Here is some information for interested students:

I live in the Mt. Washington - Cypress Park area of Los Angeles, which is adjacent to Eagle Rock, Glassel Park, Silverlake, and nearby to the Chinatown part of downtown LA. Lessons are approximately 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Please contact me for the current cost of lessons.

As there are some differences among existing gharanas (lineages) of bansuri, I would recommend reading the info and listening to the audio on my website of my grand-guru Pt. Pannalal Ghosh (creator of the long bansuri and first to perform Indian Classical music on bansuri), and audio and video of my own playing if you haven't done so already.

Also of interest may be music I composed and performed for a short film and the trio I have with a colleague who plays sarod.

Additionally, you can get a good idea of our style by checking the videos on Youtube of my principal teacher, Pt. Nityanand Haldipur, and his website.

In addition to what may be called differences in interpretation of classical music, presentation, and aesthetic approaches among gharanas (lineages), our gharana employs bansuri with 7 finger holes, as invented by Pannalal Ghosh, which are considerably more difficult to master than the 6 hole bansuri played by most other gharanas. This is something requiring careful consideration before deciding to study this style of bansuri. In the interest of authenticity, a 7 hole bansuri is required for lessons.

After listening to some of the examples above, I think you will have a better understanding of bansuri and will be able to make a more informed decision as to whether learning our style is something you want to pursue.

The flute size that I generally start beginners on is a bansuri in the key of B, unless someone has very large hands and/or long fingers, in which case a bansuri in the key of A might be preferable. Please email me if you do have relatively large hands and long fingers, and I can send the links for a larger flute.

I recommend flutes made by Ravi Shankar Mishra and Jeff Whittier. Both are excellent craftsmen and make professional quality instruments.

You can order a bansuri in the key of B made by Jeff Whittier from Kirti Shah at One World Flutes. Kirti Shah is the proprietor and himself a student of bansuri, and packs the instruments well for shipping.

Jeff Whittier Flute. B. Bass.
Tonic: B. Key: F#. 20"

You can also order flutes from Jeff directly at

I would also recommend getting a case as well, as bansuri are easily smashed, cracked, sat upon, etc.

This one should do for a bansuri in the key of B:
Single Flute Case. Small. SFC-20. 20" 1.1"

(Please check the dimensions of your bansuri before ordering a case.)

Alternatively, you can order bansuri directly from India from Ravi Shankar Mishra of bansuriworld.com who is a master craftsman and a disciple of Pt. Nityanand Haldipur. Ravi is based in Mysore, Karnataka, India, and makes the finest seven-finger hole bansuri in the authentic style of Pt. Pannalal Ghosh. I currently play on an Bansuri in the key of E made by Ravi Shankar Mishra. It is an outstanding instrument.

Buyers in India please contact Ravi by email or phone:
Mobile: +91 94481 50433 or Home: +91 0821 4269761 regarding your purchase.

Feel free to contact me for any further questions you may have.