Lessons 2-1-1 to 2-1-25 - Notes for a D Whistle
Here are the 25 most basic notes for the Key of D whistle.
I've listed the lesson pages (with links where complete), but if you scroll down the page, you'll find an explanation of how to play note with an image attached.
The notes are ordered from highest to lowest, with the low notes in the left column, and the high notes in the right hand column (for those on a computer).
If learning from scratch, I would recommend learning Low B, Low A, and Low G first, followed by Low F#, Low E, High D. Then, go to C sharp, C natural, and Low D. After that, learn the seven remaining simple notes (without half-holing), leaving Double-High D for last (or for when you're alone!) Finally, learn the half-holed notes, starting with Low G#, as it's the easiest.
Happy learning! :-)
I've listed the lesson pages (with links where complete), but if you scroll down the page, you'll find an explanation of how to play note with an image attached.
The notes are ordered from highest to lowest, with the low notes in the left column, and the high notes in the right hand column (for those on a computer).
If learning from scratch, I would recommend learning Low B, Low A, and Low G first, followed by Low F#, Low E, High D. Then, go to C sharp, C natural, and Low D. After that, learn the seven remaining simple notes (without half-holing), leaving Double-High D for last (or for when you're alone!) Finally, learn the half-holed notes, starting with Low G#, as it's the easiest.
Happy learning! :-)
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Low DLow D is the lowest conventional note on a Soprano D whistle.
It's made by covering all six holes completely, and blowing softly into the whistle. Low D is one of the tougher simple notes of the lower octave on a tin whistle. If you're starting out, I'd suggest trying Low B first, as the breath control required for Low D means that you're best off leaving it until you've learned B, A, G, F#, and E. |
High DHigh D is one of the easiest high notes to play for a learner whistle player.
It's made by covering the bottom five holes, and leaving the top hole clear. The most important thing is covering the hole completely. After that, it's tough to over-blow, so beginners tend to find that they can make a clear High D relatively quickly. As you'll notice in the graphic, High D is notated with a lowercase d in simple notation. |
Low E FlatLow E Flat (notated "Eb") is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle.
It's made by covering the top five holes completely, and then half-covering the sixth note. I find that squashing the centre of the tip of the right ring finger against the upper edge of the hole allows me a lot of control as to how much of the hole I cover. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
High E FlatHigh E Flat (notated "eb") is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle.
It's made by covering the top five holes completely, half-covering the sixth note, then blowing harder than you would for a Low Eb. I find that squashing the centre of the tip of the right ring finger against the upper edge of the hole allows me a lot of control as to how much of the hole I cover. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
Low ELow E is one of the eight simple low notes (along with D, F#,G, A, B, C natural, and C sharp).
It is made by covering the top five holes, leaving the bottom hole uncovered, and blowing softly into the mouthpiece. It is a little easier to play than D, owing to a bit more give with the breath control, and most whistle players can manage a clear Low E after some practice. This should be one of the first notes you learn after you master B, A, and G. |
High EHigh E (notated "e") is one of the seven simple high notes (along with d, f#,g, a, b, and c'#).
It is made by covering the top five holes, leaving the bottom hole uncovered, and blowing harder than you would for Low E into the mouthpiece. It is one of the easiest high notes because it can be achieved without too much expired air, and is often one of the first high notes learned by players. |
Low F NaturalLow F natural is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle.
It's made by covering the top four holes completely, and then half-covering the fifth hole, leaving the last hole uncovered. I find that squashing the right middle finger up against the index finger and tilting the nail slightly towards the ceiling while pressing down hard gives the most control while playing this note, although this is quite hard to master, and needs practice. It's a difficult note, to be sure, but a very useful one, as F natural is the only note on D whistle that has to be half-holed to play a complete C scale. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
High F NaturalHigh F natural is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle, and one of the five high half-holed notes. As a result, you're unlikely to learn this note until you've mastered nearly all of the other notes.
It's made by covering the top four holes completely, half-covering the fifth hole, leaving the last hole uncovered, and blowing harder than you would for Low F natural. I find that squashing the right middle finger up against the index finger and tilting the nail slightly towards the ceiling while pressing down hard gives the most control while playing this note, although this is quite hard to master, and needs practice. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
Low F SharpLow F# is one of the eight simple low notes (along with D, E, G, A, B, C natural, and C sharp).
It is made by covering the top four holes, leaving the bottom two holes uncovered, and blowing softly into the mouthpiece. It is a little easier to play than D, and comparable enough to playing an E note. As it's usually the fourth low note you learn after you master B, A, and G, beginners often have some trouble with this because they don't cover the 4th hole properly with the right index finger. The trick is to grip it very tightly, and ensure that the finger is properly covering the hole. |
High F SharpHigh F (notated "f#") is one of the seven simple high notes (along with d, e, g, a, b, and c'#).
It is made by covering the top four holes, leaving the bottom two holes uncovered, and blowing quite hard into the mouthpiece. This note is usually one of the more necessary high notes, and tends to be learned early on. It's also one of the more playable high notes, and should not pose too much difficulty if you've already mastered Low F# and other high notes. |
Low GLow G is one of the easiest notes to play on a D whistle.
It's made by covering the top three holes, and blowing softly but firmly into the mouthpiece Most beginners learn G along with A and B in their first lesson, and it ends up being one of the most used notes. The biggest mistake with early beginners is overblowing this note, and not covering the holes properly, same as A and B. |
High GHigh G is one of the most important high notes to know.
It's made by covering the top three holes, and blowing quite hard into the mouthpiece. As with a lot of high notes, judging the correct amount of air requires practice. |
Low G SharpLow G sharp is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle.
It's made by covering the top two holes completely, then half-covering the third hole, leaving the last three hole uncovered, and blowing softly into the mouthpiece I find that squashing the left ring finger up against the middle finger and pressing down hard on the edge of the hole gives the most control while playing this note. While no half-holed note is easy, Low G sharp is probably the easiest one, and allows you to play a full Key of A Scale. I've also found that I use Low G much more than the other half-holed notes. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
High G SharpHigh G sharp is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle, and one of the five high half-holed notes.
It's made by covering the top two holes completely, then half-covering the third hole, leaving the last three hole uncovered, and blowing quite hard into the mouthpiece I find that squashing the left ring finger up against the middle finger and pressing down hard on the edge of the hole gives the most control while playing this note. Like its Low counterpart, it's not the hardest half-holed note to play, and is certainly a useful one to know. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
Low ALow A is also one of the easiest notes to play on a D whistle.
It's made by covering the top two holes, and blowing softly but firmly into the mouthpiece Most beginners learn A along with G and B in their first lesson, and it ends up being one of the most used notes. The biggest mistake with early beginners is overblowing this note, and not covering the holes properly, same as G and B. |
High AHigh A is one of the intermediate simple high notes.
It's made by covering the top two holes, and blowing quite hard into the mouthpiece. As with a lot of high notes, judging the correct amount of air requires practice. High A is a harder note than High G, and needs quite a bit more air than Low A, which makes it tough to judge for a beginner. Practice is needed here in the beginning. |
Low A# (B Flat)Low A sharp (same note as Low B flat) is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle.
It's made by covering the top hole completely, then half-covering the second hole, leaving the last four hole uncovered, and blowing softly into the mouthpiece I find that bending the left middle finger and using the tip of the left middle finger (as opposed to the flat of the third left distal phalanx) works best for what is probably the most challenging low half-holed note. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
High A# (B Flat)High A sharp (same note as High B flat) is one of the nine half-holed notes in the standard 25 notes for a Key of D Whistle.
It's made by covering the top hole completely, then half-covering the second hole, leaving the last four hole uncovered, and blowing quite hard into the mouthpiece I find that bending the left middle finger and using the tip of the left middle finger (as opposed to the flat of the third left distal phalanx) works best for what is probably the most challenging note, from both a fingering and a breath control perspective. As with all the half-holed notes, I'd recommend learning the full-holed notes first before trying them. There are fantastic whistle players out there who cannot play these notes with any degree of proficiency, and they still manage to play fine music. |
Low BLow B is the easiest and simplest note to play on a D whistle.
It's made by covering just the top hole, and blowing softly but firmly into the mouthpiece There's a number of reasons why this is the easiest note to play. It has a wide "breath window", so it's a bit harder to overblow onto High B than it is on other notes (although eminently possible). You also only have to cover the one hole, so air leakage from not gripping the hole properly is minimised. Beginners - Start Here! |
High BHigh B is strangely one of the tougher simple high notes.
It's made by covering just the top hole, and blowing hard into the mouthpiece. It is definitely still possible to over-blow this note, but mostly the problem with the note is that it goes squeaky and/or ill-defined. This can be sorted by ensuring a seal of the lips around the mouthpiece, and gripping the hole tight between the left index finger and thumb behind the whistle. Some people find this note very challenging from a breath perspective, as it requires a lot of air. |
C NaturalC natural is an important simple low note.
This note is made by blowing softly into the whistle, and covering the second and third holes. There are two schools of thought on how to play it; the alternative way is to just cover the second hole, although I find that it can sharpen the C natural too much, and lacks the control of the two-fingered approach. Nevertheless, I assume that someone reading this will have learned it the second way. As with all things tin whistle, some whistles simply have to be played differently than others, and this might be the necessary playing tweak your whistle needs. |
High C NaturalC natural is one of the few high notes that has different fingering to its low note equivalent
I make this note by half-holing the top hole, and blowing very hard into the whistle. With the half-holing, it's best to grip the top edge of the hole very hard with the left index finger. The main problem with this note is finding enough air for it, as the fingering technique means you have quite a bit of a breath window once you hit the note, and escaped air is less of an issue. |
C SharpLow C Sharp (notated c#) is one of two no-hole notes, and the nuances of playing this note are to do with breath control.
No holes are covered, so there's no fingering issues, but there's a surprisingly small breath window for this note depending on your whistle; you'll need quite a bit more air than the lower notes, but blow too hard and you'll end up squeaking or playing High C#. |
High C SharpHigh C Sharp (notated c'#) is one of two no-hole notes, and the nuances of playing this note are to do with breath control, like Low C #
This note tends to be whistle-dependent. There's a really small breath window for this note; it needs a lot of air, but it is very possible to give it too much. As with a lot of high notes, trial and error is necessary, and a suitable playing environment is recommended. |
Double High D
The highest note of the conventional 25 notes of the Key of D whistle here, although higher notes are both possible and played.
It's made by covering the second and third holes (same as Low C natural), and blowing very hard, although not too hard, as it is possible (believe it or not) to overblow this note. This can be an ear-splitting note, especially when you play it first. Be careful to be in a suitable environment when you attempt it first, as it is liable to go wrong a few times before it goes right. |