Tin whistle part of several folk traditions. Whistles are a prevalent starting instrument in English traditional music, Scottish traditional music and Irish traditional music, since they are often cheap (under US$10), relatively easy to start with (no tricky embouchure such as found with the flute), and the fingerings are nearly identical to those on the traditional six holed flute (Irish flute, baroque flute). The tin whistle is a good starting instrument to learn the uilleann pipes, which has similar finger technique, range of notes and repertoire. The tin whistle is the most popular instrument in Irish traditional music today. In recent years
Whistle Ward and A. De Courcy & Co. In 1987, Ron Foxcroft released the Fox 40 pealess whistle, designed to replace the pea whistle and be more reliable. Human whistling unaided by any instrument can be used for musical recreation or as a whistled language for communication over distances too great for articulate speech, among many other purposes. Musical instruments include the nose whistle or nose flute, the tin whistle and the slide whistle. Since a whistle produces a loud sound that carries over a great distance, whistles are useful for signalling. On ships, the boatswain's call is used to alert