Whistle while you work.

• Author: Herbst, Steve
• Position: Entertainment

THE HUMAN BODY could be called the original folk instrument. Think about it: Why would anybody take a stick and drill holes to fashion a flute if somebody had not first noticed that when air is blown through a small round aperture, which some whistlers call a "puccalo," it produces something pleasing to the ear?

We have all sorts and sizes of fancy, shiny brass and woodwind instruments that have evolved over the years--flutes, piccolos, clarinets, oboes, bassoons, trumpets, saxophones, tubas, sousaphones, etc. Logically, they all evolved from whistling. Sadly, today, when everybody could enjoy and benefit from whistling, hardly anybody does; while all those other instruments enjoy prominence and acceptance with bands and orchestras around the globe, the human whistle is ignored.

Why don't people whistle anymore? It is natural, free, and a great stress-reliever. One does not even have to buy an instrument or pay for lessons. Yet, what used to be the most common of occurrences is a rarity in public, and certainly in concert halls and other performance venues.

People often tell me about a favorite great uncle or grandfather who used to whistle around the house while doing chores. My dad, for instance, loved to whistle in his basement woodshop or in our '52 Studebaker when we went for a ride. He could whistle two notes at the same time (which is called "duotone"). I was inspired by him and became determined to teach myself.

This was accomplished in solitude--not because I thought it should be, but because it never occurred to me that anybody else would be interested. It was just for my own pleasure--practicing with phonograph records over and over, in my room and on the street, walking to and from school. My favorite piece to whistle was Sergei Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf' (narrated by Sterling Holloway). I used this classic to learn how to simulate various instruments (the duck was portrayed by an oboe; the bird, a flute: the cat, a clarinet; etc.) and thereby, unwittingly by age 10, developed a three-octave range.

I would snicker when friends were dragged into their homes after school to practice the piano because I could stay out, play, and still practice my portable instrument. Of course, today, I wish I was able to play another instrument like the piano or guitar. Wouldn't it be great to accompany myself?

Rarely, I will hear about an aunt, grandmother, or mother who loved to whistle. Believe it or not, whistling, even when it was popular and more acceptable, was considered unladylike! Remember the old saying, "Whistling women and cackling hens come to no good end." Unladylike? So was smoking, but lighting up was perceived as sexy--all the great film divas were pictured doing so. Try to think of another actress besides Lauren Bacall who knew, never mind endeavored to teach anybody, how to whistle. So, women chose smoking over whistling.

Historically, nearly half the population was unlikely to whistle. Yet, what about the guys--the ones "entitled" to whistle? Reminiscent of "plastics" from "The Graduate," my explanation is "electronics." It started with the transistor radio, which made its appearance in the middle of the last century--the original "unplugged" device for music. Now one could carry music...