Clarke Original D Tinwhistle - Black with Gold Diamond Decor - a traditional Irish Celtic Penny Whistle

This review will be in comparing this whistle to: Clarke Celtic, Feadog pro, Feadog, Generation, Sondern whistles. First, The Clarke whistles are tapered, the others I have are not. What I have discovered this means is that in order to get a good sound in lower registers, you have to blow a little harder though the Sondern whistles are very tolerant, the Clarke whistles will make a good tone quality with constant blowing pressure. I believe this has something to do with the tapered design. My straight tube whistles require more air for higher tones. The feel of the whistle is nice. Though it is metal, it is a bit textured so the whistle doesn't slide around so it is easy to keep your fingers in the same position. The whistle isn't nearly as loud as brass or nickel. Not sure if it is the paint, the taper, or because of the piece of wood in the head, but it has a softer woody type sound, so for tunes calling for a softer, rich tone, this is my go-to in the key of D. The wood piece mentioned...one of the things I do not like about this whistle is the feel of the piece of wood against my lip, at first it was rough...after playing it a bit, the wood wore down some (along with my lip at first) The wood does absorb some moisture which helps prevent condensation buildup in the fipple, but it does reach a saturation point where the wood swells a little and then it doesn't play right until you let the wood dry out. The headpiece does not feel good on the lips, but. that piece of wood that is uncomfortable also I think is responsible for several pros. The wood piece is cut at an angle and is directly in line beneath the fipple...having taken physics classes on sound. I know that what this does is it causes the acoustic length of the whistle to match the actual length. What this means...is that when you go from the first to the second octave, there is not a cavity of pressurized air in the hollow whistle head that causes a crazed sound during the transition. So...all that science talk just to say that you do not need to 'tweek' this whistle with a piece of tack to soften the sound, it has a soft sound with nice smooth octave shift out of the box. Recap, when just learning a song I use this whistle because the tapered design will let me hit notes while blowing softly, and it is not overly loud, also the second octave has a softer tone and is not screechy and I think this is because of the wood piece and the paint. Con...I don't like the feel of the headpiece and when the wood gets too moist, it has to be dried before it can be played...takes a good hour or so to reach this point, but you'll know it when it happens.

Ordered two, one is a million times better than the other.,I know they are mass produced, but I am surprised at the difference in tone and feel. In the better one the bottom is round, the mouth piece fits better and the sound is more melodic. In the other one I can feel the suture, I need to move my lips more to tighten the air flow and the sound is a bit squeaky and will never reach the tonality of the better one . Without the comparison I would not have known better and be pleased.

I'll be honest, at first I really did not like this. I had originally gotten a Clarke sweet tone. I'm a beginner so, right away I thought the sweet tone was a bad whistle, or a just a cheap whistle. Then, after practicing and getting better, this magical thing happens where a cheap whistle starts sounding pretty good. So, I wanted to give this a try considering a few people I watch on youtube love this whistle and it sounds good. Right away, it was SOO breathy, and it took a lot of breath for me. I thought maybe my product was defective. But sure enough it seems many people, even the ones that like it, know and tell you it is a breathy sounding whistle. Well, I'm not big on returns so I just started using it, practicing the same things I was practicing with the sweet tone to break it in. And I'll have to say, I actually do like this whistle a lot. Yea, the amount of air it needs is quite a bit, but once you get a little more conditioned than it's not so bad. The sound is very pleasing actually. It's not very loud, which, for practicing I prefer that. I think it has a nice mellow sound, the high notes are a little less piercing, which I also like. I would recommend this for a good whistle, with the disclaimer that the sound is nice, but it does require a good amount of air, which after a while of playing you probably won't notice that so much. And it's a good start to maybe getting a low d whistle at some point. I think if you get it and don't like it at first, maybe play it for a day or two and see if you like it after that. It took me a few days before I realized I really do like this whistle.

I taught myself to play recorder at an early age (12) and played in group with adults playing good recorders (theirs were of wood, mine was plastic). I also now play the Boehm flute (silver flute). I also bought from Amazon another brand of tin whistle. The Clarke Original (painted black) is the real deal. I had trouble adjusting to the cedar block in my mouth. Recorder wood is finished and leaves no taste. The unfinished cedar has a strange taste, but I'm used to it now. I do not consider it a deal breaker. The instrument is conical - wide at the top (where the block is) and narrower at the bottom. This is similar to the bore of recorder & unlike the Boehm flute which is cylindrical. I believe baroque fultes also had a conical bore. There is a seam at the back of the Clarke. Cylindrical whistles have a seamless ture. I recall reading that the Boehm flute "caught on" in France & the rest of Europe didn't much care for it. Some of the early French makers used a seamed tube for their early product line because it was cheaper that a seamless tube. I think the reason it is a feature of the Clarke design is that it is easer and cheaper to create a folded and seamed cone than one that has no seam. Again, I do not find this to be a deal breaker. I adjust. The tin whistle is classed as a duct flute. The block is used to create a narrow windway tdirected at the lip which will vibrate in the stream of air the player controls. As with wind instruments generally, the player is the most important element in tone production. I had to learn to reduce the wind stream. I try to control it so I get a pure tone. The tone is the result of the air volume within the flute itself. There is a magic moment when you are playing and the sweet and pure sound of the note comes through. I had to learn not to push the note. The upper octave dpends on a stronger pressue of air than the first octave. I still cannot get the full effect I want above high g. I need to practice more. But I can do so much more with the Boehm flute so much more easily that I find myself drifting in that direction rather than working of the more delicate sound of the Irish tin whistle. Also, from my long history (over 70 years) of recorder playing, I find it easy just to play one of my plastic Alto or Soprano recorders. However, tin whistle is fascinating in its own right. I found out about tin whistle jive, a 1950's influence on African music. Even Harry Belafonte has a song about it that used tin whistle - Kwela. Amazon music has it & so does YouTube. YouTube has a great video of tin whistle players on a street in South Africa. It changed my image of tin whistle music forever.

Clarke has been making pennywhistles since the mid-19th century, so they have plenty of experience. This instrument--while obviously costing much more than a penny--plays very easily and projects well, especially in the upper register. The only real concern that I have is that the untreated wood block might swell up when playing for a long time, or that it might change shape slightly over time. The Clarke Celtic Tin Whistle, which I will review separately, is also a nice alternative. The advantages to the Celtic Tin Whistle are (1) the plastic mouthpiece should be impervious to changes as a result of moisture, and (2) it actually projects a little better in the lowest octave. I've owned one of Clarke's MEG pennywhistles for some time, and it is also a workable instrument. The intonation on the Pennywhistle in D, though, is better than on either of the Clarke instruments with the plastic mouthpieces. This seems to be because this instrument has an optimal volume at which the tone and the intonation are best. So, what you lose in flexibility and projection, you gain in ease of tuning. One other thing: the black finish on the Pennywhistle in D is quite nice and distinctive. In conclusion: you can't go wrong with this instrument, but if you are concerned about the wood block over the long term, the Celtic Tin Whistle is a great alternative.

as if i am an expert. take this with a grain of salt. the standard enamel black i kept. it has a warmer, cleaner sound. this looks cool with the two tone silver and gold yet sounded breathy to me. i gave it to a collector.

Nice instrument, good sound.

Bought 4 penny whistles to see which I like best. Ranked #1 by far the CLARKE PENNYWHISTLE-BOXED D had the smoothest tone and was easiest to play. It's tapered mouth piece with wood inset must be why. I can already play Inner Light, Frere Jacque, and Do-Re-Mi, for starters, the Clark Tin Whistle book is also a must if you really wish to learn to play the scales. One week and I am making music. Ranked #2 was the Walton Mellow D, with plastic mouth piece good tone but more tinny then the Clark. Ranked # 3 was the Oak Classic in C, again plastic mouth piece a full tone not too tinny, but more difficult to play. Ranked #4 was the Feardog in D. Probably should return it but not worth the trouble. It is off key, and almost impossible to get to not squeak, it might work good with the neighbors dog.

As advertised. Would buy again.

There is a wooden piece inside which makes it difficult to sanitize or clean

Buen producto

Se necesita un poco de experiencia de cómo usar una flauta, para poder sacar los sonidos reales, el armado y la calidad se me hizo muy sencilla

もう少し音量があってもいいかと思うが、高音域が出しやすい。