Tin WhistleA Complete Guide to Playing Irish Traditional Music on

the Whistle

Stephen Ducke

About the author

Originally from Athlone, Stephen Ducke now lives in a small village in the French Alps with his wife and two children. He has been playing the whistle and flute for over 30 years, and runs Irish music workshops with Tradschool in different parts of France each year. He has recorded one album on flute, entitled If There Weren't Any Women In The World, and currently plays with the group Bonaparte's Retreat.

Published by TradschoolDesign and typesetting by Stephen Ducke.

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Table of ContentsIntroduction.....................................................................6

About this tutor...............................................................................6The Irish whistle.............................................................................7

Beginning the Whistle....................................................8Holding the whistle.........................................................................8Blowing the whistle........................................................................9

Blowing your first notes...........................................................9Left hand notes............................................................................10

The note B.............................................................................10Exercise 1....................................................................................10Left hand notes - continued.........................................................11

The note A.............................................................................11The note G.............................................................................11

Exercise 2....................................................................................11Song : Mary Had a Little Lamb....................................................12

Unit 2 : Right Hand Notes..............................................13Song : Hot Cross Buns................................................................14Song: Oranges and Lemons ......................................................14

Unit 3 : The Second Octave...........................................15Exercise 1....................................................................................15Exercise 2....................................................................................15Exercise 3....................................................................................16Song: Au Clair de la Lune............................................................16

Unit 4 – Scales...............................................................171 Scale of D.................................................................................172 Scale of G.................................................................................17Tunes using the new note ...........................................................18Frère Jacques..............................................................................18Good King Wenceslas.................................................................18

Unit 5 – Rhythm, Articulation & Breathing....................19Playing Irish music on the whistle – rhythm, tonguing and breathing......................................................................................19Rhythm.........................................................................................19

Rhythm exercise 1.................................................................19Rhythm exercise 2.................................................................20Rhythm exercise 3.................................................................20

Tonguing......................................................................................20Tonguing exercise 1..............................................................21Tonguing Exercise 2..............................................................21Tonguing Exercise 3..............................................................21Song : Courtin' in the Kitchen................................................22Song – Mairi's Wedding........................................................23Song : The Bog Down in the Valley.......................................24Song : Cockles and Mussels.................................................25

Breathing......................................................................................26Breathing after long notes ....................................................26Making breath spaces...........................................................28

Some More Tunes.......................................................................30Unit 6 - Putting it together............................................48

Time!............................................................................................48Practicing.....................................................................................48Attitude.........................................................................................48

Unit 7 – Irish Traditional Music.....................................49Simple system.............................................................................49Combining elements....................................................................49The Basics...................................................................................50

Rhythm..................................................................................50Types of tunes.......................................................................50The structure of the tunes.....................................................51Ornamentation structure and rhythm....................................52

The Details...................................................................................53Making choices......................................................................53Fast tempo............................................................................53Ornamentation.......................................................................54

Unit 8 – Listening to Irish Music....................................55Listening.......................................................................................55Why is listening so important?.....................................................55What to listen for..........................................................................55

Instrumentation......................................................................56Repertoire..............................................................................56Style and technique ..............................................................56

Building familiarity........................................................................56Some players and recordings......................................................56

Unit 9 – The Jig..............................................................57Rhythm and tempo......................................................................57Some jigs.....................................................................................57Note Accent and Articulation........................................................62

Jig Rhythm 1 - Basic Jig Accent ...........................................62Some More Rhythmic Exercises...........................................63Jig Rhythm 2 – Accent on the off-beat..................................64Articulating the off-beat in jigs...............................................64Placing the off-beat in jigs.....................................................65Note Accent in Jigs – More Examples..................................69

Phrasing.......................................................................................71Breathing at phrase ends......................................................71“Overflowing” phrases – breathing after phrase ends...........72Breathing and Phrasing – More Examples...........................75

Unit 10 – The Hornpipe..................................................77Rhythm and Tempo......................................................................77Some hornpipes...........................................................................77Accent and articulation................................................................81

Hornpipe Rhythm 1 – Basic Hornpipe Accent ......................82Hornpipe Rhythm 2 – Accent on the off-beat........................83Placing the off-beat in hornpipes...........................................84Note Accent in Hornpipes – More Examples........................86

Phrasing and breathing...............................................................87Unit 11 – The Reel.........................................................88

Rhythm and Tempo......................................................................88Some Reels.................................................................................88Accent & Articulation....................................................................93

Reel Rhythm 1 – Basic Reel Accent ....................................93Reel Rhythm 2 – Accent on the Off-beat..............................95Placing the off-beat in reels...................................................97Note Accent in Reels – More Examples................................99

Phrasing and Breathing.............................................................101Breathing at long notes and phrase ends...........................101Removing notes in reels......................................................101Phrasing and Breathing – More Examples.........................103

Unit 12 – Ornamentation.............................................105Ornamentation 1 – The Cut.......................................................106

Fingering Chart - Cuts.........................................................107Use of the Cut.....................................................................108The Cut in Jigs.....................................................................114The Cut in Hornpipes...........................................................119The Cut in Reels..................................................................122

Ornamentation 2 – The Tap.......................................................124The Tap – Fingering Chart..................................................124Use of the Tap.....................................................................125The Tap in Jigs....................................................................130The Tap in Hornpipes..........................................................135The Tap in Reels.................................................................138

Ornamentation 3 – The Slide.....................................................140The Slide – Fingering Chart...............................................140The Slide - Fingering Chart (continued)..............................141Use of the Slide...................................................................142The Slide in Hornpipes........................................................148The Slide in Jigs..................................................................150The Slide in Reels...............................................................152

Ornamentation 4 – The Roll......................................................153Fingering chart - Rolls ........................................................154Use of the Roll.....................................................................155The Roll – Accent and Articulation......................................160G Roll ..................................................................................162F Roll ..................................................................................164E Roll...................................................................................166A Roll...................................................................................168B Roll...................................................................................170The Roll in Reels ................................................................172The Roll in Jigs....................................................................180The Roll in Hornpipes..........................................................183

Ornamentation 5 – The Short Roll.............................................185Fingering chart – Short Rolls...............................................186Use of the Short Roll...........................................................187

G Short Roll.........................................................................189F Short Roll.........................................................................191E Short Roll.........................................................................193B Short Roll.........................................................................195A Short Roll.........................................................................197The Short Roll in Reels.......................................................199The Short Roll in Jigs..........................................................203The Short roll in Hornpipes.................................................206The Short Roll in Hornpipes, Example 1 – Dunphy's..........206The Short Roll in Hornpipes, Example 2 – Poll Ha'Penny. .207

Ornamentation 6 – The Triplet...................................................208The Triplet – Notation and Fingering...................................208Use of the Triplet.................................................................210FED Triplets on D................................................................213The Triplet in Reels.............................................................214The Triplet in Jigs................................................................217The Triplet in Hornpipes......................................................219The Triplet in Hornpipes, Example 1 – Dunphy's................219

Ornamentation 7 – The Bounce................................................220The Bounce – Fingering Chart...........................................220Use of the Bounce...............................................................221The Bounce in Reels ..........................................................225The Bounce in Jigs .............................................................228The Bounce in Hornpipes....................................................230

Ornamentation 8 – The Cran.....................................................231The Cran – Notation and Fingering.....................................231Use of the Cran...................................................................233The Cran in Reels ..............................................................235The Cran in Jigs .................................................................237

Ornamentation 9 – Combining Ornaments................................239Tap & Cut.............................................................................239Slide and Cut.......................................................................240Slide and Roll......................................................................241Tap and Roll........................................................................242

Ornamentation 10 - Staccato Triplets........................................243Ornamentation 11 – Summary...................................................244

Unit 13 – Other tunes...................................................245Polka..........................................................................................245Slide...........................................................................................246Slip Jig.......................................................................................247Set Dance..................................................................................248Barn Dance................................................................................249

Unit 14 – Playing in different keys...............................250Half-holing..................................................................................250Cross-fingering..........................................................................250Whistles in Different Keys..........................................................252

Unit 15 – Playing Irish Music.......................................254Repertoire..................................................................................254

Choosing your repertoire.....................................................254Style...........................................................................................256

Staccato vs legato styles.....................................................256“Lift” and “swing”..................................................................256Other stylistic choices.........................................................257

Conscious Choices....................................................................257Learning by Ear.........................................................................258

Advantages of learning by ear............................................258How to learn by ear.............................................................258Using Sheet Music..............................................................259

Unit 16 – Tunes............................................................260The Haunted House............................................................261The Rose in the Heather.....................................................261The Killavil Jig.....................................................................262The Ship in Full Sail............................................................262Saddle the Pony..................................................................263The Humours of Glendart....................................................263Out on the Ocean................................................................264The Leitrim Jig.....................................................................264The Frost is all Over............................................................265The Rambling Pitchfork.......................................................265Pay the Reckoning..............................................................266Club Céilí.............................................................................266The Battering Ram..............................................................267The Blackthorn Stick...........................................................267The Mist on the Meadow.....................................................268The Monaghan Jig..............................................................268The Skylark.........................................................................269The Ashplant.......................................................................269Jackie Coleman's................................................................270Ships are Sailing.................................................................270Sheehan's............................................................................271Over the Moor to Maggie....................................................271The Heather Breeze............................................................272Lady Ann Montgomery........................................................272The Teetotaller.....................................................................273Saint Anne's.........................................................................273The Maid Behind the Bar....................................................274The Cup of Tea....................................................................274The Silver Spear..................................................................275The Humours of Tulla..........................................................275The Green Mountain...........................................................276Miss Monaghan...................................................................276Sean Reid's.........................................................................277The Wind that Shakes the Barley.......................................277Micho Russell's...................................................................278The Earl's Chair...................................................................278The Galway Rambler..........................................................279The Home Ruler..................................................................280Kitty's Wedding....................................................................280The Boys of Bluehill............................................................281

Appendix 1 – Reading Music........................................282Music Notation Basics...............................................................282

Notes and the Staff..............................................................282Key Signatures....................................................................284Note Values.........................................................................284

Appendix 2 – Bibliography...........................................285