Ask me which weird musical instrument you should learn this summer

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Ask me which weird musical instrument you should learn this summer

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

So what's the best of the under $10 tin whistles? Also, the forum linked doesn't have a tin whistle section...where should I be looking for help with that?

Edit: also how is the $13 orcarina?

Econosaurus fucked around with this message at 23:14 on Jun 12, 2011

# ¿ Jun 12, 2011 20:56

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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 14:21

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

TapTheForwardAssist posted:

Mradyfist might have his/her own opinion as to the best $10 cheapie, but I'd say either Soodlum or Feadog for the cylindrical style, or Clark for the (breathier, softer) conical style. In all cases, get one in D unless you have a clearcut reason to get a C.

What's the recommended option between cylindrical and conical? Do you have any good videos I could compare the two in?

Edit: Also does material (oak, wood, brass) make a big difference?

Econosaurus fucked around with this message at 03:01 on Jun 13, 2011

# ¿ Jun 13, 2011 02:55

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

If I want to play Kwela as well as Irish stuff, is D still the best key to get it in?

Edit: The oak looks really nice, considering that one. Thanks!

Econosaurus fucked around with this message at 14:34 on Jun 13, 2011

# ¿ Jun 13, 2011 14:28

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

Mradyfist posted:

I haven't played any Kwela myself, but after a quick glance at some sites it looks like the standard for that style is actually Bb; a lot of the songs are written in the key of D but intended to be played on a Bb whistle without transposing. You can probably practice them on a D by yourself, but if you want to play with a recording or a band you'll need a Bb. Normally I'd say get a Susato head and the two bodies you want, but Bb bodies are low enough that they use a different head in the Susato line, so you're stuck buying two whistles.

Kwela looks like it gets pretty advanced, as far as whistle tunes go. To play something like this, you'll need to be comfortable with half-holing as well as overblowing to get into the third octave, both of which are more advanced techniques. My recommendation is to learn on the Irish stuff, and pick up a new whistle when you're ready for Kwela.

Any recommendations on websites I can use to start learning the basics?

Also I wish I had enough money to buy some of these cool instruments

# ¿ Jun 15, 2011 14:19

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

Mradyfist posted:

Chiff and Fipple is your first stop, read through the tutorials on fingering and posture (but don't worry too much, bad habits are pretty easy to correct later).

Whistle This is a great place to get started on Irish trad stuff, they have a good set of guides on common techniques. Don't get too wrapped up with things like cuts and taps just yet though, I'd take a glance through the tunes that they've learned as a group, listen to some of the examples people have posted and then see what you can do. Sadly they've stopped putting up new tunes, but there's enough already posted to give you plenty to do.

Finally, if you really want to go crazy you can start checking out some tunes on The Session, but be warned that it's filled with very rough transcriptions that, if site-read, will sound like poo poo. You're kind of expected to know how to add your own ornamentation.

Hm, it looks like the whistle university part of Whistle This had all its videos taken down :smith:

. Any particular first songs you can link to? All the previous songs on that site seem to be a little tricky for someone new, and Chiff and Fipple doesn't have any notation as far as I can tell.

# ¿ Jun 15, 2011 19:58

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

Mradyfist posted:

Have you done any site-reading on other instruments before? If you've played any type of sax before, the whistle is fingered almost identically (minus the accidentals). If not, the stuff on Whistle This might be kind of difficult for learning fingerings. I might have some sheet music floating around on my computer that's a better option, I'll post it if I find it. Here's some links to some of the easier stuff on Whistle This:

Si Bheag, Si Mhor - This one is nice and slow, plus it's a pretty song. No tricky parts if you're playing it on a D.

The Road To Lisdoonvarna - A decent, easy example of the standard Em-D jig that you will hear all the time. I don't know why they notated it in 12/8, just pretend there's another bar line in each measure.

Cooley's Reel - This one's a little trickier, but they didn't have much in the way of easy reels. Cooley's sounds great when you get sloppy with it though, so it's a fun one to learn.

The Butterfly - Ever seen The Secret of Roan Innish? This is the song from it, the one everybody wants to hear on the whistle. It's a slip jig, so it can be a little tricky; I usually count a slip jig as if there are three beats in a measure, and eighth notes are even triplets.

Haven't played sax in years, I can read guitar music though. I'll give these a look when I get home, the tricky part will be learning the fingerings...

# ¿ Jun 15, 2011 21:01

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

The dulcimer is a great conversation starter with strangers, FYI.

Thanks for all the help tap, I'm watching Dulcimerica and feeling like I'll never learn this thing. But it's definitely fun!

Edit: If I want to mess around with DAD, can I just tune the top string on my DAA tuned dulcimer, or does it need special strings? Don't want to break a string already.

Econosaurus fucked around with this message at 03:18 on Jul 15, 2011

# ¿ Jul 15, 2011 03:13

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

TapTheForwardAssist posted:

Pick up chicks with your dulcimer on the Metro on your way home?

I actually did, not even kidding.

# ¿ Jul 15, 2011 04:07

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

Things I got because of TTFA -

A ukulele
A irish tin whistle
This stuff

(Soy sauce not included)

I keep putting this off...

# ¿ Jul 20, 2011 03:23

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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 14:21

Econosaurus: Sep 22, 2008; Successfully predicted nine of the last five recessions

My friend just got me one of these:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dombura

Anyone know how I can learn to play it?

# ¿ Jan 4, 2012 06:06

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Ask me which weird musical instrument you should learn this summer