Flute Or Bansuri Lessons.
A how to on playing Indian Classical music on Bansuri. This is a beginners guide. that will be help them.
Bansuri Lesson
The Notes
Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do (A relative scale)
Bansuri use a relative scale, similar to the 'do, re, mi' concept. The notes are not measured in
pitch (hertz), but are in relation to the first note. Western scales are usually 'absolute', based
on 'A = 440 hertz' and 'middle C' which is 261.626 hertz, so that each note is measurable and
can easily be repeated anywhere around the world, on any properly tuned instrument. This is
possible because 'hertz' are measurable units of vibrations per second. Relative scales can
start anywhere, so ' do ' might be 'C' or it might be any other note or a note that is unrelated to
western pitch. Furthermore, the notation system is based on finger position, rather than tone.
What this means is that;
Songs can be played on any bansuri, regardless of flute length. Key is not a constraint. The
same tune will sound different on 2 flutes of different keys, but the playing and notation
method will not change. The `notes` represent finger positions, not tones.
Bansuri have 6 playable holes (usually), and the basic scale starts with the top 3 holes
closed. This note is ' Sa'. The basic scale is as follows; (I have added rainbow colours for
ease of visualization).
Sa Re Ga ma Pa Da Ni Sa
Sa (Top 3 holes closed)
Re (Top 2 holes closed)
Ga (Top hole closed)
ma (Top hole half closed - I use a small 'm ' here, because there is also ' Ma '.)
Pa (6 holes closed)
Da (Top 5 holes closed)
Ni (Top 4 holes closed)
From this point we will reach Sa one octave above our starting note, with the same finger position as we started with, 3 holes closed. The upper octave is reached by changing your
mouth shape (embouchure) which refocuses the air. Bansuri can play two to two and a half
octaves, more on this later!
The Notation System
We need one system for the lower octave, one for the middle octave and another for the
upper octave.
For the lower octave, we write;
,S ,R ,G ,m ,P ,D ,N
However, bansuri cannot play the first 4 of these notes, and so you will not see them notated
in bansuri music. The first complete scale on the bansuri starts in the 'mid octave' at S.
The full basic scale is;
S R G m P D N
Even though this scale is notated without lower or upper octave marks, on bansuri, the first 4
notes are made by blowing the lower octave, but to reach the next 3 notes you will have to
alter your embouchure to find the next octave for those finger positions. This seems counter
intuitive at first, but makes sense if you keep in mind that the scale begins with 3 holes
closed.
'S 'R 'G 'm 'P 'D 'N are used for the octave above.
Half notes (called 'Komal Swara') are frequently played, and are notated using small letters
(lower case alphabet), as in 'ma ' in the basic scale.
,d (Five and half holes closed, lower octave)
,n (Four and a half holes closed, lower octave)
r (Two and a half holes closed, lower octave)
g (One and a half holes closed, lower octave)
m (Half a hole closed, lower octave) * Although this note is a half note, it is not considered
'Komal Swara, as it is included in the natural scale.
M (All holes are open, lower octave) * The natural scale is played with the note 'm ' as a half
closed note. But sometimes scales will call for this note to played totally open. This is
notated as ' M '. So during the practice sessions, if you see 'm ' you will know this is ma
played with the first hole half closed, and ' M ' is played with the first hole totally open.
Songs can be notated without an indication of octave, or showing S rather than ,S for the sake
of ease. Songs are handed directly from teacher to student by playing rather than as a score,
so the notation system is not always 100% accurate.
Common student flutes are tuned to Sa = G or shorter, such as G＃. These flutes are short enough for most beginners to be able to play. Most concert flutes are Sa = E, but these are
longer and require more skill to play. Longer flutes have deeper notes but lack the
responsiveness and expression of higher flutes. For children (aged between 7 - 14), a Sa = C
is a suitable sized flute.
A how to on playing Indian Classical music on Bansuri. This is a beginners guide. that will be help them.
Bansuri Lesson
The Notes
Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do (A relative scale)
Bansuri use a relative scale, similar to the 'do, re, mi' concept. The notes are not measured in
pitch (hertz), but are in relation to the first note. Western scales are usually 'absolute', based
on 'A = 440 hertz' and 'middle C' which is 261.626 hertz, so that each note is measurable and
can easily be repeated anywhere around the world, on any properly tuned instrument. This is
possible because 'hertz' are measurable units of vibrations per second. Relative scales can
start anywhere, so ' do ' might be 'C' or it might be any other note or a note that is unrelated to
western pitch. Furthermore, the notation system is based on finger position, rather than tone.
What this means is that;
Songs can be played on any bansuri, regardless of flute length. Key is not a constraint. The
same tune will sound different on 2 flutes of different keys, but the playing and notation
method will not change. The `notes` represent finger positions, not tones.
Bansuri have 6 playable holes (usually), and the basic scale starts with the top 3 holes
closed. This note is ' Sa'. The basic scale is as follows; (I have added rainbow colours for
ease of visualization).
Sa Re Ga ma Pa Da Ni Sa
Sa (Top 3 holes closed)
Re (Top 2 holes closed)
Ga (Top hole closed)
ma (Top hole half closed - I use a small 'm ' here, because there is also ' Ma '.)
Pa (6 holes closed)
Da (Top 5 holes closed)
Ni (Top 4 holes closed)
From this point we will reach Sa one octave above our starting note, with the same finger position as we started with, 3 holes closed. The upper octave is reached by changing your
mouth shape (embouchure) which refocuses the air. Bansuri can play two to two and a half
octaves, more on this later!
The Notation System
We need one system for the lower octave, one for the middle octave and another for the
upper octave.
For the lower octave, we write;
,S ,R ,G ,m ,P ,D ,N
However, bansuri cannot play the first 4 of these notes, and so you will not see them notated
in bansuri music. The first complete scale on the bansuri starts in the 'mid octave' at S.
The full basic scale is;
S R G m P D N
Even though this scale is notated without lower or upper octave marks, on bansuri, the first 4
notes are made by blowing the lower octave, but to reach the next 3 notes you will have to
alter your embouchure to find the next octave for those finger positions. This seems counter
intuitive at first, but makes sense if you keep in mind that the scale begins with 3 holes
closed.
'S 'R 'G 'm 'P 'D 'N are used for the octave above.
Half notes (called 'Komal Swara') are frequently played, and are notated using small letters
(lower case alphabet), as in 'ma ' in the basic scale.
,d (Five and half holes closed, lower octave)
,n (Four and a half holes closed, lower octave)
r (Two and a half holes closed, lower octave)
g (One and a half holes closed, lower octave)
m (Half a hole closed, lower octave) * Although this note is a half note, it is not considered
'Komal Swara, as it is included in the natural scale.
M (All holes are open, lower octave) * The natural scale is played with the note 'm ' as a half
closed note. But sometimes scales will call for this note to played totally open. This is
notated as ' M '. So during the practice sessions, if you see 'm ' you will know this is ma
played with the first hole half closed, and ' M ' is played with the first hole totally open.
Songs can be notated without an indication of octave, or showing S rather than ,S for the sake
of ease. Songs are handed directly from teacher to student by playing rather than as a score,
so the notation system is not always 100% accurate.
Common student flutes are tuned to Sa = G or shorter, such as G＃. These flutes are short enough for most beginners to be able to play. Most concert flutes are Sa = E, but these are
longer and require more skill to play. Longer flutes have deeper notes but lack the
responsiveness and expression of higher flutes. For children (aged between 7 - 14), a Sa = C
is a suitable sized flute.
