Leyna's Whistle Collection
- Leyna Robinson-Stone
- Feb 7
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 24
Hello readers!
I have had many requests from my viewers asking about the whistles that I play in my music videos, so in this post I will share with you a bit more about my current collection, the whistles I’m playing in some of my most popular videos and recordings, and some news of what’s to come…
You can find links to all of the whistles mentioned in this post at the bottom of the page. You can also get my tin whistle tabs for all of the songs mentioned in this post exclusively on my Patreon!
Kerrywhistles
The whistles you will see me playing most frequently in my music videos are a range of Kerrywhistles.
A few years back I bought a set of tuneable Busker whistles made by renowned designer Phil Hardy - I chose these whistles because of their distinctive sound, and because the whistles played on some of my favourite movie soundtracks (such as Braveheart and Titanic) were also designed and made by Phil.
Since I play songs in many different keys, I also need whistles in many different keys, and the Busker set with whistles in A, B, Bb, C and D was perfect.
I love these whistles, they are very powerful in volume whilst also giving you amazing control and allowing subtlety in tone - they are airy and open sounding, and very expressive. I also love the look of the Kerrywhistles range - the sleek silver design and the shape of the contoured metal mouthpiece makes them feel timeless.
Also in my collection are the Kerrywhistles Chieftain V5 low D whistle, Optima low D and low F and the Cobre high D, which were kindly given to me by Phil, the designer. I will talk about all of these whistles further in future posts.
Note - I believe that the Busker range is now being discontinued, so they may become rarer to find, but you can now find a newly developed range of Kerrywhistles on their website.
Roy McManus whistle
You can also often see me playing my handcrafted Roy McManus African Blackwood high D whistle in my music videos. I had been looking for a wooden whistle with a different sound to what I had been used to playing, and this whistle came highly recommended by many of my favourite whistle players.
Roy handcrafted this custom whistle for me, and it’s absolutely beautiful.
This is a top quality whistle and it’s also one of my favourites to play - the Blackwood gives it a very natural and woody sound, and the expressiveness and vocal quality that you can achieve with this whistle is incredible. I played this one in my ‘Last of the Mohicans’ music video, as well as ‘Concerning Hobbits’ and many others.
Killarney whistle
When I was in Killarney, Ireland, I went into a music shop there specifically to buy a Killarney whistle. I had wanted a Killarney for a long time, and I decided to buy the Eb whistle, as this was a key that was missing from my collection!
Playing it in the music shop, I instantly fell in love with it! It’s so pleasing to play - a very pure and jolly sound with a soaring, gliding quality to the notes. The thing I love about it most is that it doesn’t require a lot of air pressure to play it.
I then took the Killarney whistle with me as I was hiking through the Gap of Dunloe in Killarney National Park, and I decided to stop by a lake and play it. I filmed a little clip of 'Morrison’s Jig' as I sat there, and this video went on to be the first of my viral videos on TikTok which received millions of views.
I love being able to share the joy of the tin whistle with people across the world, playing timeless Celtic melodies amongst nature on a humble instrument such as the whistle is something I feel speaks to the soul, it certainly speaks to mine, and I’m so happy that I can share that feeling with you all.
Other whistles
Like many whistle players, I started playing on a Generation whistle as a child, and over the years I have also played Clarke whistles, Feadog whistles, Walton’s whistles, and I still often practice on my Tony Dixon aluminium high D whistle. I would recommend any one of these for a beginner!
Upcoming Whistles
Excitingly, I have just received a Howard low D whistle, and a Shush Pro whistle from Big Whistle, and you will soon see these featured in some upcoming projects!
I will also be reviewing them on the blog soon, as well as going into further review of some of the whistles mentioned in this post, so stay tuned!
If you’re interested in learning the tin whistle, or you’re looking to upgrade, I highly recommend visiting the Big Whistle website, where you’ll find a huge range of whistles for every level of player, including some of the whistles I play in my videos.
Big Whistle - https://bigwhistle.co.uk/?ref=Leyna
Kerrywhistles - https://www.kerrywhistles.com/
McManus Whistles - http://www.roymcmanus.co.uk/
Killarney Whistle - https://killarneywhistle.com/
I hope you enjoyed this post, and as always, happy whistling!
Leyna
