G'day aagin,

leeneia: I wasn't making any absolute points about any of the forms of whistle - the mention of the background to the English name "recorder" was just an interesting sidelight on the past uses of the instrument. (I was once given a facsimile reproduction of an ancient manual for teaching tunes to songbirds ... by a much keener recorder-player!) One point I wanted to make was that there are endless variations of the whistle in folk history ... whatever the music textbooks say.

Wyllow: I would reckon that any old wooden recorder should be given a good oiling before forming any idea of its performance. Good 'blockflute oil' ... or high quality almond oil ... liberally applies to inner surfaces, allowed to soak in, then mopped fairly dry. Standard care kits should be available at music shops (although a .45" calibre pistol cleaning mop works well!).

Regards,

Bob Bolton