The Hulusi, or the cucurbit flute, is free-reed aerophone who is played amongst the Dai (Thai) and the Yi minorities in Yunnan China. Other minorities in the same area, the Chinese side of the Golden Triangle area, use the instrument to communicate when working in the fields. The Dai people call the instrument a "Bilingdao". Composed of a gourd, main pipes, reeds and auxiliary pipes, the cucurbit flute sounds beautiful and heartwarming. It is ideal for expressing soft and tender feelings. As the sounds are as soft and graceful as shaking silk, the flute is also called "Bottle Gourd Silk".
There is a folklore in the Dai nationality: Long ago,the mountain torrents broke out, a young man of Dai nationality picked up a large gourd to put it in the river, broke through the stormy river and rescued his sweetheart, his faithful love moved the Buddha, the Buddha fitted the gourd with tubes, the young man blowed a wonderful music, and calmed the mountain torrents, he saved all people and restored his hometown. From then on cucurbit flute was passed down from generation to generation in the Dai people.
