Irish Music and Tin Whistles
by  Kim J. Teal

Kim Teal

Copyright 2010 by Kim J. Teal
May not be reproduced in any form without prior consent.
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My Tin Whistles



Irish Music and Tin Whistles


 
Ceoil na hÉireann (Irish Music)
(Kee-ohl na Hay-run)

by Kim J. Teal

    Music tradition in Ireland, Scotland, and Wales is ancient in origin. We now know that ancient Celtic music was based on a series of “gapped” scales consisting of five notes and an octave and that Scottish Great Highland bagpipes, Irish Uílleann (píopaí na n-uílleann) bagpipes, cláirseach (Celtic harp), and bodhran (frame drum) were common instruments played. While bagpipes and bodhran have pretty much survived intact, Celtic harps didn’t. It is only recently that attempts have been made to replicate the original Celtic harps based on obscure drawings of old harps.

   In Ireland, music was passed along orally by Irish harpers, rather than being written down. These Irish harpers were itinerant musicians who traveled throughout Ireland prior to the 17th Century and were the “keepers” not only of Irish music but also of Irish history and culture. In the late 16th Century, Queen Elizabeth I of England passed laws forbidding the playing of Celtic harp and pipes and the speaking of Irish Gaelic in an attempt to subjugate the Irish people. The harpers were executed and their harps burned, thus much of the ancient music of Ireland was lost. Some of the tunes still exist today, having been handed down from person to person in remote parts of western Ireland, as was the old Irish Gaelic; but much of the Irish music we hear today was actually written in the 17th through 19th Centuries.
    Irish traditional music (ceoíl traidisiúnta na h’Éireann) tends to be written in sections called sets, with each set being either eight or sixteen bars long. Tunes usually have a minimum of two sets (the tune and the turn), but can have three or four sets, with the first set sometimes being repeated. Since the 17th Century, the Irish have gradually added the violin (fidil), 8-key wood flute, tin or penny whistle (feadóg phingin), and bouzouki (a fretted, string instrument similar to the mandolin, but tuned an octave lower) as traditional instruments for their music.
    Irish music consists primarily of dance tunes and songs or airs (in Irish: air = fonn; pronounced “fun”). Irish airs are tunes that are beautiful and somewhat slow in tempo. They often have lyrics and are either sung or instrumentally performed. Dance tunes come in a variety of styles to match the types of dances. There are single jigs (6/8 time in fast 2, with a three-8th note figure on one of the beats), double jigs (6/8 time in fast 2, with three 8th notes on each beat), slip or hop jigs ( in 9/8 time in fast 3; a jig with an extra beat), reels (usually in 2/2 or 4/4 with constant 8th or 16th notes and extremely fast tempo), hornpipes (usually in 2/2 or 4/4 and somewhat slower than reels, with a dotted or swung rhythm on 8th or 16th note groups), and set dances (written for a specific dance; varied time signatures and lengths to the sets), to name a few of the more common ones. In the case of reels, it is traditional to string two or more different reels together to prolong the dancing. Because of the types of instruments used, much of Irish music is often in the key of G or D, with Mixolydian mode (lowered seventh note) being quite common since it is similar to one of the ancient gapped scales.

    Ornamentation of Irish music consists of cuts (grace notes above the principal note), tips or strikes (grace notes below the principal note), and patterns of grace notes called rolls and crans. Slides (bending the pitch of a note) are also quite common. The latter are much more difficult to achieve effectively on the modern flute because of the lack of open finger holes such as are found on the tin whistle or 8-key flute. Flutists interested in learning to play Irish music on modern or 8-key flute will find Mel Bay’s Complete Irish Flute Book by McCaskill and Gilliam helpful. Good historical sources for Irish tunes are The Roche Collection of Traditional Irish Music, V. 1-3 by Frances Roche, O’Neill’s Music of Ireland, O’Neill’s Dance Music of Ireland, and O’Neill’s Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody.
Common Irish Music Styles:
    1. Airs (Fonn – pronounced “fun”)
        A) any song or tune with a slow, beautiful melody
        B) usually with lyrics

   2. Dance Music (Ceoíl na Céilí – pronounced “keohl nah kaylee”)
        A) Jig (Port – pronounced “purth”)
        B) Reel (Ríl – pronounced “reel”)
        C) Hornpipe (Cornphíopa – pronounced: kurn-fee-pah)
Common Irish Music Instruments:
    Celtic Harp: Cláirseach (pronounced: KLAWR-shiukh)
    Irish Bagpipes: Uílleann pipes (pronounced: ILL-in or ILL-yun pipes)
    Irish Mandolin-type instrument: Bouzouki (pronounced: ba-ZOO-key)
    Tin/Penney Whistle: Feadóg phingin (pronounced: FA-dohg FIN-yin)
     Frame Drum: Bodhran (pronounced: BOW-rawn)
     Violin: Fidil (pronounced: fiddle)
     Irish 8-Key Flute

 

The Irish Tin Whistle
by Kim J. Teal

Background
    The Irish tin whistle was invented in Ireland in the mid-19th Century as an inexpensive instrument for the masses. It cost a penny, hence its other name “penny whistle.” The tin whistle, a member of the flageolet branch of end-blown flutes, has 6 finger holes on top and comes in a variety of pitches. The most common whistle is the high D whistle, which transposes an octave higher than it reads, just like the piccolo does. Whistle keys are determined by the concert pitch that sounds when all the holes are closed, unlike orchestra and band instruments. The D whistle is in reality a “C” pitched instrument that plays a D Major scale, which is why it is the most popular whistle. Because there are no keys on the whistle, playing in other key signatures is quite difficult, so other non-D whistles are sometimes used.

        1.     General Tips
                A)    To avoid chapping your lips, coat them lightly with lip balm when you play.
                B)    The mouthpiece can clog easily with saliva, so you will need to “suck it out” frequently.
                C)     Tuning [Please note that this section applies to metal whistles with a plastice mouthpiece
                  and that CHILDREN SHOULD NOT attempt this. Tuning your whistle is not necessary if
                  you aren't playing with another instrument. You do this at your own risk!]
                 To tune your whistle, first check with a tuner to see if your middle D is flat or sharp. If it is
                 either, heat a cup of water in the microwave approximately 1:00 (minute) to 1:20, making sure
                 that you don’t bring it to a boil. [Safety tip: water boiled in the microwave will often explode
                 when the surface tension is broken by dipping something into it – keep it below boiling!]
                 Dip the mouthpiece into the hot water for a short time to soften the interior wax seal that
                 attaches it to the tube. Using an oven mitt, slightly push in or pull out the mouthpiece to get
                 the desired intonation, making sure you realign the mouthpiece before it cools. You may have to
                 dip it a few times to get it just right – or somewhat close. When finished, dry it off.
                D) When playing, don’t worry about covering the finger holes with the tips of your fingers. Most
                 whistle players just lay their fingers across the holes. For widely spaced finger holes like those
                 on the low D whistle, playing on the fingertips is not possible. Using “piper’s grip” or covering
                 the holes with the portion of fingers above the tips works much better.
                E)   Don’t think like a classically trained flutist when playing the whistle. Phrasing and breathing
                 aren’t as precise for Irish folk music and whistle playing. “Snatch breathing” is common for
                 Irish whistle players, so just relax, and take a quick breath when you need it. Perfect intonation
                 is also not a big deal, so don’t worry about every note. Just have fun. You can even stop the
                 sound with your tongue to get a clean note ending!

        2.     Care
                A)   Tin whistles don’t require much in the way of care. You should swab your whistle out when
                 finished playing, just like your flute. A double-ended oboe swab (yarn-covered) works the
                 best but a regular wire-handle yarn swab will also work well. Because the tube is so narrow,
                 your flute swab will not work.
                 B) When the mouthpiece gets clogged with lip balm, etc., run the mouthpiece (held upside
                 under warm water. Dry it and use a Q-tip or toothpick to clean out any leftover residue.

        3.     "High D" Whistle Selection
             There are many good, yet inexpensive brands of high D tin whistles. Some are: Feadóg,
             Generation, Soodlum, Oak, and Acorn. More expensive whistles include Chiefton, Dixon, and
             Susato, some of which are made in two pieces for ease in tuning and swabbing, which is an asset.
             Thin Weasel whistles are made of two-piece wood and are more expensive, but very nice, with the
             wood providing a beautiful tone. These are just a few good options. While the best whistles are
             wood, less expensive whistles usually are aluminum, tin, nickel, brass, or PVC tubing with a plastic
             mouthpiece and still play very well. I personally don't recommend a whistle that uses a wood block
             inside the metal tube to form the mouthpiece, since I had a problems with one I had. I prefer an
             all-wood or all-plastic mouthpiece, but that's a personal preference. I hope you try the tin whistle
             as it's easy to play, generally very inexpensive, and lots of fun!



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