Clarke's Tinwhistle Product Review Part Two

My list of comforts is a bit longer than Cicero's, but only slightly, and it definitely includes musical instruments. As people strive to find more value in life by simplifying and downsizing their possessions, music often becomes more important not less. It seems that music, and specifically music making, is a primal need; music exists in every culture. Whether you're seeking to satisfy that primal need, or whether some other motivation is causing you to consider taking up a musical instrument for the first time, the tinwhistle can be a great starting point. It is inexpensive, easy to learn, readily available around the world, and most importantly makes great music when in the hands of someone who has learned how to use it well.

Recently I found my tinwhistle under my bread-maker. This happy rediscovery of its existence caused me to feel a bit of guilt that I had not bothered to play it all summer, but at the same time it made me eager to share a few words about this instrument. Although neglected these last few months, the tinwhistle has been an important part of my life for the past few years. Its importance to me was not so much that I spent a lot of time playing the instrument, but rather that it gave me accesses to an inexpensive portable instrument and somehow connected me with the hundreds of thousands (possibly millions) of other tin-whistle players around the world. It was discovering how popular the instrument is becoming again thanks to You-tube instructional videos, that got me interested in learning how to play it. A young student of mine first introduced me to the sound of the tinwhistle many years ago. He was so great at making music with it that I assumed it would be a difficult instrument to play. The online instruction broke the process down into steps and gave me the confidence to try it myself.

Self-efficacy is an important part of music making. In other words, believing you have the ability to play a musical instrument goes a long way to your being able to actually do so. If you have difficulty believing you will be able to play an instrument, then guess what, you will have difficulty. Starting with a simple instrument like the tinwhistle can help you launch into the world of music, but to get off the ground, you have to believe you can. These humble instruments can produce a wonderful sound in the right hands. James Galway, the legendary flute player, got his start on a tinwhistle and his recordings demonstrate the beautiful sound that can be produced with it. With practice, you too may become a great musician.

Before reaching the virtuosity of great players like Galway, a few basics need to be learned. Some of these have to do with learning how to handle the instrument itself, others have to do with the basic discipline of learning any musical instrument. Perhaps most importantly at the beginning, you need to develop a sense that it is possible to learn this new skill. While much has been made of the "10,000 hour rule", the amount of time required to be an expert in something, Josh Kaufman explains that it can take as little as 20 hours to learn the basics of anything new. 

By breaking down a skill into its essential elements and focusing on the fundamentals, we can learn new things well enough to master the basics. Before learning more about the tinwhistle itself, watching this video about how we learn new things will help prime your mind for the experience of taking up this new instrument.  

Be sure to check back for more info on the tinwhistle and how to learn to play it.

What Does a Tin Whistle Have in Common With a Bread-maker?

Originally, the title of this post was intended to be ironic. The answer was going to be "Nothing, except for the fact that I found my tin whistle under my bread-maker this afternoon." However, the more the idea was considered, the more similar bread-makers and tin whistles began to appear. Both tin whistles and bread-makers can be easily forgotten about; they have the potential to make life easier when used; once you learn the basics of how to use them, you will be able to produce an endless amount of variations; both can be purchased for very little money, and are the type of items to be found at garage sales where often you can find them still in their packages; people are always surprised by what they can produce and happy to find someone who actually uses them. There are probably other comparisons, but for now this list will suffice. My intention was not to sing the praises of bread-makers but of the tin whistle; this most humble of instruments that has brought the gift of music to countless people around the world.

I've had three memorable introductions to the Irish tin whistle. The first occurred many years ago when a young catechism student of mine brought out his tin whistle at the end of class and asked if he could perform a tune. He knocked our socks off. This little kid had an incredible command of the instrument and had only been playing it a short while.   He no doubt had a natural gift for music and reverence for the instrument. The fact that both of his parents were from Ireland may have meant that he was taught to appreciate its music from the cradle and I'm glad that he helped pass that appreciation on to me. His music gave me great respect for both the instrument and the people who play it.

My second introduction to the tin whistle came when I discovered the online tutorials offered by the Jesuit Ryan G. Duns. Duns taught a course called the Introduction to the Irish Tin Whistle as part of the Irish Studies Department at Fordam University. I can't remember exactly how I stumbled upon these videos, but do remember it was shortly before leaving for Nova Scotia in 2010. Duns' simple videos somehow captured my imagination and the spirit of why I was moving to Nova Scotia in the first place. I was seeking a gentler way of living and wanted to nurture a life where there was still time for things like music, writing and simple pleasures that are often forgotten in our high tech world. The penny whistle traveled with me to Nova Scotia and back home to Vancouver a year later. Although I did not play the whistle much while in Nova Scotia, Ryan Duns' other lessons were never far from my mind. In one of the videos he said something akin to 'find your own voice'. I could not find the precise reference to quote him directly; these may not have been his exact words, but this was the lesson I took from the videos. In Nova Scotia I believe I did find my own voice, and much of what is posted in this blog comes from that voice. It is easier to understand the necessity to find our own voice when encountering people like Duns who are using theirs in unique ways. Through his voice he is passing on not only the tradition of the tin whistle, but many other worthwhile traditions which have been forgotten or are perhaps being heard for the first time by many.

A sample the Duns' tin whistle tutorials can be found here. I would encourage you visit his other videos if you want to learn this instrument, or if you are curious about the other things you may learn from his clips.

The third encounter with the tin whistle was today when I took a break from writing to tackle some other chores. As the sad thought of summer slipping away started to develop, it was quickly replaced by the thought of making bread in the fall. That led to organizing the counter on which the bread-maker sits, which very happily led to the rediscovery of the tin whistle. My Clarke's Original tinwhistle  was nestled underneath the appliance that hasn't been used all summer. I'm not sure when I last attempted to play the tin whistle, but likely it was some time around the last time I made bread in the bread-maker. I was not consciously looking for the whistle, but subconsciously it was precisely the thing my heart was set on finding. Its appearance not only brought back a flood of happy memories, it solved three problems which were beginning to cause me some frustration.

This post is continue here