View source for Bansuri

{{Short description|Indian side-blown flute, generally bamboo}}
{{other uses}}
{{Redirect|Indian flute|the Native American musical instrument|Native American flute}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{Use Indian English|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox instrument
|names=Baanhi, Baashi, Bansi, Basari, Murali
|image =Bansuri bamboo flute 23inch.jpg
|caption =A {{cvt|23|in|cm|order=flip}} long bansuri bamboo flute for concerts.
|classification=[[Woodwind]] instrument
|range= {{frac|2|1|2}} octaves (six-hole), 3 octaves (seven-hole)
|musicians= [[:Category:Indian flautists|List of Indian flautists]]
|sound sample = [[File:Sample2.ogg|thumb|center|A Bansuri recording (54&nbsp;s)]]
}}
[[File:Venugopal2.JPG|thumb|Krishna with a ''bansuri'' is sometimes referred to as ''Venugopal''.]]

A '''bansuri''' is an ancient [[Transverse flute|side-blown]] [[bamboo flute]] originating from the [[South Asia|Indian Subcontinent]]. It is an [[aerophone]] produced from bamboo and metal-like material, used in many [[India]]n and [[Nepal]]i Lok songs.  A ''bansuri'' is traditionally made from a single hollow shaft of bamboo with seven finger holes. Some modern designs come in ivory, fiberglass and various metals. The six-hole instrument covers two and a half octaves of music. The ''bansuri'' is typically between {{convert|30|and|75|cm|in}} in length, and the thickness of a human thumb.{{Sfn|Ashok Damodar Ranade|2006|pp=284–286}}<ref>{{cite book|author1=Bettina Bäumer|author2=Kapila Vatsyayan|title=Kalatattvakosa: A Lexicon of Fundamental Concepts of the Indian Arts|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uPoIZaGGtiMC&pg=PA181|year=1988|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1402-8|page=181}}</ref> One end is closed, and few centimeters from the closed end is its blow hole. Longer ''bansuris'' feature deeper tones and lower pitches.{{Sfn|Ashok Damodar Ranade|2006|pp=284–286}} The traditional design features no mechanical keys, and the musician creates the notes they want by covering and uncovering the various finger holes.{{Sfn|Ashok Damodar Ranade|2006|pp=284–286}}<ref>{{cite book|author1=Dorothea E. Hast|author2=James R. Cowdery|author3=Stanley Arnold Scott|title=Exploring the World of Music: An Introduction to Music from a World Music Perspective|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=00CwGRwv6XQC&pg=PA153|year=1999|publisher=Kendall Hunt|isbn=978-0-7872-7154-1|page=153}}</ref>

The ''bansuri''-like flute is depicted in ancient Buddhist,<ref>{{cite book|author=Patricia E. Karetzky|title=Early Buddhist Narrative Art: Illustrations of the Life of the Buddha from Central Asia to China, Korea and Japan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7YvFCwAAQBAJ |year=2000|publisher=University Press of America|isbn=978-1-4617-4027-8|pages=44, 60}}</ref> Hindu<ref>{{cite book|author=Alice Boner|title=Principles of Composition in Hindu Sculpture: Cave Temple Period|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=doQLZ21CGScC |year=1990|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0705-1|pages=157–163, 186–187}}</ref> and Jain temple paintings and reliefs, and is common in the iconography of the Hindu god [[Krishna]].<ref name="PalHuyler2016">{{cite book|author1=Pratapaditya Pal|author2=Stephen P. Huyler|author3=John E. Cort|display-authors=et al|title=Puja and Piety: Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist Art from the Indian Subcontinent|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NXolDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA232|year=2016|publisher=Univ of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-28847-8|pages=37–38, 47–49, 59–60 }}</ref>{{Sfn|Martinez|2001|pp=xxvii-xxviii, 325, 342}} It is intimately linked to the love story of [[Krishna]] and [[Radha]].{{Sfn|Sorrell| Narayan|1980|pp=35–36}} The bansuri is revered as Lord Krishna's divine instrument and is often associated with Krishna's [[Rasa Lila|Rasa lila dance]]. These legends sometimes use alternate names for this wind instrument, such as the ''murali''.{{Sfn|Lochtefeld|2002|p=370–371, 449}}<ref name="PalHuyler2016"/> However, the instrument is also common among other traditions such as [[Shaivism]].{{Sfn|Dalal|2014|p=28, see entry for Shiva-dedicated saint Anaya}} The early medieval Indian texts also refer to it as ''vaṃśi'', while in medieval [[Indonesia]]n Hindu and Buddhist arts, as well as temple carvings in Java and Bali dated to be from pre-10th century period, this transverse flute has been called ''wangsi'' or ''bangsi''.<ref name="Kunst2013p25"/>

==Etymology and nomenclature==
{{multiple image
 | direction = vertical
 | width = 220
 | footer = Musicians playing ''bansuri''
 | image1 = A bansuri player Sachdev, transverse flute, an ancient classical Indian music instrument.jpg
 | alt1 = A man playing bansuri
 | image2 = A bansuri player Stephanie Bosch, flute side blown wind instrument India.jpg
 | alt2 = A woman playing bansuri
}}

The word bansuri originates in the ''bans'' (बाँस) [bamboo] + ''sur'' (सुर) [melody].{{citation needed|date=December 2016}} A phonetically similar name for the same instrument, in early medieval texts, is the Sanskrit word ''vaṃśi'' which is derived from root ''vaṃśa'' (Sanskrit: [[wikt:वंश|वंश]]<ref>[http://spokensanskrit.de/index.php?tinput=bamboo&direction=ES&script=HK&link=yes&beginning=0 vaMza] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161222000255/http://spokensanskrit.de/index.php?tinput=bamboo&direction=ES&script=HK&link=yes&beginning=0 |date=22 December 2016 }}, Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Koeln University, Germany</ref>) meaning bamboo.<ref name="Kunst2013p25">{{cite book|author=Jaap Kunst|title=Hindu-Javanese Musical Instruments |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ytLoCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA25 |year=2013|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-94-011-9185-2|pages=25–26}}</ref> A flute player in these medieval texts is called ''vamsika''.<ref name="Nijenhuis1992p303">{{cite book|author=Emmie Te Nijenhuis|title=Saṅgītaśiromaṇi: A Medieval Handbook of Indian Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kGzESuCeK-sC&pg=PA303|year=1992|publisher=Brill Academic|isbn=90-04-09498-9|page=303}}</ref>

Other regional names of {{Transliteration|hi|bansuri}}-style, six to eight play holes, bamboo flutes in India include {{Transliteration|hi|bansi}}, baashi, {{Transliteration|hi|eloo}}, {{Transliteration|hi|kolakkuzhal}}, {{Transliteration|hi|kulal}}, {{Transliteration|hi|kulalu}}, {{Transliteration|hi|kukhl}}, {{Transliteration|hi|lingbufeniam}}, {{Transliteration|hi|murali}}, {{Transliteration|hi|murli}}, {{Transliteration|hi|nadi}}, {{Transliteration|hi|nar}}, {{Transliteration|hi|odakkuzhal}}, {{Transliteration|hi|pawa}}, {{Transliteration|hi|pullankuzhal}}, {{Transliteration|hi|pillana grovi}}, {{Transliteration|hi|pulangoil}}, {{Transliteration|hi|vansi}}, {{Transliteration|hi|vasdanda}}, {{Transliteration|hi|sipung}}, and {{Transliteration|hi|venuvu}}.{{sfn|Nettl et al.|1998|pp=345, 350–354, 360, 497}}<ref name=westbrook2003>Peter Westbrook (2003), ''The bansuri and pulangoil, bamboo flutes of India'', Flutist Quarterly, Vol. 28, No. 3, pages 1–4</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Dale A. Olsen|title=World Flutelore: Folktales, Myths, and Other Stories of Magical Flute Power|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3bUPBAAAQBAJ |year=2013|publisher=University of Illinois Press|isbn=978-0-252-09514-6|pages=10–12}}</ref>  The instrument is also used in Nepal, under the name Bām̐surī (बाँसुरी).<ref name=ministry>{{cite book |title=Haamra Lokbaajaaharu (translation with subtitle: Our Musical Instruments, 'A course book for school children.') |last= Kadel |first=Ram Prasad | publisher= The [Nepal] Ministry of Education, Curriculum Department of Nepal Government |date=2006 |language= ne |page=7 |url= http://musicmuseumnepal.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/RS344_HAMRA-BAJAHURU-BALBODH-21.pdf}}</ref> Nepalese also use the word murli (मुरली), but that word can mean not only flute or fife, but also a reed instrument.

Ancient regional innovations, such as those in the Himalayan foothills of India, developed more complex designs, such as the {{Transliteration|hi|algoza}} which is a "twin bansuri" in different keys constructed as a single instrument, allowing the musician to play more complex music. In central and south India, a similar innovation is called {{Transliteration|hi|nagoza}} or {{Transliteration|hi|mattiyaan jodi}}, and Buddhist stupa reliefs in central India, from about the 1st century BCE, depict the single and twinned flute designs.<ref>{{cite book|author=Alka Pande|title=Folk Music & Musical Instruments of Punjab  |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CgraAAAAMAAJ |year=1999|publisher=Mapin|isbn=978-1-890206-15-4|pages=44–46}}</ref>{{sfn|Nettl et al.|1998|p=345}}

==History==
According to [[Ardal Powell]], flute is a simple instrument found in numerous ancient cultures. According to legends the three birthplaces of flutes are Egypt, Greece, and India. Of these, the transverse flute (side blown) appeared only in ancient India, while the [[fipple flute]]s are found in all three. It is likely, states Powell, that the modern Indian ''bansuri'' has not changed much since the early medieval era.<ref name=westbrook2003/><ref name="Powell2002p10">{{cite book|author=Ardal Powell|title=The Flute|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780300094985|url-access=registration|year=2002|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-09498-5|pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780300094985/page/10 10]–13}}</ref> However, a flute of a somewhat different design is evidenced in ancient China (''dizi'') which Powell, quoting Curt Sachs' ''The History of Musical Instruments'', suggests may not have originated in China but evolved from a more ancient Central Asian flute design. It is, however, not clear whether there was any connection between the Indian and Chinese varieties.<ref name="Powell2002p10"/>

The early medieval Indian ''bansuri'' was, however, influential. Its size, style, bindings, mounts on ends and playing style in medieval Europe artworks has led scholars, such as Liane Ehlich, a flute scholar at the music school in the University of Lucerne, to state that the ''bansuri'' (''venu'') migrated from India into the Byzantine Empire by the 10th century and from there on to medieval Europe where it became popular.<ref name="Powell2002p10"/><ref>Liane Ehlich (1984), ''[http://www.rimab.ch/content/bibliographie/SCB-Bib-1985-01-579/view?set_language=de Zur Ikonographie der Querflöte im Mittelalter]''. Basler Jahrbuch für historische Musikpraxis, Volume 8, pages 197–211 (in German)</ref>

[[File:All scales of Bansuris in a set.jpg|thumb|All scales of Bansuris in a set]]
The flute is discussed as an important musical instrument in the ''[[Natya Shastra]]'' (~200 BCE to 200 CE), the classic Sanskrit text on music and performance arts.{{Sfn|Rowell|2015|pp=99–103}} The flute (''venu'' or ''vamsa'') is mentioned in many Hindu texts on music and singing, as complementary to the human voice and [[Veena]] (vaani-veena-venu).<ref>{{cite book|author=Tarla Mehta|title=Sanskrit Play Production in Ancient India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l7naMj1UxIkC&pg=PA149| year=1995| publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1057-0|pages=149–150}}</ref>{{Sfn|Martinez|2001|p=127}} The flute is however not called ''bansuri'' in the ancient, and is referred to by other names such as ''nadi'', ''tunava'' in the ''[[Rigveda]]'' (3000–2500 BCE) and other Vedic texts of [[Hinduism]], or as ''venu'' in post-Vedic texts.<ref name=keith441>{{cite book|author=Arthur Berriedale Keith|title=Vedic Index of Names and Subjects|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=t6TVLlPvuMAC&pg=PA441| year=1995|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-1332-8|page=441}}</ref><ref name=kasliwal85>{{cite book|author=Suneera Kasliwal|title=Classical musical instruments|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GVsUAQAAIAAJ|year=2004|publisher=Rupa|isbn=978-81-291-0425-0|pages=85–86}}</ref>{{Sfn|Rowell|2015|pp=99–103}} The flute is also mentioned in various [[Upanishads]] and [[Yoga]] texts.{{sfn|Beck|1993|pp=98–110}}

According to [[Bruno Nettl]], a music historian and ethnomusicologist, the ancient surviving sculptures and paintings in the temples and archaeological sites of India predominantly show transverse flutes being played horizontally (with a downward tilt).{{sfn|Nettl et al.|1998|pp=306 with Figure 1 p. 299}} However, beginning in the 15th century, vertical end blowing style are commonly represented. This change in the relevance and style of ''bansuri'' is likely, states Nettl, because of the arrival of Islamic rule era on the Indian subcontinent and the West Asian influence on North Indian music.{{sfn|Nettl et al.|1998|pages=306, with Figure 1 p. 299 and Figure 5 p. 304}}

==Construction==
[[File:Elephant bamboo - India reed bamboo - ഈറ്റ 01.JPG|thumb|''Bansuri'' is traditionally made from [[bamboo]].]]
A bansuri is traditionally produced from a special type of bamboo, that naturally grows to long lengths between its nodes (knots). These grow abundantly in Himalayan foothills up to about 11,000 feet with high rainfall. These are particularly found in the northeastern (near Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura) and Western Ghats (near Kerala) states of India where numerous bamboo species grow with internodal lengths greater than {{convert|40|cm|in}}.<ref>{{cite book|author=Sir George Watt|title=The Commercial Products of India |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.41016|year=1908|publisher=J. Murray|pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.41016/page/n108 98]–106}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=K. K. Seethalakshmi|author2=M. S. Muktesh Kumar|author3=K. Sankara Pillai|display-authors=et al|title=Bamboos of India: A Compendium|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wB_kqf5NzikC|year=1998|publisher=BRILL|isbn=81-86247-25-4|pages=20, 80–83, 123, 184}}</ref>

The harvested bamboo with a desired diameter is cut, dried and treated with natural oils and resins to strengthen it. Once ready, the artisans examine the smoothness and straightness and measure the dried hollow tube. They mark the exact positions for the holes, then use hot metal rod skewers of different diameters to burn in the holes. Drilling and other methods of hole making are avoided as it is believed they damage the fiber orientation and the splits affect the music quality. The burnt-in holes are then finished by sanding, one end plugged, the flute ringed at various positions to stabilize its form and shape over time and the unit tested for its musical performance. The distance of a finger-hole from the mouth-hole, and the diameter of the finger-hole controls the note it plays. Adjustments to the diameters of various holes is made by the artisans to achieve purity of the musical notes produced. The wall thickness of the ''bansuri'' determines the tone, range and octave tuning. Once all the holes have reached their performance range, the ''bansuri'' is steeped in natural oils, cleaned, dried and decorated or bound with silk or nylon threads.<ref>Peter Westbrook (2003), ''The bansuri and pulangoil, bamboo flutes of India'', Flutist Quarterly, Vol. 28, No. 3, pages 1–27</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Dale A. Olsen|title=World Flutelore: Folktales, Myths, and Other Stories of Magical Flute Power|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3bUPBAAAQBAJ |year=2013|publisher=University of Illinois Press|isbn=978-0-252-09514-6|pages=15–27}}</ref>

There are two varieties of bansuri: [[transverse flute|transverse]] and [[fipple]]. The fipple flute is usually played in [[folk music]] and is held at the lips like a [[tin whistle]]. Because the transverse variety enables superior control, variations and embellishments, it is preferred in Indian classical music.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}

[[File:Bansuri ancient bamboo flute sanskrit swara.svg|thumb|upright=1.25|left|The ''swara'' ([[solfège]]) notes as designed into a ''bansuri'' (descending representation)]]

===Musical notes===
Six holes are sufficient to produce seven basic ''[[swara]]s'': ''sa'', ''re'', ''ga'', ''ma'', ''pa'', ''dha'', and ''ni''. When all holes are closed, it produces the lowest note of the ''bansuri'' (''pa''). With one hole farthest from the closed end of the ''bansuri'' open, the instrument plays the ''dha''. Similarly, ''ni'' is produced with two farthest holes open, ''sa'' with three farthest open, ''re'' with four, ''ga'' with five, and ''ma'' is produced with all holes open.<ref>{{cite book|author=Lyon Leifer|title=How to Play the Bansuri: A Manual for Self-instruction Based on the Teaching of Devendra Murdeshwar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I5BdAQAACAAJ| year=2005| publisher=Rasa Music |isbn=978-0-9766219-0-4|pages=1–7}}</ref>

Every ''bansuri'' by its design and construction has a specific key and tonal center, corresponding to ''sa'' (''shadja'', natural tonic) of the ''swara'' scale.<ref>{{cite book|author=Ellen Koskoff|title=The Concise Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: The Middle East, South Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=73MO0eiQD_EC&pg=PA980 |year=2008|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-99404-0|page=980}}</ref> This key is achieved by variations in length, inner diameter of the instrument and the relative size and placement of the finger holes. This allows the musician to select a ''bansuri'' constructed in the key of the music they want to create and share.<ref>{{cite book|author=Mark Shepard|title=Simple Flutes|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dcg0TVUcyGYC|year=2002|publisher=Simple|isbn=978-0-938497-18-9|pages=19–21, 31–35}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=G Dournon|author2=M Helffer|editor=Stanley Sadie|title=The New Grove dictionary of musical instruments, Volume 1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q6_WAAAAMAAJ|year=1984|publisher=Macmillan Press|isbn=978-0-943818-05-4|chapter= Bansuri}}</ref>

==Playing==
{{listen
 | filename     = Bansuri sample E bass.ogg
 | title        = sound samples
 | description  = North Indian ''bansuri'', E-key (1 min 39 sec)
 | format       = [[Ogg]]
 | filename2     = Carnatic flute.ogg
 | title2        = sound samples
 | description2  = South Indian ''[[venu]]'', E-key (39 sec)
 | format2       = [[Ogg]]
}}

A ''bansuri'' is typically held horizontally slanting downwards towards right by the bansuri player. The index, middle and ring fingers of the right hand cover the outer fingerholes, while the same fingers of the left hand cover the rest. The ''bansuri'' is supported by the thumb and little finger, while the airhole is positioned near the lips and air blown over it at various speeds to reach the desired octave. For the seven-hole bansuri, the little finger ([[pinky finger|pinky]]) of the right hand is usually employed.<ref name="ll_book">{{cite book | title = How to Play the Bansuri: A Manual for Self-Instruction Based on the Teaching of Devendra Murdeshwar| last=Leifer| first=Lyon| publisher=Rasa Music Co| year=2005|isbn=0-9766219-0-8}}</ref>
[[File:Bansuri-finger.png|thumb|Fingering chart for a bansuri]]

As with other air-reed [[Wind Instrument|wind instruments]], the sound of a bansuri is generated from [[resonance]] of the air column inside it. The length of this column is varied by closing or leaving open, a varying number of holes. Half-holing is employed to play flat or minor notes. The 'sa' (on the Indian [[Swara|sargam]] scale, or equivalent 'do' on the octave) note is obtained by covering the first three holes from the blowing-hole. Octaves are varied by manipulating one's [[embouchure]] and controlling the blowing strength. Either finger tips or finger pads are used by ''bansuri'' players to partially or fully cover the tap holes.<ref>Bullard, B. (2007). The link between Samavedic chanting and flute playing in the Naradiya siksa: A new interpretation. ''Journal of the Indian Musicological Society, 38,'' 129-145, 252.</ref>

In order to play the [[diatonic]] scale on a bansuri, one needs to find where the notes lie. For example, in a bansuri where Sa or the [[tonic (music)|tonic]] is always played by closing the first three holes, is equivalent to C, one can play sheet music by creating a finger notation that corresponds to different notes. A flutist is able to perform complex facets of [[Raga]] music such as [[microtonal]] [[inflections]], [[Ornament (music)|ornamentation]], and [[glissando]] by varying the breath, performing fast and dexterous fingering, and closing/opening the holes with slow, sweeping gestures.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}

==See also==
* [[Hindustani classical music]]
* [[Venu]]
* [[Bamboo musical instruments]]
* [[Pannalal Ghosh]]
* [[Hariprasad Chaurasia]]
* [[Rakesh Chaurasia]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

===Bibliography===
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* {{Cite book | last=Kaufmann | first=Walter | author-link=Walter Kaufmann (composer) | title=The Ragas of North India | publisher=Oxford & Indiana University Press | isbn=978-0-253-34780-0 | year=1968 | oclc=11369 | url=https://archive.org/details/ragasofnorthindi00kauf }}
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* {{cite book|first=José Luiz|last=Martinez|title=Semiosis in Hindustani Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OwJRnFIcM4cC |year=2001|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1801-9}}
* {{citation |ref={{sfnref|Nettl et al.|1998}}|  first1=Bruno|last1=Nettl | author2= Ruth M. Stone|author3=James Porter|author4=Timothy Rice|title=The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: South Asia : the Indian subcontinent| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZOlNv8MAXIEC |year=1998|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-8240-4946-1}}
* {{cite book|author=Ashok Damodar Ranade|title=Music Contexts: A Concise Dictionary of Hindustani Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cFwbGi3oBHgC |year=2006|publisher=Bibliophile South Asia|isbn=978-81-85002-63-7}}
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* {{cite book|first=Lewis |last= Rowell|title=Music and Musical Thought in Early India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5_UCgAAQBAJ |year=2015|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-73034-9}}
* {{cite book|first1=Neil| last1= Sorrell|first2=Ram |last2= Narayan|title=Indian Music in Performance: A Practical Introduction|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jNhRAQAAIAAJ |year=1980|publisher=Manchester University Press|isbn=978-0-7190-0756-9}}
* {{cite book|first=Emmie|last=Te Nijenhuis |author-link=Emmie te Nijenhuis|title=Indian Music: History and Structure |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NrgfAAAAIAAJ |year=1974|publisher= BRILL Academic|isbn=90-04-03978-3 }}
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{{Flutes}}
{{Indian musical instruments}}
{{Musical instruments of Nepal}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Side-blown flutes]]
[[Category:Hindustani musical instruments]]
[[Category:Indian musical instruments]]
[[Category:Pakistani musical instruments]]
[[Category:Bangladeshi musical instruments]]
[[Category:Nepalese musical instruments]]
[[Category:Bansuri players]]
[[Category:Bamboo flutes]]

[[as:বাঁহী]]
[[hi:बांसुरी]]
[[pnb:ونجلی]]