Gudastviri: Georgia musical instrument

The gudastviri is a droneless, double-chantered, horn-belled bagpipe musical instrument that is played in Georgia. The name comes from the word guda meaning bag and stviri meaning whistling. In some regions of the country, the musical instrument is known as ‘chiboni, stviri or tulumi’.

source of picture: instrumundo.blogspot.com

This version of bagpipe is found in many regions of the country and is known by various names in different areas. These versions of the bagpipe vary from one another in the tone quality, capacity and size of the bag, and the number of holes on the two pipes of the musical instrument.

The musical instrument consists of two major parts; the first part is a whole sheep or goat skin or a sewed, rectangular bag. The second part is a yoked double-chante, terminating in a single horn bell that makes the musical instrument a member of the hornpipe family of bagpipes.

There is a wooden blow-pipe with a check-valve tied into one leg, or corner of the bag. A fixed wooden stock guiding the chanter of the instrument, it is tied to the bag, in the opposite corner. The chanter of the musical instrument has two wooden pipes of the same length, bore and wall thickness that is attached into the stock. The left chanter tube has the most finger holes of the instrument, it is also called ‘teller’ or ‘biginner’. The right chanter of the m usical instrument is called ‘mebane’ or ‘the producer of deep voice’. This bass pipe has three front facing holes and the teller has six holes. The three holes at the bottom of the left pipe are placed symmetrically across from the three holes of the right pipe of the instrument.

The Adjaran chiboni has a diatonic scale. It can manufacture two-part chords and two-part tunes. The two parts are manufactured by the gradual sound of the both dedanis. The left hand of the player performs the highest notes on the scale on the tube of the left chanter, while the left hand fingers of the player covers and uncovers the lower notes of the scale that is made possible by the limited number of finger holes located lower down, toward the distal extreme of the right chanter tube of the instrument.

The compass of gudastviri is major sixth. The extremes of the pipes are attached inside the resonator. The resonator is made of the horn of a Caucasian bull or goat. The musical instrument is decorated with silver bands, mounted with ornamented glass beads, and so many small chains. There is a ball of cotton wool that is put into the open end of the resonator, to absorb the liquid formed during the playing of the instrument. The bag can have a cover of cloth or leather, or have a natural goat hair that is left outside of the musical instrument.

The six holes on the left side of the instrument emit notes of the first octave: F, E, D, C, H, A, G and the three holes on the right side emit deep voice notes: C, H, A, G.

The musical instrument is used for vocal accompaniment. A majority of recitative music were played with the accompaniment of the chiboni in the region of Racha. The gudastviri player’s repertoire is made up of historical, epic, satirical, comic and lyrical verses that are played as one part music. These songs are recitatives and it is the text that is the most essential part of the playing and not the melody.

Traditionally, only men play this musical instrument and Rachian players of the instrument were strolling musicians that were welcomed as guests, at every family celebration wedding or party. Playing the instrument was a kind of profession that served as the main source of income for the players. The players of the musical instrument usually took part in the old Georgian improvisation competition called ‘berikaoba’, where they had to make witty epic, lyrical or comical poems.

In the region of eastern Javakheti, the musical pipes are made of very young branches of a dog rose. The gudastviri itself is usually carved by the players to suit their taste. Jewelers could also be employed to decorate the musical instrument.