# Flute-like instrument in Rome and BG themes? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 29, 2008, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603 "2008-02-29T04:15:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![trupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@trupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trupa)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/1 "2008-02-29T04:15:04Z")
In the intro musical themes for Rome\* and Battlestar Galactica, there is a flute-like instrument that sounds halfway between a regular metal flute and an Asian bamboo flute, with a lot of breathy, in-between notes sounds. Anyone recognize it? Is it hard to play? Or is it just a regular flute played in an unorthodox manner? In any case, it doesn’t sound like a digitally manipulated flute, there is too much of a human performance feel to it. What say you all? (\*for Rome, I don’t mean the whiny higher pitched, quasi-bagpipe instrument that does the main melody) ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/2 "2008-02-29T04:26:46Z")
For ease of reference, here’s a [YouTube clip of the Rome intro](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzd1szJLFoI). ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/3 "2008-02-29T04:35:16Z")
Jeff Beal, who composed the score for _Rome_, says [here](http://www.northernsounds.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-37892.html) that these instruments were used: rababa (an primitive 2 string violin) oud alto, tenor and bass recorders shofar duduk various wood flutes (kind that don’t require a flute embocure) trumpet, french horn zurna mandolin (not until ep. 6) frame drums, shakers, and other hand percussion supplemented by a small string section a woodwind specialist playing oboe d’amore and bansuris (indian wood flutes) ---
**Author:** ![trupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@trupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trupa)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/4 "2008-02-29T18:24:11Z")
Thanks folks, I would bet my last donut it’s one of those wood flutes, but I’m pretty sure it’s not a recorder, as I play\* the tenor and soprano recorders. Off to google wood flutes \*_(if you accept Itsy Bitsy Spiders, Christmas Carols, and Danny Boy, as play)_ ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/5 "2008-02-29T18:52:47Z")
I was curious about the bansuri, mentioned by Jeff Beal as one of the instruments in the _Rome_ theme. If you Google “Battlestar Galactica” and “bansuri,” you’ll get quite a few hits. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/6 "2008-02-29T19:24:12Z")
[QUOTE=pinkfreud] I was curious about the bansuri, mentioned by Jeff Beal as one of the instruments in the _Rome_ theme. If you Google “Battlestar Galactica” and “bansuri,” you’ll get quite a few hits. [/QUOTE] I have a couple of bansuri(s) and they are a beeyotch to get a sound out of if you don’t know what you’re doing. Definitely flute-like with more breathy sounds, even for a trained flutist (which I am not, but my neighbor is - I can get a wheezing tone out of them, he can get a breathy tone out of them, but both of us agree they require more breath strength than a metal flute.) ---
**Author:** ![Gulo\_gulo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bcef8e/32.png) [@Gulo\_gulo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gulo_gulo)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/7 "2008-02-29T23:22:06Z")
I instantly thought of the duduk when I read the OP but could be wrong since I’ve yet to see Rome. [Here’s a YouTube link to duduk music in Gladiator](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krIRBNpuVPE) I really really want to get one… ---
**Author:** ![trupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@trupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trupa)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/8 "2008-03-01T00:28:35Z")
Dopers come through again. My first thought was how the heck do you people know this stuff, but then, I know it too, now. So the instrument I was hearing is definitely the bansuri. Just my luck to like a really hard instrument that’s not even in the western diatonic scale, although youtube has some players doing Bach and Mozart very convincingly. Wikipedia says the duduk is fairly easy to play, though, so I may look into it some more. The duduk is definitely the hallmark of the mournful BG score. It has a slightly more nasal timbre than the bansuri. I wonder if they’re hard to get. ---
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/9 "2008-03-01T03:53:43Z")
Duduk, goose! ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/10 "2008-03-01T14:00:37Z")
[QUOTE=trupa] Wikipedia says the duduk is fairly easy to play, though, so I may look into it some more. The duduk is definitely the hallmark of the mournful BG score. It has a slightly more nasal timbre than the bansuri. I wonder if they’re hard to get. [/QUOTE] [Lark in the Morning](http://larkinthemorning.com/product.asp?pn=WIN188) has 'em. ---
**Author:** ![athelas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5e9695/32.png) [@athelas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/athelas)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/11 "2008-03-01T15:03:51Z")
Does anyone know what the flute-ish instrument is right at the beginning? The extremely breathy one that just jumps up several octaves in tone, and then is gone? ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2008, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flute-like-instrument-in-rome-and-bg-themes/439603/12 "2008-03-13T18:03:35Z")
[QUOTE=trupa] So the instrument I was hearing is definitely the bansuri… The duduk is definitely the hallmark of the mournful BG score. [/QUOTE] I have neither, but I do have a wooden transverse flute somewhat similar to the bansuri. Not sure how many holes mine has, though–could be six, but don’t quote me. Anyway, it’s not an easy instrument to play. I’ve played metal flute (not my preferred term for the instrument, but an understandable one) for years, and even I have problems getting recognizeable notes out of my wooden one. Have a look at various folk music instrument shops. Lark in the Morning was mentioned upthread, and I’ll second that nomination. I’ve been able to shop in person at Lark in the Morning’s San Francisco and Seattle locations, and they are a folk musician’s dream, selling all kinds of unusual musical instruments that cannot be found anywhere else. And they also do Internet and mail orders, so you’d be fine there, but do watch shipping, taxes, and import duties. Closer to home (in terms of shipping and taxes, not distance), you may also find what you want at the Halifax Folklore Centre. Despite the organizational-sounding name, this is a folk music store. It has no website, at least none I could find, but I’ve found it to be among the best places in Canada for unusual folk instruments. Might be worth a phone call anyway; I believe they will do mail and phone orders. Anyway, remind me the next time we have a Calgary Dopefest, and I’ll try to remember to bring my wooden flute along so you can try it.