What is Bansuri?

Bansuri is one of the oldest and most revered musical instruments in Indian Classical Music. The word Bansuri stems from the words Baans/ बाँस (Bamboo) and Sur/ सुर (Musical Note), and thus literally translating as ‘the instrument that produces music from a Bamboo column’.

The Bansuri typically composes of a long, hollow shaft of Bamboo that has 6-8 holes made at specific places. When air is blown through the blowing hole, the air column inside the Bamboo starts resonating, and specific frequencies are produced by covering/opening the holes in the main body of the Bamboo.

Going back in time…

While the true origin of Flute is still unknown and disputed, the credit of the discovery of Bansuri goes to ancient India. This is because the style of playing the Flute in a transverse/horizontal manner has been practiced extensively in myriads of cultures in the Indian Subcontinent for thousands of years, but has not been found elsewhere in the world.

Bansuri was first discussed as an important musical instrument in the ‘Natya Shastra’, the ancient Sanskrit text on performing arts, more than 2000 years ago. But the concept of blowing air in a transverse bamboo column was not new; in fact, there are multiple mentions of the instrument in the oldest texts of Hinduism like the Rigveda and the Upanishads. Here, the Bansuri was referred to by its Sanskrit Name: Vamshi/वंशी.

In the 15th and 16th centuries, however, there was a shift in the playing style of the Bansuri. As there were more and more instances of vertical playing of the flute, the playing of flute in the traditional way gradually declined. This shift is generally credited to the beginning of Islamic rule in India.

Where does music come in?

The tonal quality of the Bansuri depends almost entirely on the Bamboo. The length and diameter of the wind column inside the bamboo, size and placement of the holes, quality of the Bamboo stem and the manufacturing process – all affect the musicality of the instrument.

But there is more to the sound produced from the Bansuri. The difference between professional and amateur players lies in the technical proficiency that they possess. Experienced players have extremely well-developed playing skills: they usually perfect a large variety of Embouchures (the art of shaping the mouth in a specific way to get the desired sound) and fingering patterns to increase their flexibility and versatility with the instrument.

Bansuri vs Other Instruments

There is one way a Bansuri would be much different than most musical instruments you’d encounter.

The Hindustani Classical Music renders its octave as floating/relative. What this means is that a D-sharp can be considered as ‘Sa’ as easily as a B-flat. Since no specific frequency is allotted to the Svars (Sa Re Ga and so on), the Bansuri too does not factor in the root frequency/pitch of the notes. This means that if someone wants to sing a particular song from a higher note, the Bansuri accompanying the singer would simply not support the same, and another Bansuri would have to played. This second Bansuri might be longer in length or thinner from the inside in order to produce the required pitch.

Therefore, experienced players usually carry multiple Bansuris with them because the requirements of each and every Raga or melody simply cannot be met by a single Bansuri.