TUTORIAL TIN WHISTLE

Tutorial - Page 1
The Basics
This tutorial concentrates on playing a whistle that is made in the key of "D". Many other keys are
available - the fingering for the major scale on any whistle will be the same, but the actual note played will
be higher or lower. First, a few terms used in this tutorial:

Key - The key of the whistle tells you the lowest note of the major scale that you can play on on that
whistle. All whistles are capable of playing a two octave range. For instance, a "D" whistle's lowest
note is D (the note above middle C on a piano).

Major Scale - The major scale consists of 7 different notes, and an 8th note that is the same as the
first - just an octave higher. The Major Scale is the scale that you use when singing "Do, Re, Mi, Fa,
So, La, Ti, Do". Note that the low "Do" and the high "Do" are the same note when this scale is sung
or played - just an octave apart. Whistle is capable of playing the tones in between the notes of this
scale also (sharps and flats), by using half-hole fingering and cross fingering (more on this later).
Since a whistle has a two octave range, it can play this major scale in the lower octave, and then
again in the upper octave.

Natural Notes of a major scale - The notes that make up Do, Re, Mi, Fa... for an entire scale. These
may include sharps or flats (flats are not covered in this Tutorial), depending on the key you're
playing in.

Phrase - A section of the tune, similar to a sentence in a story. In the example above, a phrase would
be "Do, a deer, a female deer". A phrase could usually almost be a mini-tune all by itself, and the end
of a phrase is usually a good place to take a breath when playing.

Over-blowing - Blowing slightly harder to reach the notes in the upper octave. Notes in both octaves
are fingered exactly the same (there are some alternate fingerings also).

Ornamentation - These are embellishments that give your tunes a personality all their own.
Traditional ornamentations include Cuts, Rolls, Bends, Trills, and many others. More on this later.

Soprano D Whistle - This is the most popular whistle, and is the one that we recommend that all
new players start with. It is also the one that should be used with this tutorial.

Low D Whistle - A much larger whistle that is gaining in popularity. It is very difficult to learn to
play, because of the larger finger holes, and the wide finger spacing. For more info on Low D
whistles, take a look at our Low D Info Page.

Fipple - The entire mouthpiece is sometimes referred to as the fipple, but it is actually the plug in the
mouthpiece that restricts airflow - thus producing sound.
Let's Get Started:

Hold the whistle with your left hand so that your index, middle and ring fingers cover the top three holes
(the holes closest to the mouthpiece). Use the same three fingers on your right hand to cover the lower three
holes. Don't use the tips of your fingers - hold your fingers flat, and use the "pads" of your fingers to play.
This may not be quite as comfortable a finger position to use at first, but you will get used to it, and it is a
must for when you start playing faster. You'll find that you can cover the holes with a lot less pressure this
way, which allows your fingers to move more naturally.

Place the whistle in your mouth, and blow a gentle, steady note. Don't bite down on the mouthpiece, just
relax. If the note isn't clear, check to make sure that every one of your fingers is covering its hole completely.
The note you are playing with all the finger holes covered is "D" - this is one of the hardest note to play
clearly on the whistle, so when you get it to sound clear you're well on your way.

Reading Sheetmusic
Now we'll move on to some basics about sheet music. Look at the picture below. The five lines that go all
the way across the page horizontally make up the "Staff". On the left side of the staff is a symbol that tells
you that the sheet music is written in the "Treble Clef". You'll probably only be reading music written in the
treble clef while playing whistle, so it's the only clef that we cover in this tutorial.

To the right of the treble clef is the "Key Signature". The # symbol (called a "Sharp") tells you that you
need to raise the pitch step from the note that's written (don't worry if this doesn't make sense right now, it
will later...).

Next to the key signature is the "Time Signature". This tells you how to count the tune as you're playing.
The top number tells you how many beats are in a measure, the bottom number tells you which note to count
as one beat (again, this probably doesn't make much sense yet, but it will). In the example below, 4/4 time
means: four beats to a measure, and a quarter note is one beat long.

The vertical lines are called "Bars" and are used to separate the measures.
 Fingering Chart

Next, we'll look at the notes that make up the staff. The picture below has the notes on the staff marked,
and the fingering for each note in the two octave D Scale. Note that all the F's and all the C's are sharped (the
# symbol). A tune with these two sharps in the "Key Signature" is written in the key of D (which is why
we're using a D whistle...). If the # symbols are on F and C at the beginning of the tune, they are played as
sharps throughout the entire tune.

The fingering chart below uses black for the holes that your fingers cover, and white for the open holes.
Remember to completely cover each hole when you put your fingers down, and use the pads of your fingers
- not the fingertips.

The notes from the second D and up are played by "Over-blowing". Just blow a little harder, and the sound
will go up an octave. Note that the two higher D's can be played with all fingers down, but usually sound
better lifting the first finger of your left hand.

Notice that the "tails" on the notes above change position on the first "B" in the above chart. This is just
done for looks - the note values remain the same.

Here is a link to a more detailed Fingering Chart that also shows fingerings for whistles in other keys,
"Secondary" keys for a given whistle, and the "Minor" key (page opens in a new browser window). Don't worry if
this talk of Secondary and Minor keys makes no sense to you yet...

Whistle Fingering Chart

 Red = Key of whistle being played (for example, the first line shows the D major scale played on a "D" whistle)
Blue = Note that is not actually a part of the Major scale for that whistle, but is used quite often
Grey = "Secondary key" (for example, a "D" whistle will also play easily in the key of "G major")
Purple = "Minor Key" (for example a "D" whistle will also play easily in the key of "E minor")

The upper octave of each whistle is fingered the same as the lower octave
An alternate fingering may be needed for the note shown in Blue when playing it in the upper octave (try oxo xxx, or something
similar)

D E F# G A B (C) C# D

Eb F G Ab Bb C (Db) D Eb

E F# G# A B C# (D) D# E

F G A Bb C D (Eb) E F

F# G# A# B C# D# (E) F F#

G A B C D E (F) F# G

A B C# D E F# (G) G# A

Bb C D Eb F G (Ab) A Bb
 B C# D# E F# G# (A) A# B

C D E F G A (Bb) B C

C# D# F F# G# A# (B) C C#

When clicking on the links to the sound clips in the tutorial, your Internet browser may display a
box asking if you want to "Save this file to disk" or "Open this file from its current location".

You are more than welcome to save the tunes to disk for future personal use at a later time, but
to listen to them as you go through the tutorial it is much simpler to "open them from their
current location".

Tutorial - Page 2
Note Values and Counting

We'll start with the time signature that you see most often in music - 4/4 time. (3/4 and 6/8 are also quite
popular in Irish music, but we'll talk about these later). A time signature of 4/4 means: 4 beats to a measure,
and a quarter note is one beat long.

Lets take the top number in the time signature first. There are 4 beats in a measure. A measure is the space
between two bar lines (the bar lines are the vertical lines that separate the notes). Click on the link below to
hear a beat in 4/4 time. As it is playing, count "1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4...". Every time you pass "4",
you will have counted one measure.

Click here for a "4/4 beat" sound clip

The lower number in the time signature tells you what value to put on the individual notes in the tune. In
this case the 4 means a quarter note gets one beat. Look at the chart below for a list of note values that are
covered in this lesson.
 Now it's time to put this all together and actually play something! We recommend that you listen to the
sound clip first (just click on the image below). Count along with the music, following the beat as it's written
out below the notes. You'll hear 4 beats of introduction before the tune actually starts.

Click here to hear the above lesson

Now try playing along with it. As you play, "tongue" each note. You do this by whispering the word "too"
as you play the note. The little x's and o's above the notes are the fingerings for each note. The x means that
you cover the hole, the o means the hole should be open. Take a good breath - but don't over-fill your lungs -
and try to play the whole phrase without taking another breath. Breathing is a very important aspect of
playing - try to take breaths at the end of phrases whenever possible, but don't wait so long that the notes
sound "forced" (this will come more naturally in time). Don't forget to count along while you're playing.

When you feel comfortable playing this, it's time to move on to Lesson 3!

Tutorial - Page 3
 Eighth Notes & First Song

We have one more note to cover before we start to play some tunes. An eighth note is half a beat long. This
means that they're counted "1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &". Eighth notes can be written a number of different ways, but
they all have the same value. See the examples below - these are all eighth notes:

Click on the image below to hear what it sounds like. Count along as it plays, remembering that eighth
notes are counted "1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &". You'll notice that every time you come to "1" you're starting a new
measure (because we're still playing in 4/4 time). As before, you'll hear 4 beats as an intro.

Click here to hear the above lesson

First Song

OK, let's put it all together! Listen to the tune below quite a few times before playing it, counting along as
it plays. Also listen for good places to take a breath. We'll be adding many embellishments to this tune in
other lessons, but for right now keep it simple and tongue between each note (saying "too" - remember?). If
you can't see the entire song on your computer screen, you can click on it to see on a page by itself so you
can print it (then use your Browsers "back" button to return here).
 Click here to hear this tune played slowly Click here to hear this tune at full speed

Tutorial - Page 4
Slurs & Ties
(And a brief introduction to Cross-fingering)

Slurs:
Up until now, we have been "tonguing" every note. A "slur" is playing one or more notes together without
tonguing. This makes the piece flow more smoothly. The slur mark is printed below or above the notes. The
first note of the slur is tongued, and all additional notes are played without tonguing. Avoid taking a breath in
the middle of a slur.

One note about lesson piece below - notice the fingering for the C# note (in the 4th measure). The little
finger on the right hand may be put down (if needed) to steady the whistle, and will not change the sound of
the note. You'll notice that this finger can actually be left down on a number of other notes, without changing
the sound of the note. Experiment with this - you'll be learning more about "Cross-fingering" (alternate
ways to finger notes) as you progress.
 Study the lesson below, listening to the sound clip - then play along as you listen. Remember to count
along as you play.

Click here to hear the above lesson

Ties:
A "Tie" is similar to a slur, except that it connects two (or more) notes of the same pitch. When you come
to a tie, you continue to count, but you only tongue the first note in the tie.

Study the lesson below, listening to the sound clip - then play along as you listen. This very simple looking
lesson can be a little tricky to count at first, if ties are something new for you.

Click here to hear the above lesson

 First Song (Revisited)

You'll remember this tune from our last lesson, except now we'll add slurs and ties. It may be a good idea
to listen (without playing) quite a few times, then play it by yourself - to get used to making it flow smoothly
- before playing along with the recording.

From this point on, we will not be printing the count below the tune, except when introducing new note
values. We've also added a few "breath marks" to show you a good place to take a breath. The proper place
to breath when playing is an entire subject by itself that we do not go into in depth in this tutorial. In general,
the best place to take a breath is at the end of a "phrase" if possible, or at the end of a longer note. This is not
written in stone by any means, you should find places to breath that make the song flow smoothly without
sounding like you're playing using your last breath.

Click here to hear this tune played slowly Click here to hear this tune at full speed

In future lessons, we will cover many aspects of playing, including other time signatures, ornamentation and
much more.
More pages will be done shortly, please come back
soon to continue!