Mk Customer Feedback

Early Feedback on the Kelpie_ from Raymond Smith

0 CommentsWednesday • June 8, 2011 • by Mk Admin

Dear Misha,

Just a note  to let you know how happy I am with my new MK Kelpie Low D Whistle.

As an absolute beginner with low whistles, and little more than a beginner with whistles in general, it was important to me that my first low whistle came from a respected maker, had a good sound, was immediately accessible, and represented good value for money; the MK Kelpie exceeds all of my requirements.

As an instrument designed with the novice in mind, it works wonderfully. Your reputation in the whistling community as an exacting craftsman making whistles of a consistently excellent standard lets me focus totally on my playing. I can be confident that any funny noises are my fault, and not the instrument’s – I can’t ‘blame’ the whistle and set it aside dismissively as a ‘bad’ one! The one-piece construction also eliminates excuses – there’s no faffing around repeatedly micro-adjusting the tuning or aligning the head with the body – I just blow and go! The look of the Kelpie is also a major plus. It’s a beautifully designed and crafted instrument, and the satin-anodised finish is pleasing to both the eye and the touch – it’s just so pretty, I can’t resist showing it off to people! The Kelpie is also teaching me proper whistling techniques. I’m something of a ‘wet whistler’, and was initially frustrated with clogging issues – but this was easily dealt with by me actually properly warming the whistle before playing (another side-effect is that, to not have to keep spending time warming-up, I simply keep on playing for longer!). Finally, and most importantly, is the sound. In the first octave, the Kelpie has such a deep, resonant, flute-like sound, it’s a dream to listen to. In the second octave, it’s sweet and pure, but with a nice breathiness that never gets shrill. In the past I’ve felt inhibited while playing, worried about others judging the sound I’m making. With the Kelpie, the sound is so good that, even if I’m just tootling up and down scales with no tune in mind, the result is always pleasing – so confident am I about the sound the Kelpie makes, I’ve even spent the afternoon in the park, whistling in public (a Major breakthrough I can tell you!).

I’m also finding that playing my Kelpie is helping with playing my high whistle too. The extra air needed to play the Kelpie is training my lungs to work better, and this extra puff and control is making it easier for me to play the second octave on my high whistle, and to play it well – a brilliant bonus!

Of course, it’s practice that makes the master, but there’s no doubt that the right instrument makes the practice more enjoyable, more frequent, and more rewarding – to my mind, the Kelpie is unquestionably the right instrument, and I would recommend it to all beginners (and to any experts who want a quality whistle!).

Thanks, Misha, for making such an excellent whistle!

Wishing you every future success,

Raymond Smith

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