The tin whistle is sometimes said to be a diatonic instrument.

"Diatonic" mean that only a set of notes can be played. For example, a "C" diatonic musical instrument can only play the white keys of a piano (these notes belong to the "C" scale). By contrast, a chromatic musical instrument can play all the notes of the piano roll (the black and white keys).

On a tin whistle, the diatonic notes are very easy to play. The other notes (corresponding to black keys on a piano roll) can also be played, but the finger positions are more complex.

That's why the first step is to learn the easy notes, which on a "D" tin whistle is called the "D" scale. The animation below is now your first tune !

Before starting, some basic advices:

• don't be stressed: in order to cover the holes, just put your finger on it. It's no use pressing hard, just pay attention on placing your finger well. The more relax ypou will be, the best and the quickest you will be able to play.
• the animation shows the breath strength in 3 colors:
  
  • green = blow softly
  • yellow = blow moderately
  • red = blow hard

The beginners tunes will only require to blow softly. That's easier and better for the neighbours