Site Information
Whistle Quick Links

o Every Whistle       $55
o Every Walkabout  $60
o Ghost Whistle      $25
o Clear Tabor Pipe  $25
o One-pc Cases  $10
o Walkabout Cases  $10
o Gig bags $29.95
o Hats  $12.95
o Racks  $17-19

Bragging Rights

"I've really been enjoying my Everywhistle! I take it in my bag with me everywhere. It has a great sound and feel, is ridiculously durable, and the take apart design just makes it so easy to carry. I've never carried any of my other whistles around as much as this one."

 - Dominic in Massachusetts, Walkabout C, D set

"I received the set and have been unable to put the whistle down.  Excellent.  Nicely finished, easy to play with good tone through 2 octaves.  Best deal going for the money."

 - Richard in Minnesota, Every C, D, Eb set

"It arrived a few days ago, and I'm loving it. Excellent whistle, great sound, very portable. The best part, of course, is the tuning ring, or silencer, or whatever. I'm living in a Japanese apartment with pathetically thin walls, and I can play without my neighbours hating me. Thanks!"

 - Ben in Japan, Walkabout Every whistle

"Really enjoy my new whistle, as I'm just learning, your whistle is such a joy to play! After playing other whistles, yours takes the worry out of learning to blow too hard or soft. Thanks again."

 - Scott from Texas, Walkabout Every whistle

"I can't begin to tell you how impressed I am with the tone and playability of these whistles. There might be a temptation to think of them as novelties, but these are serious, quality instruments. I have a few "good" whistles in my stable and your's play as good or better. Both whistles handle the upper end of the 2nd octave nicely. My cats have stopped wincing when I hit a high C. I was really impressed with the tone of the C whistle - beautiful. It makes my -censored- sound like a fog horn by comparison."

 - Lindy from Illinois, Walkabout Every C,D whistle set

"The whistle arrived within 5 days. I am quite enjoying it. It is easily matches my Water Weasel, and is perfect for my travels. My cat also appreciates the lower volume capability. Thanks for the lovely whistle."

 - Chris from Santa Maria, CA, Walkabout Every whistle

"The more I play this whistle the more I love it!  I can't say enough about how wonderful it is.  I've played quite a few high end whistles and I would venture to say this one is pretty darn close to them.  I'll be playing at a Scottish festival this weekend and I'm seriously considering using this whistle for a few sets."

  - Tiffany from Utah, Walkabout Every whsitle

"Thanks to your clever design, I can whistle away without troubling a soul..."

  - Lucia from Bonita Beach, FL, Every whistle

"The whistle we bought from you is extremely nice. It has such a nice sound compared to what we have at home. She told me it plays much easier as well."

  - Rick and Candice from Punta Gorda, FL, Every whistle

"I must say, quite simply, that your Every whistle is the nicest I've ever played. I'm struck at its appearance, lovely construction, and precise tuning. The mouthpiece is a real masterpiece. Bravo, bravissimo!"

  - Guido from Verona, Italy , Every whistle

"Here's a well thought-out, well executed, straight-up-and-down good whistle!  The cut-lines and presentation are exact and the overall finish and feel is pleasing. Tone is clear and pleasant."

  - Mitch from Australia , Every whistle

"The just intonation tube is a dream to play! It has been hard to put it down, but I don't think my neighbor can hear it if I adjust it just right. I need sleep but I gotta whistle!"

  - Phil from Sparta NC , Every whistle

"The Everywhistle is the best whistle for the money i have ever heard! I like it almost as much as my $150 Burke.  It was recommended to me by Annie, who Jams with us in Hannibal.  I will recommend it to everyone, too."

  - Paul from Hannibal, MO , Every whistle

"I know this is going to be one of my favorites. Not on a level with my $350 Abell, but what the heck, I paid $35 for it! The tone is good. Not shrill. It's not as round sounding as a $300 whistle, but better than cheapies. This is a whistle for both newbies (it's cheap) and anyone who wants to practice quietly. If Parks makes them all like the one I have, he'll be selling a ton of whistles."

  - Thomas from Heath TX, Every whistle

"This nice looking little chunk of plumbing may be called the 'EveryWhistle', but this is definitely *not* your average whistle! Given the tune-ability, and the mute function, I would say this is one excellent whistle for the price."

  - Annie from near St Louis, Every whistle
     Sassafrass Grove Whistle Cases 

"It is a good whistle! Good job and best of luck!"

- Mack Hoover, Every whistle
   Mack Hoover Whistles

"My favorite sound was approx 1/4 maybe a little less windway exposed. It sounds like my beloved Clarke Original design but with a little bit louder sound, esp in the 2nd octave. The bottom D was nice and chiffy. "

- fancypiper from Chiff and Fipple, Every whistle.

"I make no claims to any sort of expertise but I know what I like to play, and expect this will be a regular. I am still playing your whistle daily and think that the tone ring is the greatest for adjusting volume in combo with re-tuning with the slide."

- Pat from California, Every whistle.

"It's a really nice whistle and perfect for playing in the house or if you ... want to try something out at the session but not be one of THOSE whistle players... heh heh."

- Brock Napierkowski, Riley School of Irish Music, Every whistle.

"I should be thanking YOU for the nice whistle. I played it a little bit for my father when I got home and he thouhgt it sounded good, too."

- Susanna, Every whistle.

"I just got the Ghost Pipe in the mail. Seems to play very nicely"

- Aaron Walden, Ghost Tabor Pipe

Welcome to Parks Whistles


In the web pages under the "Whistles" button above you can find details of my whistles. They are grouped into series, which share a common design, and differ only in key. I'm sure I will be adding and dropping whistles and whistle series from time to time.  I hope you find a whistle that pleases you.

Best regards,

Carey Parks



(These are the highlights. The rest is in the blog.)

5-Dec-2009 Workshop With Christel Rice

In December of 2009 Christel Rice gave a workshop at the home of one of my session mates from Tampa. It's always good to meet and hear other players, and a workshop is great because the point is the transfer of information. Small workshops in a private home are the best!

If you are not familiar with Christel's music, you can check out her web page at Christel Rice. If you are familiar, go see what's new. You can find Christel on MySpace and on Facebook.

Here we are playing a tune on my whistles. Christel said she loved how it played and wouldn't hesitate to use it on stage. I told her that was awsome, and could she please send some photos when it happens?


Of course we couldn't resist having a few tunes on our flutes either. C'mon back Christel, it was fun!



 

16-Aug-2009 New Lathe Arrives at the Shop

It has been a long time since I posted anything here. That's because I've been busy making whistles to fill orders that I have not had time to do anything very interesting.  Here's a shot of the thing that has consumed the last week of my life. An Emco Maximat V10-P, which is a 5x25 all geared lathe. I know, this is whistle web site, what's up with the tooling? Well, this baby will allow me to work larger diameter, longer length material. Translation - Whistles in more keys! If you want more details of getting it here, check out the blog (link above.)





17-Mar-2009 St Patrick's Day in Fort Myers, Florida

There's much more about this in my blog (click the link above) but I wanted to mention here that when Cherish The Ladies came to Fort Myers, Florida for St Patrick's Day this year I spent a little time with Joanie afterwards and gave her one of my Walkabout whistles. She was surprised at the form factor when I handed it to her in it's little pouch. And she was surprised again when she played it!. Detail in the blog. Don't forget you can leave comments for me in the blog too.





9-Oct-2008 Old Favorite Back In Print

I have just found out that "Field Guide to the Irish Music Session" by Barry Foy is back in print. Hooray! If you've worn out your copy or "loaned" it away, now is the chance to get a new one. If you have never read it, now is the chance to get one. Great stuff. Order from Frogchart Press directly at: http://www.frogchartpress.com



 

14-Aug-2008 Better whistles through technology


Not too long ago a couple fellows from Australia and New Zealand came up with the idea and technology to take a recording of someone playing a flute and pick out the notes, then plot the results. This gives a picture of the tuning of the instrument when it is actually playing a tune rather than when the player is staring at a tuner needle. Here's an example of a plot:

In this case I did not play a tune, because I am not going to be the player. When testing my whistles I try to play both above and below proper tune for the note. The chart is designed for a flute, so the note names are an octave lower than they should be. I tricked it into working for the whistle by telling it A=880 not 440.

All whistles I make are now being checked with this technology that is called Real Time Tuning Analysis or RTTA. I check them when I am voicing them and again when the whistles are finished. The final plot goes into a database along with other information on that whistle, filed by serial number.

If you want to read more about RTTA, or download the various software programs, you can find the information on Terry McGee's web site HERE. At the moment Terry asks you not to post charts on a living maker's instrument without their permission. You have my permission to post plots of my whistles if you like. If you see anything interesting let me know!

Carey

PS - Check out the blog for the latest insight into what's going on in my workshop. (view blog)

 

My Mission

Making music with something as simple as a section of pipe with a few holes is magic. I want to share that magic, everyone should know about pennywhistles.


My Guarantee

Love it or return it. If your whistle ever needs repairs, I will work on it for free. 

The fine print: If you bought it from me, you have 30 days to send it back, no questions asked, and I'll refund your purchase price. If it's been a year, I'll be like "C'mon now, were you in a coma?" but will hear your story and try to make you happy. In between there are shades of gray and I hope I can fix your whistle because you musta liked it at one time, or I'd have it back before now. If there's a question, I prefer to screw me than screw my customer.

Fair 'nuff?


Contact Information

Here is how you can contact me. I have obscured the e-mail addresses to thwart web crawling spam bots, if you have any problems with e-mail just ring me. 

Telephone
239-242-7223
Postal address
129 SE 28th Terrace, Cape Coral, FL 33904
Electronic mail
General Information, Sales, Customer Support: Carey-at-parkswhistles-dot-com
Resellers:  Please contact me regarding wholesale pricing.

Evaluators
: I'll send you a whistle for evaluation. Just ask.
Links

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Parks Whistles Dealers
   Big Whistle Music  UK
   Irish Flute Store   ID, USA
   The Whistle Shop   Co Cork, Ireland
   Heritage Music   BC, Canada
   whistle & Drum  CO, USA
   Oz Whistles       Australia
   Panfilov     Russia

How to Play Your Whistle
   Brother Steve's
   Ryan Duns SJ Lessons
   Whistle Tutor
   Whistle This

How to Learn Tunes
   Learning by ear

Why to play your whistle
   Music Training And The Brain

Whistle Accessories
   Sassafrass Grove Whistle Cases 

Make Your Own Whistle Instructions:
   Low Tech whistle

Links to recordings of Parks whistles
Every whistles:
    The Gentle Breeze by Tiffany
   The Brides Favorite by Tiffany Every C Walkabout
    Cooleys Reel by Bothrops
   Fanny Power by Bothrops
   The Kesh by Bothrops
   O'keefe's Slide by Carey (Every C)
   Happy Birthday tunes

Other Whistle Makers
   Paul Bussman
   Mack Hoover Whistles
   Guido Gonzato

Friends and cool stuff
   Celtic Clan
   Hugh the Bagpiper
   Celtic Ray pub - Punta Gorda, FL
   Irish Rover Pub - Sarasota, FL




Some FAQ's that I've received:

Q: Is there any trick to getting the upper register to play without scaring the cat?
A: Yes and no. The notes above the second octave G will be the last ones you master. You have to blow faster air, but not harder air. More supported but somewhat easy. Call it more focused. Sound confusing? Take the whistle out of your mouth and whistle the lowest note you can with just your lips. Note how the air is flowing and why. Now whistle the highest note you can whistle with just your lips. Different? You bet. Same thing when you stick the pennywhistle in your mouth. Sorta. Tongue the high notes quite strongly to make sure you get all the way there. Being stuck between octaves makes a terrible sound. When I do that in our session people actually wince.

The mute will be a big help here. Close it down about 50% or so, which allows you to blow with wanton abandon and not fear for your ears. Practice the high notes like this so you get the hang of giving it a good strong start and then a lower volume (of air) but more focused stream to keep the note. Then start backing off the mute. It will take a while for it to be natural. I still find myself trying to play quietly on tunes I have not mastered only to make more noise with those high notes from not blowing them properly than if I had just let fly.

Some links to Carey's interests
   SW FL Paddling Club
   Mangrove Navy
   21st Century Kayaks