musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make Music, musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person ...
used during the
Rongali Bihu
Bohag Bihu or Rongali Bihu also called ''Xaat Bihu'' (seven Bihus) is a traditional ethnic festival celebrated in the Northeastern Indian state of Assam and other parts of Northeastern India by the indigenous ethnic groups of Assam, and marks ...
festival in
Assam
Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...
, India.Xobdo.org /ref> It can either be made from clay or the lower end of a
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of mostly evergreen perennial plant, perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily (biology), subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family, in th ...
tree which is left after the main part falls or is cut off.
Description
The instrument is shaped like a half moon. It is believed that initially instruments of this type developed from the hard shells of fruits like
coconut
The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...
, and then similar shapes were made from potter's clay. These instruments imitate the sounds of animals and birds and produce a
flute
The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...
-like sound. In ancient China a similar instrument was called a Xun.
History
The Xutuli is believed to be brought by the Sino-Tibetan groups mainly the Sadiyal Kacharis( Chutias, Deoris, Sonowals, Morans) who brought the instrument along with them from their ancestral lands.
The number of holes in the Assamese Xutuli indicates that the Sadiyal Kacharis probably arrived from the Huang He plains before 1600 BC, as the Xuns were standardised with five holes during the
Shang dynasty
The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty that ruled in the Yellow River valley during the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and followed by the Western Zhou d ...
. Xuns during the
Xia dynasty
The Xia dynasty (; ) is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, it was established by the legendary figure Yu the Great, after Emperor Shun, Shun, the last of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, Fiv ...
had three holes similar to the Xutuli.
From the shape and sound of Xutuli, it can be deduced that this instrument imitates birds. In Assamese folk culture, people believe that the sound of Xutuli invites
rain
Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...
. The sound of Xutuli is also associated as the symbol of respectable hermits, lady in sorrow, or heroes at the end of their strength.
Use
In Bohag Bihu, Xutuli has an importance of its own. Initially, the cowboys (gorurokhiya lora) used Xutuli as a toy, because of ease of construction . Xutuli is played by both boys and girls in Bihu, but most importantly Xutuli is an indispensable part of Jeng Bihu and Bihuwati dances, and predominantly played by girls. Nowadays every Bihuwati is desired be an accomplished Xutuli player.