Falling Whistles
Falling Whistles sells whistles for $34 to $104 to raise money for education, advocacy, and the rehabilitation of war-affected people in Congo. The organization got its name from a journal written by its founder, sharing his experiences during a trip to eastern Congo in 2008. During that trip, Falling Whistles' founder met a group of five former child soldiers who told him that some children who were too young to carry weapons were sent into battle armed only with whistles. By wearing whistles, the campaign aims to use this weapon as a tool of protest and to raise awareness of the situation in Congo. As of September 2010, $500,000 has been raised.
Slide whistle
The swanee whistle dates back at least to the 1840s, when it was manufactured by the Distin family and featured in their concerts in England. Early slide whistles were also made by the English J Stevens & Son and H A Ward. By the 1920s the slide whistle was common in the USA, and was occasionally used in popular music and jazz as a special effect. For example, it was used on Paul Whiteman's early hit recording of "Whispering" (1920). Even Louis Armstrong switched over from his more usual cornet to the slide whistle for a chorus on a couple of recordings with King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, such as "Sobbin' Blues" (1923). At that time, slide saxophones, with reeds rather than a fipple, were also built. The whistle was also widely used in Jug band music of the 1920s such as Whistler's Jug Band. Gavin Gordon uses a slide whistle in his ballet "The Rake's Progress" (1935).