A shepherd's whistle is a specialized, modulatable, variable-pitch whistle used to train and transmit commands to working dogs and other animals. Unlike other whistles, they are placed inside the mouth. The pitch is controlled by the placement of the tongue; physically, shepherd's whistles are vessel flutes with the tongue forming one side of the resonating chamber, and controlling its size. Like tin whistles, while simple, they can be used as musical instruments in their own right.
A shepherd's whistle is traditionally used for communicating commands to a sheepdog to aid in herding. They are typically seen used at sheepdog trials, but are also used for other working dogs including gundogs, [2] and for falconry. [3]
Shepherd's whistles are used to communicate clearly, and at distances up to 2 miles (3.2 km), the commands of the owner to their working dog. They produce clear, high-frequency tones of an easily modulated and variable pitch, allowing the shepherd to communicate a variety of commands. The pitch is at an optimal frequency for the herding dog's hearing, and for penetration and distance to cut through adverse weather when gathering sheep. [2]
There are some standard whistle commands, although the commands in use vary. [2] [4] [5]
If you are herding a big flock with two or three sheepdogs at once, you can control any one of the dogs, by whistling the individual command-tune which you only taught to that particular dog. [2]
Oral histories have noted primitive whistles made by of folding over a sheet cut from a tin, [6] [1] a jam lid, [1] or dog-food lid, punching a hole, and smoothing sharp edges.
They are also produced commercially. Simple whistles may cost less than 1 USD in bulk; [7] expensive ones may be quite ornate. [8] They are commonly made of plastic, aluminum, stainless steel, silver, brass, titanium, Corian, jade, buffalo horn and other materials. [9] The material affects the properties of the whistle, including the loudness, timbre, and range in pitch. [10]
The size of the whistle can vary to fit the mouth of the whistler. The whistle's shape is best described as a flat circle of material, folded in half on a center line. This forms a very narrow U-shape in cross-section. The open space between the two sides is quite narrow - approximately 4–5 mm. A hole is drilled about 5 mm from the fold, through the center line of both faces. [1]
The visible faces are then a half-circle shape. The design can also be varied to make the faces squarish, rectangular, or even a triangular A-shape, and handles or a hole for suspending the whistle as a pendant can be added. [1] [10]
Some whistles have two holes, to make them louder. [10]
The whistle position is not at all like that of a standard whistle (diagram).
The whistle is pushed into the mouth fold-first. The curved open side of the U is the mouth of the whistle - where the air exits. The lips seal against the outside of the curved edges, such that the inside of the fold can be seen between the lips. The back of the fold is sealed against the tongue when in use, but the tongue must not block the holes. [1] [2] Air travels over the tongue, through the top hole, past the top of the bottom hole, and out of the mouth between the lips. [11]
The edge of the hole acts as a fipple. The lower hole opens onto an otherwise closed pocket of air, in the space between the whistle and the bottom of the mouth. This space acts as a sound box; the sound resonates in it. Blowing over the lip of a bottle or jug also makes resonances by blowing across an opening.
Unlike typical, single-tone whistles, the shepherd's whistle can emit a range of pitches, by using the tongue and mouth to change the shape and size of the "sound box". By moving the tongue and mouth, the resonance, and therefore the sound, can be varied. [11] See vessel flute.
A range of over an octave is possible, but whistle vary in the range of pitches and loudnesses they can produce; [2] Denser material typcally have greater ranges. [2] [10]
When a dog is trained to voice commands, whistle commands are added in parallel; when the dog is responding to the whistle commands, the voice commands can be ommitted. Commands may be lengthened and loudened to get the dog'd attention. [2]
The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a type of fipple flute, putting it in the same class as the recorder, Native American flute, and other woodwind instruments that meet such criteria. A tin whistle player is called a whistler. The tin whistle is closely associated with Irish traditional music and Celtic music. Other names for the instrument are the flageolet, English flageolet, Scottish penny whistle, tin flageolet, or Irish whistle.
The Border Collie is a British breed of herding dog of medium size. Widely considered to be the most intelligent dog breed, they are descended from landrace sheepdogs once found all over the British Isles, but became standardised in the Anglo-Scottish border region. They are now mostly used as working dogs to herd livestock, specifically sheep.
The ocarina is a wind musical instrument; it is a type of vessel flute. Variations exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the body. It is traditionally made from clay or ceramic, but other materials are also used, such as plastic, wood, glass, metal, or bone.
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A sheepdog trial — is a competition or test for working abilities of herding breeds dogs. It is a type of dog sport that emerged in the 1860s in New Zealand. By the 1870s regular trials were also being held in Australia and the United Kingdom, and by the end of the 20th century gained popularity in many countries of the world. In competition, dogs demonstrate basic herding management skills assessed by the judge. International and national cynological and sports organisations, sheep and cattle breeders' societies are involved in organising these events. Usually competitions are held with sheep, sometimes other animals are used: ducks or cows.
Whistled languages use whistling to emulate speech and facilitate communication. A whistled language is a system of whistled communication which allows fluent whistlers to transmit and comprehend a potentially unlimited number of messages over long distances. Whistled languages are different in this respect from the restricted codes sometimes used by herders or animal trainers to transmit simple messages or instructions. Generally, whistled languages emulate the tones or vowel formants of a natural spoken language, as well as aspects of its intonation and prosody, so that trained listeners who speak that language can understand the encoded message.
Whistling without the use of an artificial whistle is achieved by creating a small opening with one's lips, usually after applying moisture and then blowing or sucking air through the space. The air is moderated by the lips, curled tongue, teeth or fingers to create turbulence, and the curled tongue acts as a resonant chamber to enhance the resulting sound by acting as a type of Helmholtz resonator. By moving the various parts of the lips, fingers, tongue and epiglottis, one can then manipulate the types of whistles produced.
A herding dog, also known as a stock dog, shepherd dog, sheep dog or working dog, is a type of dog that either has been trained in herding or belongs to breeds that are developed for herding.
Collies form a distinctive type of herding dogs, including many related landraces and standardized breeds. The type originated in Scotland and Northern England. Collies are medium-sized, fairly lightly-built dogs, with pointed snouts. Many types have a distinctive white color over the shoulders. Collies are very active and agile, and most types of collies have a very strong herding instinct. Collie breeds have spread through many parts of the world, and have diversified into many varieties, sometimes mixed with other dog types.
The kaval is a chromatic end-blown flute traditionally played throughout the Balkans and Anatolia. The kaval is primarily associated with mountain shepherds.
Dog communication is the transfer of information between dogs, as well as between dogs and humans. Behaviors associated with dog communication are categorized into visual and vocal. Visual communication includes mouth shape and head position, licking and sniffing, ear and tail positioning, eye gaze, facial expression, and body posture. Dog vocalizations, or auditory communication, can include barks, growls, howls, whines and whimpers, screams, pants and sighs. Dogs also communicate via gustatory communication, utilizing scent and pheromones.
A flue pipe is an organ pipe that produces sound through the vibration of air molecules, in the same manner as a recorder or a whistle. Air under pressure is driven through a flue and against a sharp lip called a labium, causing the column of air in the pipe to resonate at a frequency determined by the pipe length. Thus, there are no moving parts in a flue pipe. This is in contrast to reed pipes, whose sound is driven by beating reeds, as in a clarinet. Flue pipes are common components of pipe organs.
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Hearing range describes the range of frequencies that can be heard by humans or other animals, though it can also refer to the range of levels. The human range is commonly given as 20 to 20,000 Hz, although there is considerable variation between individuals, especially at high frequencies, and a gradual loss of sensitivity to higher frequencies with age is considered normal. Sensitivity also varies with frequency, as shown by equal-loudness contours. Routine investigation for hearing loss usually involves an audiogram which shows threshold levels relative to a normal.
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Taonga pūoro are the traditional musical instruments of the Māori people of New Zealand.
A vessel flute is a type of flute with a body which acts as a Helmholtz resonator. The body is vessel-shaped, not tube- or cone-shaped; that is, the far end is closed.
The Gaucho Sheepdog (Portuguese: Ovelheiro gaúcho) is a dog breed that originated in the Pampas, Brazil. The breed is not recognized by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI), but it has been recognized by the CBKC, a Brazilian kennel club affiliated with FCI. Dogs of this breed are often characterized as sturdy and agile, which makes them suitable for herding activities. The Gaucho sheepdog is widely used for herding sheep and other livestock, especially in the southern region of Brazil.
The musical leaf is one of any leaves which is used to play music on. It goes by many names, including leaflute, leaf flute, leaf whistle, gum leaf, and leafophone. In Cambodia it is called a slek and is played by country people in Cambodia, made from the leaves of broad-leaf trees, including the sakrom and khnoung trees. It is also known as phlom slek, 'blow leaf.' To play a leaf, the musician curls the edge of a leaf into a semi-circle and "places the arch between the lips", making sure that the leaf is touching both upper and lower lips. The leaf vibrates in contact with them as the player blows air across it. The player can control the pitch of the noise with their upper lip.
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