Irish Whistle

A follow-up to A Whistle on the Wind and Song of the Irish Whistle, this CD continues in the same vein, featuring Joanie Madden on an array of Irish whistles, backed by an even wider array of guest instrumentalists. The selections are, again, mostly traditional tunes arranged by Madden and Brian Keane, with a few original compositions thrown in for good measure. Overall, the tone of 'Song of the Irish Whistle 2' falls somewhere between lilting and gently ambling, with occasional forays into the livelier, percussive realm of jigs and other dances.

Such sweet sounds from such a simple instrument! Joanie Madden's plaintive whistle playing is full of expressive nuance, and this album showcases her talent, versatility and soul. Beginning with an original, achingly beautiful lament that accrues layers of accompaniment as it lilts along, the album then proceeds to alternate between orchestrated numbers and pieces with a more traditional feel.

Joanie Madden «Song of the Irish Whistle» (1996)
Celtic

Our library is a new generation of Irish Tin Whistle with incredible playability and realism. Tin Whistle was created with legato techniques. The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, English flageolet, Scottish penny whistle, tin flageolet, Irish whistle, six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a fipple flute, putting it in the same category as the recorder, Native American flute, and other woodwind instruments that meet such criteria. A tin whistle player is called a tin whistler or simply a whistler. The tin whistle is closely associated with Celtic music.

Our library is a new generation of Irish Low Whistle with incredible playability and realism. Low Whistle was created with legato techniques. The low whistle, or concert whistle, is a variation of the traditional tin whistle/pennywhistle, distinguished by its lower pitch and larger size. It is increasingly accepted as a feature of Irish traditional music. In both kinds of music the low whistle is often used for the playing of airs and slow melodies due to its haunting sound. However, it is also becoming used more often for the playing of Irish jigs, reels and hornpipes, it being easier to produce some ornametations on the whistle, due to the size of the finger holes. The most common low whistle is the "Low D".

Born in the Woodlawn section of The Bronx, New York, Joanie Madden has found her musical inspiration in her ancestral home of Ireland. The first American to win the Senior All-Ireland championship on the tin whistle, Madden is the youngest member inducted into the Irish-American Musicians Hall of Fame. The founder and leader of Cherish the Ladies, a band comprised of first generation Irish-American musicians, Madden has been equally successful on her own.