Shehnai
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| Other names | Sharnai, Saanai, Sahnai, Sanai, Serunai, Shahnai, Shanai, Shenai, Shenoy, Sahnai, Babol Basi |
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The shehnai, is a type of oboe originating from the Indian subcontinent.[1] It is made of wood, with a double reed at one end and a metal or wooden flared bell at the other end.[2][3][4] It was one of the nine instruments found in the royal court. The shehnai is similar to South India's nadaswaram.
Characteristics
[edit]This tubular instrument gradually broadens towards the lower end. It usually has between six and nine holes. It employs one set of quadruple reeds, making it a quadruple reed woodwind. To master the instrument, the musician must employ various and intricate embouchure and fingering techniques.[2]
The shehnai has a range of two octaves, from the A below middle C to the A one line above the treble clef (A3 to A5 in scientific pitch notation). A shehnai is often but not always made with a body of wood or bamboo and a flared metal end.[5]
Origin of the shehnai
[edit]The shehnai is thought to have been developed by improving upon the pungi[citation needed] (a woodwind folk instrument used primarily for snake charming).
The counterparts to the shehnai played in Western India and Coastal Karnataka are indigenous to the territory. Shehnai players were/are an integral part of Goan/Konkani region and the temples along the western coast and the players are called Vajantri and were allotted lands for services- rendered to the temples.[6]
Music
[edit]It takes a lot of effort to play these instruments. The performance of the instrumentalist is essential, especially for the long and fast-paced song.[7] In the Kannada film Sanaadi Appanna this instrument was used widely.
Gallery
[edit]-
The Nepalese version, called the sahane, has a curve and is played in the panche baja. -
A shehnai player.
Notable Indian shehnai players
[edit]Other Related Wind Instruments
[edit]- Mizmar, a shawm similar to the shehnai
- Nadaswaram, a similar South Indian instrument
- Reed instrument, a type of woodwind instrument
- Shawm, a type of reed instrument
Notes
[edit]- ^ Flora, Ries (1984). "Śahnāī". In Sadie, Stanley (ed.). The New Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments. Vol. 3. pp. 283–284.
- ^ a b "Shehnai | musical instrument". Britannica. www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
- ^ Ranade. p. 307.
- ^ Hoiberg, p. 1
- ^ "shehnai". metmuseum.org. Allen Roda. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ Gazetteer of the Union Territory Goa, Daman and Diu: district gazetteer, Volume 1. Gazetteer Dept., Govt. of the Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu. 1979.
- ^ "Bismillah Khan | Biography, Music, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 2024-07-12. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
References
[edit]- Ranade, Ashok Damodar (2006). Music contexts: a concise dictionary of Hindustani Music. Bibliophile South Asia. ISBN 81-85002-63-0.
- Hoiberg, Dale; Indu Ramchandani (2000). Students' Britannica India. Popular Prakashan. ISBN 9780852297605.
