Tin whistle The whistle's fingering system is similar to that of the six hole, "simple system English flutes" ("simple" in comparison to Boehm system flutes). The six hole, diatonic system is also used on baroque flutes, and was of course well known before Robert Clarke began producing his tin whistles. Clarke's first whistle, the Meg, was pitched in high A and was later made in other keys suitable for Victorian parlour music. The company showed the whistles in The Great Exhibition of 1851. The Clark tin whistle is voiced somewhat on an organ-pipe with a flattened tube forming the lip of the
Low whistle others it is viewed as a "transition instrument" for players seeking to eventually learn the seemingly more prestigious (and expensive) flute or uilleann pipes. While it is true that many skills learnt on the low whistle carry over to these instruments, "some of the greatest players of traditional music have been associated with the low whistle" and have helped foster its reputation as a highly versatile and respected instrument in its own right, with a unique and evocative sound. Much like the Irish flat-backed bouzouki, the low whistle can be seen as a product of a period when experiments in