Clay Whistles History and How To

The History of Clay Whistles Across the ages, whistles have been made and used in many cultures around the world for communication (signaling), for spiritual purposes (in meditation and/or ritual), and for enjoyment (music and toys). Whistles are one of the oldest known musical instruments. They are made from a hollow ended column. Whistles sound by blowing air into the column, past a hole cut in the column wall, making the air vibrate. The earliest whistles were fashioned from the bones of birds. Whistles have been made from clay since the early Egyptians, South American, and Asian civilizations, long before the Christian era. Many of these were formed to look like birds, because they sounded similar.

Ancient clay whistle with perforations so that it can be worn Ancient clay whistle with perforations so that it can be worn. It is from Iran. It measures 52.7 mm in width and 50 mm in height. Xun (ovoid ocarina), Han dynasty (206 b.c.–220 a.d.) China Pottery

Bird-Headed Figure Whistle, 8th–9th century Mexico, Veracruz Ceramic Ball Player (?), 7th–10th century Mexico, Nopiloa Ceramic

History Continued (Clay) whistles can vary from simple one-note instruments to tuned vessel-flutes with fingering holes (called ocarinas) with a range of an octave or more. Some have a mouthpiece; others have a hole that is blown across. The earliest known ceramic European whistles have been found in Holland, dating to the 17th Century and molded to look like owls. The column of the whistle ended into a bowl, the body of the owl, which was made to hold water. This made the whistle warble like a bird when air was blown into the stem in its back. These were known as water whistles.

Ceramic owl whistles from Holland.

Examples

Whistle History The earliest British whistles date to the 18th century. These were plain wind whistles, usually made of soft paste molded into simple animal forms, and glazed in the usual period colors. This type of pottery most commonly known as Prattware. By the 19th Century we find examples of both wind and water whistles. Water whistles almost always took the form of birds, from roosters to doves. Wind whistles would take many other animal forms. The vast majority of these whistles were formed in molds. This affirms that these early whistles were mass produced, most likely as novelties for adults, or toys for children. Even though they were produced in numbers, few have survived. These whistles are not marked, but their manufacture and glaze are typical of the Staffordshire potteries of the time. Early whistles were fully polychromed. Later whistles displayed less and less color, until the early 20th century, when these whistles bore little more than a few well placed brushstrokes.

Contemporary Whistles Into the early 19th century, the potters started molding whistles in human forms such as jesters and "Punch", children, historical, and hysterical figures. These novelties soon became premiums won at country fairs, and became known as "fairings". These toys were even incorporated as instruments in Schuman's "Toy Symphony". By the early 20th century, the clay whistle gave way to the pot metal, celluloid, and then the plastic whistle. The new media made whistles less expensive to produce and more ubiquitous a toy.

More Whistle History The whistle is an ancient folk instrument attached to cultures around the world. Historians believe the small, hollow-pitched sound-making object originated in ancient China around 2500 B.C. when Chinese night watchmen blew into acorns to alert of an approaching enemy. Other early whistles were made from bones and clay. As an early whistle-making material, clay remained a valuable and durable source for whistle makers into modern day.

Examples

Examples- Fish Ocarina

How to Make a Clay Whistle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhEanfGoFtM

Whistle Requirements -functional whistle -at least 4 additions to the basic whistle shape- ex: legs, wings, eyeballs, etc. -greenware deadline: 3/14/16 -sketches: 2 different ideas with color and details -one class period on the pottery wheel

Resources Images and information from: Clay whistle info and images http://web.archive.org/web/20061231201242/http://www.whistlepress.com/Whistle%20Galleryh.htm Justin Kramer's lesson plan http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/files/whistle.htm More Whistle History http://www.ehow.com/about_6631912_history-clay-whistles.html http://www.thepotteries.org/features/whistle.htm MET Museum Images http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/search/