Tin Whistles

We currently sell the Carbony pennywhistles, from Carbony Celtic Winds, our favorites of the fine handmade whistles being made today.  Carbony whistles are incredibly easy and satisfying to play – the high notes of the second octave speak very easily, and the tone, intonation and response are outstanding.

We are particularly excited about the Big Bore Low Whistles with Close Finger Hole Spacing. At long last, people with hands of almost any size can easily play a low whistle. A true game changer. See Grey’s video here.

Scroll to the bottom of this page to watch videos of Grey demonstrating these whistles.

All Carbony whistles have a two-piece design, making them tunable. Being able to tune your whistle is essential if you want to play along with other musicians, or play along with recordings.

We sell eight Carbony whistle models, in keys from high G all the way down to low C. (High D is the standard pitch for Irish session playing.) These whistles follow in the footsteps of the legendary, highly sought-after (but rarely available) Michael Copeland whistles, in tone, response and conical-bore shape. Due to the very thin walls of their carbon fiber bodies, Carbony whistles are very light (just over one ounce for the high D), and virtually indestructible.

Carbony whistles come with a lifetime warranty.

The best seller currently, by far, is the Low D Big Bore Low Whistle with Close Finger Hole Spacing. This represents a revolutionary innovation, making low D whistles so much easier to play.

The next most popular whistle is the high D. It is available as the Carbony Session Whistle, High Whistle, Quiet Whistle and the seven-hole Leading Tone Whistle.

The Quiet Whistles are great for those times when you want to play or practice without disturbing others nearby. Their quiet, intimate voice is a result of their very narrow bore.

The High Whistles are the standard model for the high range, high E down to A. The Session Whistle in high D has a wide bore and a more robust sound than the High Whistle, perfect for Irish sessions or noisy environments.

We are very excited about the capabilities of the Leading Tone Whistles. They are seven-hole whistles that allow the player to reach down to the leading tone (i.e. low C-sharp on a D whistle) which is situated one-half step below the usual bottom tonic note of the tin whistle. This very small seventh hole is operated by the pinky of the bottom hand.
This extra hole can also be used to play the leading tone in the upper register, providing a very useful alternative fingering for that note.

Very importantly, one can use the seventh hole to play the Irish ornament/articulation called a “strike” (also known as a “tap” or “tip”) on the tonic note (the note D on a D whistle) in both registers. This cannot be done on a standard six-hole whistle. And, since you can strike on the tonic note, you can also play the Irish ornament called a “roll” on that note. This is a great bonus when playing Irish music. These added capabilities are also valuable in other musical traditions such as Scottish and Gallician.

You may also use the seventh hole to produce finger vibrato on the second note of the scale (i.e. E on a D whistle), something which cannot be done on a six-hole whistle. And, one can simply ignore the seventh hole to play in the traditional six-hole manner.

You may compare the sounds of these four high D whistles below. By clicking the play buttons or “Listen” links you will hear Grey Larsen playing the traditional Irish reel The Sunny Banks on the Session, High and Quiet whistles. On the Leading Tone whistle, you will hear him play two tunes using the seventh hole to play low and occasional high C-sharps. These tunes are the traditional Irish polka The Gullane followed by the traditional Irish jig The Rose in the Heather.

The following recordings have been processed with light compression and reverb, but with no pitch correction or other editing.