Definición
Punteru
También conocido como: chanter · melodic pipe
Melodic pipe of the Asturian gaita. It carries the finger holes the gaitero plays to hold the melody line over the roncón's drone.
The punteru is the part of the Asturian gaita where the melody lives. It’s a conical tube with finger holes; by covering and uncovering them, the gaitero runs the scale and articulates the piece.
It carries a double reed (the payuela) that vibrates with air from the bag and gives it its nasal, piercing timbre. The instrument’s tuning key is named after the punteru’s reference note: a gaita in C, in B flat or in D.
The punteru carries the melody line; the roncón carries the continuous drone underneath it. That tension between melody and drone is the Asturian gaita’s recognizable sound.