The dizi (Chinese: 笛子; Pinyin: dízi), is a Chinese transverse flute. It is also sometimes known as the di (笛) or hengdi橫 笛), and has varieties including the qudi (曲 笛) and bangdi (梆 笛 ).
These names are likely to have multiple spellings, too, depending on the transliteration used to convert from Chinese names. Nonetheless, dizi seems to be the most common name (and written form) used in the West.
Most dizi are made of bamboo, which explains why dizi are sometimes known by simple names such as "Chinese bamboo flute." However, "bamboo" is perhaps more of a Chinese instrument classification like "woodwind" in the West.
The dizi is a major Chinese musical instrument, and is widely used in many genres of Chinese folk music, as well as Chinese opera, and the modern Chinese orchestra. Traditionally, the dizi has also been popular among the Chinese common people, and it is simple to make and easy to carry.
Although bamboo is the common material for the dizi, it is also possible to find dizi made from other kinds of kinds of wood, or even from stone. Jade dizi (or yudi, 玉笛) are popular among both collectors interested in the almost magical beauty of jade dizi, and among professional players who seek an instrument with look that matches the quality of their renditions. But jade may not be the best material for dizi since, as with metal, jade may not be so tonally responsive, unlike bamboo which is more resonant.
The dizi is not the only bamboo flute of China, although it is certainly distinctive. Other Chinese bamboo wind instruments include the vertical end-blown xiao, the guanzi (double reed), the koudi, and the bawu (free reed).
Erhu - or Er-Hu, The erhu (Chinese: 二胡; Pinyin: èrhú), sometimes known in the West as the "Chinese violin" or Chinese two string fiddle, is a two-stringed bowed musical instrument, used as a solo instrument as well as in small ensembles and large orchestras. It belongs to the huqin (Chinese: 胡琴; pinyin: húqín) family of bowed string Chinese instruments, together with the zhonghu (中胡), gaohu (高胡), banhu (板胡), jinghu (京胡), sihu (四胡), and numerous others.a two-stringed fiddle, is one of the most popular Chinese instruments in the Hu-qin family, where Hu stands for "foreign" or "the northern folk" in Chinese, and "qin" is a general name for all kinds of string instruments.
The erhu can be traced back to instruments introduced into China more than a thousand years ago. It is believed to have evolved from the xiqin (奚琴), which was described as a foreign, two-stringed lute in an encyclopedic work on music by music theorist Chen Yang called Yue Shu (book of music), written during the Northern Song Dynasty. The xiqin is believed to have originated from the Xi people of Central Asia, and have come to China in the 10th century.
The erhu consists of a long vertical stick-like neck, at the top of which are two large tuning pegs, and at the bottom is a small resonator body (sound box) which is covered with python skin on the front (playing) end. Two strings are attached from the pegs to the base, and a small loop of string (qian jin) placed around the neck and strings acting as a nut pulls the strings towards the skin, holding a small wooden bridge in place.
Various dense and heavy hardwoods are used in making the erhu. According to Chinese references the woods include zi tan (紫檀 red sandalwood and other woods of the genus Pterocarpus such as padauk), lao hong mu (老红木 aged red wood), wu mu (乌木 black wood), and hong mu (红木 red wood). Particularly fine erhus are often made from pieces of old furniture. A typical erhu measures 81cm from top to bottom, the length of the bow also being 81cm.
Guzheng - he guzheng, or gu zheng (Chinese: 古箏; Pinyin: gǔzhēng) or zheng (箏) (gu- means "ancient") is a traditional Chinese musical instrument. It belongs to the zither family of string instruments. In the same family there are the Japanese koto, the Vietnamese dan tranh, the Korean kayagum, and the Mongolian Yagta. The modern-day guzheng is a plucked, half-tube zither with movable bridges and 21 strings, although it can have anywhere from 16 to 25 strings (a customized version exists with more than 34 strings). The guzheng's strings were formerly made of twisted silk, though by the 20th century most players used metal strings (generally steel for the high strings and copper-wound steel for the bass strings). Since the mid-20th century most performers use steel strings flatwound with nylon.
The guzheng has a large resonant cavity made from wu tong wood (Paulownia tomentosa). Other components may be made from other woods, usually for structural and decorative purposes.
The ancestry of the guzheng can be traced back to two other Chinese plucked zithers, the se and the guqin. The guzheng has existed since the Warring States Period and became especially popular during the Qin dynasty. The number of strings on the guzheng has always fluctuated, as we have as few as 6 to as many as 23 strings during the Tang dynasty. The earliest record of the guzheng in Shi Ji
Until 1961, the common guzheng had 16 strings, although by the mid-20th century 18-string guzhengs were also in use. In 1961 Xu Zhengao together with Wang Xunzhi introduced the first 21-string guzheng after two years of research and development. In 1961, they also invented the "S-shaped" left string rest, which was quickly adopted by all guzheng makers and is still used today, whether in the shape of the letter "S", "C", etc. The 21-string zheng is the most commonly used, but some traditional musicians still use the 16-string, especially along the southeastern coastal provinces of China and in Taiwan.
The guzheng is tuned to a pentatonic scale, the 16-string zheng is tuned to give three complete octaves, while the 21-string zheng has four complete octaves.
Pipa (pi-pa or p'i-p'a) - The pipa (Chinese: 琵琶; Pinyin: pípá) is a plucked Chinese string instrument. Sometimes called the Chinese lute, the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body. It has been played for nearly two thousand years of history in China, and belongs to the plucked category of instruments (弹拨乐器/彈撥樂器). Several related instruments in East and Southeast Asia are derived from the pipa; these include the Japanese biwa, the Vietnamese đàn tỳ bà, and the Korean bipa. The Korean instrument is the only one of the three that is no longer used. Attempts to revive the instrument have failed, although examples survive in museums.
It has four-stringed lute with 30 frets and pear-shaped body. The instrumentalist holds the pipa upright and play with five small plectra attached to each finger of the right hand. The pipa history can be dated back at least 2000 years and developed from pentatonic to full scales. This instrument has extremely wide dynamic range and remarkable expressive power.
Traditionally the instrument was called simply qin 「琴」, which can also be written as 「琹」, 「珡」 or other ancient forms, but by the twentieth century the term had come to be applied to many other musical instruments as well. The yangqin 「揚琴/扬琴」 hammered dulcimer, the huqin 「胡琴」 family of bowed string instruments, and the Western piano (Traditional Chinese: 鋼琴; Simplified Chinese: 钢琴; Pinyin: gāng qín; literally "steel stringed-instrument") are examples of this usage, so the prefix "gu-" 「古」 (meaning "ancient") was added for clarification. It can also be called qixianqin 「七絃琴」 ("seven-stringed instrument"). The guqin is not to be confused with the guzheng箏/古筝」 "ancient stringed-instrument (with moveable bridges)"), another Chinese long zither also without frets, but with moveable bridges under each string. Because Robert Hans van Gulik's famous book about the qin is called The Lore of the Chinese Lute, the guqin is sometimes inaccurately called a lute. Other incorrect classifications, mainly from music compact discs, include "harp" or "table-harp". 「古Guqin - The guqin (Chinese: 古琴; Pinyin: gǔqín; Wade-Giles: ku-ch'in; IPA: [kutɕʰin]; literally "ancient stringed-instrument") is the modern name for a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument of the zither family (中華絃樂噐/中华弦乐器). It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favored by scholars and literati as an instrument of great subtlety and refinement, as highlighted by the quote 「士無故不撤琴瑟」, meaning "a gentleman does not part with his qin or se without good reason," philosopher Confucius. It is sometimes referred to by the Chinese as 「國樂之父/国乐之父」, meaning "the father of Chinese music" or 「聖人之噐/圣人之器」, meaning "the instrument of the sages". as well as being associated with the ancient Chinese.
Since november 2003, Guqin has been registered as one of the master pieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of the humanity by the United Nations' Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (UNESCO)
The guqin is a very quiet instrument, with a range of about four octaves, and its open strings are tuned in the bass register. Its lowest pitch is about two octaves below middle C, or the lowest note on the cello. Sounds are produced by plucking open strings, stopped strings, and harmonics. Stopped sounds are noteworthy for the variety of slides and ornaments used, and the use of glissando — sliding tones — gives it a sound reminiscent of a pizzicato cello, fretless double bass or a slide guitar. Extended passages consisting entirely of harmonics are common. This is made possible because the 91 indicated harmonic positions allow great flexibility; early tablature shows that even more harmonic positions were used in the past. By tradition the qin originally had five strings, but ancient qin-like instruments with 10 or more strings have been found. The modern form has been standardized for about two millennia. A number of players and listeners have commented that qin music sounds similar to Blues music in one way or another, but it should be noted that there are also many differences.
Liuqin- The liuqin (柳琴; pinyin: liǔqín) is a four-stringed Chinese lute with a pear-shaped body. It is small in size, almost a miniature copy of another Chinese plucked instrument, the pipa. It is a smaller version of pipa with four strings, which sound similar to mandolin.But the range of its voice is much higher than the pipa, and has its own special place in the Chinese music, whether in orchestral music or in solo pieces. This has been the result of a modernization in its usage in recent years, leading to a gradual elevation in status of the liuqin from an accompaniment instrument in folk Chinese opera, narrative music, i.e. Suzhou pingtan, in northern Jiangsu, southern ShandongAnhui, to an instrument well-appreciated for its unique tonal and acoustic qualities. Liuqin is played with a piece of spectrum, and is used to be accompany instrument for folk songs and local opera. However, in recent decades, Composer Wang Huiran made great contribution to its making and composed many pieces such that the Liuqin also becomes a soloist instrument.
Historically the liuqin was commonly made of willow wood, while the professionals used versions constructed with a higher-quality red sandalwood or rosewood. In contemporary versions though, the front board is made of tong wood (桐木) and for the reverse side, of red sandalwood, as comparable to historical types.
Ruan The ruan (阮, pinyin: ruǎn) is a Chinese plucked string instrument. It is a lute with a fretted neck, a circular body, and four strings. Its strings were formerly made of silk but since the 20th century they have been made of steel (flatwound for the lower strings). The modern ruan has 24 frets with 12 semitones on each string, which has greatly expanded its range from a previous 13 frets.
Qin Daynasty (around 200 BC). Ruan is used to be called "p'i-p'a" (pipa) or qin-pipa. Since the introduction of the oud-like lute through the "silk-road" in the early Tang Dynasty (around 5th century), the pipa gradually developed into the present form, and the old form of pipa with straight-neck and round body got the name "Ruan", after the name of the master player of this instrument, Ruan Xian who was one of the seven great scholars known as "The Seven Gentlemen in the Bamboo Forest" in Chinese history of the 3rd century (the Six Dynasties). They were truely good friends. Ruan Xian and Ji Kang, master of guqin (Chinese 7-stringed zither), are most famous for their musical achievements and the life as true artists. The Ruan is mostly used for Peking opera, and now also in modern Chinese orchestra. There are family of ruan of various size including "Zhong Ruan" (middle Ruan) and "Da Ruan" (large Ruan) used in the same sense as viola and cello in western orchestra.
Sanxian- The sanxian (literally "three strings") is a Chinese lute — a three-stringed fretless plucked musical instrument. It has a long fingerboard, and the body is traditionally made from snakeskin stretched over a rounded rectangular resonator. It is made in several sizes for different purposes and in the late 20th century a four-stringed version was also developed. The Northern sanxian is generally larger, at about 122 centimetres in length, while Southern versions of the instrument are usually about 95 centimetres in length.
Yueqin - moon-shaped lute with shorter neck and four strings, played with a spectrum, used for accompanying local operas. "Yue" stands for "the moon" in Chinese.
Konghou - The konghou (Chinese: 箜篌; Pinyin: kōnghóu) is an ancient Chinese harp. It went extinct sometime in the Ming Dynasty, but was revived in the 20th century.
The main feature that distinguishes the modern konghou from the Western concert harp is that its strings are folded over to make two rows, which enables players to use advanced techniques such as vibrato and bending tones. The modern instrument does not resemble the ancient one.
The instrument was adopted in ancient times in Korea, where it was called gonghu (hangul: 공후; hanja: 箜篌), but it is no longer used there. There were three subtypes according to shape:
The structure of the Konghou looks similar to the harp, however, with its bridges spanning the strings in the way similar to guzheng. One of the most ancient Chinese music instruments that appeared in written texts of the Spring and Autumn period (around 600 BC).
The reproduction of the konghou started in the mid 50's. The structure of Today's konghou is a combination of su-konghou and wo-konghou with the shape similar to harp. The performing skill is diversified.
Yangqin (Simplified Chinese: 扬琴; Traditional Chinese: 揚琴; Pinyin: yángqín) is a Chinese hammered dulcimer originally from the Middle East (Persia (modern-day Iran)). It used to be written with the characters 洋琴 (lit. "foreign zither"), but over time the first character changed to 揚 (also pronounced "yáng"), which means "acclaimed." Hammered dulcimers of various types are now very popular not only in China, but also Eastern Europe, the Middle East, India and Pakistan. The instruments are also sometimes known by the names "santur" and "cymbalom."
Zhong-Hu: The zhonghu (中胡, pinyin: zhōnghú) is a low-pitched Chinesestring instrument. It is a member of the huqin family together with the erhu and gaohu, and was developed in the 20th century as the alto member of the huqin family (similar to the European viola) to be used in orchestras of Chinese traditional instruments.
The zhonghu is the same as the erhu but is slightly larger and is lower pitched. Its body is covered on the playing end with snakeskin. The instrument has two strings, which are generally tuned to the interval of a fifth, to A and E or to G and D (this latter tuning equivalent to the violin's lowest two strings).
If we call the "Erhu" Chinese violin, the Zhong-Hu is then the Chinese viola, where "Zhong" stands for "middle", thus the abbreviated name for the mid-pitched Erhu. It was developed on the basis of Erhu in the 1940s.
Jing-Hu: A jinghu (京胡; pinyin: jīng hú) is a Chinese bowed string musical instrument used primarily in Beijing opera. It has two strings that were formerly made of silk, but which in modern times are increasingly made of steel. The strings are tuned to the interval of a fifth and the bow hair passes in between the two strings. Unlike other huqinerhu, gaohu, zhonghu, etc.) it is made of bamboo. Its soundbox is covered on the front (playing) end with snakeskin.
The jinghu is the highest pitched and smallest instrument in the huqin family. In Beijing opera, the jinghu often doubles the singer's voice. Jinghu performers in Beijing Opera rarely shift into higher positions, and instead choose to compress the melody into a single octave.
The jinghu is also used in a band called Girl's National Music Band. The instrument looks like a can with a stick coming out of it with two tuning pegs and a string running down from the other side of the pegs.
The yangqin was traditionally fitted with bronze strings, which gave the instrument a soft timbre. This form of instrument is still occasionally heard today in the hudie qin (蝴蝶琴, lit. "butterfly zither") played in the traditional silk and bamboo genre from the Shanghai region known as Jiangnan sizhu (江南絲竹), as well as in some Cantonese music groups. The Thai and Cambodian khim are nearly identical in their construction, having been introduced to those nations by southern Chinese musicians. Since the 1950s, however, steel alloy strings (in conjunction with copper-wound steel strings for the bass notes) have been used, in order to give the instrument a brighter, and louder tone. The modern yangqin can have as many as five courses of bridges and may be arranged chromatically. Traditional instruments, with three or more courses of bridges, are also still widely in use. The instrument's strings are struck with two lightweight bamboo beaters (also known as hammers) with rubber tips. A professional musician often carries several sets of beaters, each of which draws a slightly different tone from the instrument, much like the drum sticks of Western percussionists.
The yangqin is used both as a solo instrument and in ensembles.
It is a Chinese hammered dulcimer with a near-squared soundboard. The instrument is very similar to Santur, played with two bamboo sticks.
