gyaling

{{Infobox Instrument

| name = Gyaling

| names =

| image = Ladakh Horn Players 0032 tiny.jpg

| image_capt = Monks playing gyalings at Spituk monastery, near Leh, Ladakh, India

| classification = Double reed

| hornbostel_sachs =

| hornbostel_sachs_desc =

| inventors =

| developed =

| range =

| related =

}}

The gyaling ({{bo|t=རྒྱ་གླིང་། |w=rgya gling}}, English: also spelled {{Transliteration|bo|gya ling}}, {{Transliteration|bo|gya-ling}}, {{Transliteration|bo|jahlin}}, {{Transliteration|bo|jah-lin}}, {{Transliteration|bo|jahling}}, {{Transliteration|bo|jah-ling}}, {{Transliteration|bo|rgya-gling}} etc.), literally "Indian trumpet", is a traditional woodwind instrument used in Tibet. As its name indicates, it is the Chinese double reed Suona horn (much like the Iranian sorna) used mainly in Tibetan monasteries during puja (chanting and prayer) and is associated with peaceful deities and the idea of devotion.{{cite web |author1=Kunga Sonam Dronma |title=The Vajrakilaya Puja of the Khon Lineage |url=http://www.hhthesakyatrizin.org/teach_vajrakilaya.html |website=www.hhthesakyatrizin.org |access-date=27 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110118014242/http://www.hhthesakyatrizin.org/teach_vajrakilaya.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 January 2011 |language=en}}

Design

The gyaling is oboe-like in appearance with a long hardwood body and copper brass bell. The instrument is generally covered with ornate embellishments of colored glass. The double reed, which is made from a single stem of marsh grass, is placed upon a small metal channel that protrudes out of the top.{{cite web |title=Shawms (Rgya Gling) on Exhibit at the National Music Museum |url=http://orgs.usd.edu/nmm/Tibet/2584/Shawms2584.html |website=orgs.usd.edu |access-date=27 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110915034105/http://orgs.usd.edu/nmm/Tibet/2584/Shawms2584.html |archive-date=15 September 2011 |language=en |date=9 October 2010}} There are eight (8) fingerholes on a standard gyaling.{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}

To play a gyaling requires a technique called circular breathing, in which the instrument is played continuously, even while the musician breathes. The reed is placed fully in the player’s mouth but does not touch it; the lips are pressed against the flat metal channel below the reed. Airflow affects the gyaling's tuning. Gyaling technique varies depending on the lineage and ritual.{{cite web |title=Dakini Music - gyaling |url=http://www.chagdud.org/dakini_music/pages/titles/index.htm |website=www.chagdud.org |access-date=27 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070805074426/http://www.chagdud.org/dakini_music/pages/titles/index.htm |archive-date=5 August 2007 |language=en}}

Usage in ritual

A typical Tibetan Buddhist ritual orchestra consists of a gyaling, dungchen, kangling, dungkar (conch shells), drillbu (handbells), silnyen (vertical cymbals), and most importantly, chanting. Together, the music creates a state of mind to invite or summon deities.

Often, the style of performance is similar to that of a bagpipe, with many short and fast neighbor tones.

Gallery

File:Ghyaling (Wooden oboe, double reed - Rgya-gling).png|Gyaling at the National Museum of World Cultures and the World Museum.

File:Monk with trumpets and hats. Key Monastery Spiti.jpg|Monk at Key Monastery Spiti, Himachal Pradesh, India.

File:Solo, Tharlam Monastery Band Plays During Lamdre, Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal.jpg|Tharlam Monastery, Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal

File:Zanskar Lingshed hautbois.jpg|Playing gyaling at Lingshed Monastery

References

External links

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FImpxn_-1OY/ Clip of traditional Tibetan music]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QyQb-fMND4/ Informational gyaling video on circular breathing]

Category:Single oboes with conical bore

Category:Tibetan musical instruments