Man and His Whistles
Although the first human whistlers are lost to the prehistoric past, there is mention, both in Egypt and China, of mechanical whistles being employed several thousand years ago.
The Egyptians used small reeds of the papyrus plant placed in their cupped hands. Blowing through the reeds, a whistle could be produced. Even today, clever children are able to use grass leaves to extract the same kind of sound.
From ancient China, we have record of the “acorn” whistle. Seems that sentinels gazing out from the Great Wall were issued acorns into the top of which lookouts would blow, thus producing a whistle.
One thing was consistent about whistles, Whether it be a Japanese bird whistle or a gargantuan pipe organ, all whistles work on the same principle. Air, either dry or moist, is blown into a chamber and immediately meets with a partition which separates the air into two parts, thus causing turbulence. The turbulent air then proceeds to a sound chamber. Depending on the size and configuration of the sound chamber and the pressure exerted, a tone is produced of varying intensities.
In the case of the bird whistle, the sound chamber is aided by both small peas and water to produce a warble that mimics a bird’s call. Some of these bird whistles are so true to nature, the whistler may be mistaken for a potential mate by the species targeted. As you can imagine, in such a situation, both whistler and bird are subject to some level of embarrassment.
On the utilitarian side of the equation, police and sports whistles are of the pea variety, with small pellets in the sound chambers. Like the bird whistle, these produce a rattling sound along with intensifying turbulence which then increases the “shrill” potential of the mechanism.
Since 1969 or so, whistles have no longer been used by police forces to call for backup. Especially in crowded, noisy urban areas, whistles could no longer be heard over the din. Therefore, hand held radios were brought into service. Today, collar radios are used for better police coordination.
Even so, especially in countries such as England, an engraved ceremonial whistle is sometimes presented to a career officer at retirement.
On the transportation front, many cyclists prefer whistles to a horn. However, at least in my jurisdiction, a cyclist using a whistle can be cited if he or she does not also have a warning mechanism attached to his or her vehicle.
Train whistles command an extensive fan following, myself included. These are steam whistles specifically designed for use on locomotives.
Train whistles are generally tuned to give off a plaintive minor seventh chord. Even 19th century Americans, who perhaps had never heard a symphony orchestra play a minor seventh, could claim some expertise in recognizing such chords due to the ubiquity of steam locomotives. Minor seventh chords have been romanticized as being perfectly suited for expressing the vast loneliness of 19th century American landscapes.
In contrast to train whistles, fog horns are designed to produce very low tones (usually two in number) that carry over substantial distances in the presence of moisture in the air. Fog horns also enjoy fan clubs because of the calming effect their sound has on the rattled nerves of many a city dweller.
Continuing with the more celebratory aspects of whistling, the Slide Whistle (or Swanee whistle) was popular as a musical effect in the early days of radio and television.
Also a favorite musical whistle application is the so-called samba whistle. The samba whistle is used by a leader in a samba percussion group to catch the percussionist’s attention. The traditional samba whistle has three tones, but as the size of the percussion section rose, pealess whistles became more popular due to their higher pitch.
Continuing with the more celebratory aspects of whistling, the Slide Whistle (or Swanee whistle) was popular as a musical effect in the early days of radio and television.
Also a favorite musical whistle application is the so-called samba whistle. The samba whistle is used by a leader in a samba percussion group to catch the percussionist’s attention. The traditional samba whistle has three tones, but as the size of the percussion section rose, pealess whistles became more popular due to their higher pitch.
So ends the brief saga of the whistle
ToysPeriod is a leading online shop specializing in lego sets and model railroad equipment.
GHTime Code(s): fb579
