reddit reviews Dixon High D Non-Tune Tin Whistle

Have you noticed that when trying to jump from low notes to high notes there is a slight period where the note bends then tries to lock in? The dixon locks notes in very quickly. It has to do with the air stream inside of the instrument being turbulent as notes change, then going stable at the new frequency. Instrument speed is related to how long it takes the air stream to change and how cleanly it does it. You know how when you have a garden hose running, and you put your thumb over the end to spray water? You notice how the entire hose moves a bit as you lift your thumb off and on? The air in the instrument does something similar as you lift and place fingers and blow notes.

Your clarke has a wood fipple and a relatively large air channel and this is where the breathy, flutey, sound comes from. This is called the "chiff" and it changes with the size of the window and air channel leading to it. You can improve the tone by directing the air directly out of your lips in a tight, thin stream at high speed (for high notes), or a slower, fuller, stream for low notes.

If you hold a piece of tissue paper up in front of your face about a foot away, so it's hanging like a flag or a curtain, keep your head facing forward and blow a tight, thin air stream. Notice how it pushes the tissue back. Now without moving your head, change the shape of your lips and try to blow in a different direction, all without your head moving at all. You're trying to see how you can purse, and move your lips, to direct air straight, or to the side, or up, or down. The ability to direct it up, straight, and down, helps with the tinwhistle. Blow directly into the instrument with a fast, thin, stream of air, gives you airy but strong tones with a lot of overtones. Relaxing your lips and blowing a thicker, slower, stream of air reduces air noise and makes a warm, mellow sound.

Tilting your airstream up, and tightening your lips more, helps to play high notes that aren't too loud. IE instead of just blowing harder, you learn to use your lips to help jump to the higher octave without necessarily blowing much harder. The is the only way to play high notes, that aren't ear splittingly loud.

For the whistles themselves, wood fipple whistles with large air channels have more breathy and flutey, and mellow sound. Very authentic and traditional but not particularly pure of tone. A lot of air noise.

Whistles like the Dixon in plastic, have a smaller air channel, and a smaller window where that air hits the blown edge. They produce more of a pure tone, and are LOUDER than the fipple style whistles. However their tone can be piercing without care.