The bansuri is also depicted in Buddhist and Jain temples around the world. In addition to this, many followers of Hinduism believe that pure hearts of those who have passed are hollowed out and turned into flutes for this god of love. That is why the Rasa Lila dance is performed on the bansuri so often.
It is associated with the love goddess’s own relationship between himself and Radha (goddess of love and devotion). The bansuri has love written all over it. Krishna’s divine instrument is this very flute. The lore of Southern Asia is richly interwoven with references to the bansuri, According to Hindu lore, Shiva gave Krishna, goddess of love, the bansuri.
#Bansuri note how to#
If you’d like more guidance on learning how to play the bansuri, check out lesson 1 here: Hindu Culture And The Bansuri
#Bansuri note professional#
Bansuris come in many keys, but professional players suggest a bansuri in C for beginners. Most of these instruments cover upwards of two and a half octaves.
Like many world flutes, there are innumerable variations of the bansuri. Some bansuris may have 6-15 holes though. The bansuri typically has 8 holes that are intended to be covered, but 15 holes total on the instrument. A column of air is created by the player, which then resonates, thus creating sound. The bansuri works like other transverse flutes, such as the western C flute. Some modern bansuris are becoming more popular, such as those made of metal or even ivory. In fact, baans means bamboo, and sur means music.
This instrument is traditionally made up of one piece of bamboo. With a combination of in-depth research and much conversing, I have had the opportunity to delve into the history of the beautiful instrument we call the bansuri. However, the transverse bansuri is most common and is what is used in classical Hindustani music. It can be either transverse or fipple, which means endblown. The bansuri is a side-blown flute from India. As it turns out, I was talking to a student of the all-time-famous bansuri player, Hariprasad Chaurasia. I immediately fell in love with the sound of his instrument, and so I had to ask what it was called. My follower had offered to show me his bamboo flute music. I first learned what a bansuri was from one of my followers on Instagram.