Bansuri: Difference between revisions

|caption =A {{cvt|23-inch-|in|cm|order=flip}} long bansuri bamboo flute for concerts.

|classification=[[woodwindWoodwind]] instrument

|range= {{frac|2.5|1|2}} octaves (six-hole), 3 octaves (seven-hole)

|sound sample = [[File:Sample2.ogg|thumb|center|A Bansuri recording (54 sec s)]]

A '''bansuri''' is an ancient [[Transverse flute|side -blown]] [[bamboo flute]] originating from the [[India]]Indian and [[Nepalsubcontinent]]. It is an [[aerophone]] produced from bamboo and metal like material used in many nepali[[Nepal]]i lokLok 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|cm|in}} and {{convert|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"/> There are many origins of bansuri but the word bansuri itself is a Nepali word and is a traditionally used musical instrument of Nepal. Bansuri is an musical instrument mostly used in Nepal, according to various religious books Lord Krishna used muralie not bansuri so it is very important to know the difference between ''bansuri'' and ''muralie''

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 ByzantiumByzantine 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>

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 soundvoice 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}}

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 affectsaffect 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>