Traditional instruments in japanese and chinese music

Japanese and Chinese traditional instruments

1. Chinese and Japanese
Instruments

2. Traditional Instruments in Japanese Music





The shamisen (also called the sangen), a three-string lute with a fret-less fingerboard
(about 38 inches long in Jiuta style), is one of the main instruments used in many
Japanese musical traditions. Its construction is elegant and refined, consisting of a long
narrow wooden neck, a resonating wooden box covered both sides with animal skin,
and a set of woven silk strings stretched over a water buffalo horn, tortoiseshell or
wooden bridge.

3. One of the more recognizable instruments of Japan, the koto consists of a
6 foot long shallow resonating box (made from Paulownia wood) with a set
of thirteen strings stretched over movable ivory bridges. This arrangement
creates a harp-like instrument which is traditionally played at floor level by a
kneeling musician. The player has tsume (plectra) attached to three fingers
and strums and plucks the strings. Higher pitches can be created by
pressing down to varying degrees on strings behind the bridges.

4. Shakuhachi

The shakuhachi is Japan's vertical bamboo flute with five finger holes, four in front and one at
the back. It is an ancient instrument and yet, due to its versatility, it has a uniquely contemporary
appeal. Related to similar flutes found in China, India and the Middle East, The shakuhachi was
first introduced into Japan around the end of the 7th century AD and evolved through a series of
modifiations until it reached its present form during the 17th. century.
During the 17-19th centuries, the shakuhachi was played by Zen monks as a form of 'musical
Zen meditation'. Called Komusõ (literally, 'Priests of Nothingness'), these men, often ex-samurai
warriors, traveled throughout Japan, collecting alms and playing the shakuhachi, their identity
hidden behind deep straw hats called tengai. The tengai was symbolic of a wall between the
spiritual Buddhist world of the Komusõ and the mundane world of everyday life through which
they traveled.
During this period the shakuhachi was almost uniquely a Zen instrument, and in temples all over
Japan, haunting solo meditative compositions emerged as a result of the monks' 'blowing
meditations'. This genre of composition is called honkyoku (meaning original music). Towards
the end of the Edo period (middle to late 19th century, the shakuhachi began to appear as a
secular musical instrument, in ensemble with koto and shamisen. Thus, alongside the honkyoku
body of compositions arose high art compositions for small chamber ensembles.

5. Biwa

The biwa (lute) arrived in Japan from China and Korea approximately 1300 years ago, with what
is still Japan’s orchestra of the court, Gagaku. There is also evidence that other biwa
instruments came from the Indian lute tradition. In the 9th century the Mõsõ (blind monks') biwa
began to be used by blind musicians as an accompaniment to chanted religious texts and
sutras. At the beginning of the 13th century, Heike biwa players began telling of tales of the rise
and fall of the Taira clan in 12th C Japan.
Its performance style has been refined over the years so that it can create scenes and enhance
imagery in such a manner as to bring stories to dramatic life before the audience. It has a
uniquely expressive sound with the potential to create drama by powerfully plucked sets of
notes interspersed with quieter passages. Often, performance traditions use biwa music as
interludes inserted between passages of sung narration. The traditional instrument (about three
feet long) is commonly made of mulberry (or rosewood, quince) and paulownia woods with silk
strings stretched over fixed wooden and bamboo frets.

6. Reference: http://www.duosokyo.com/instruments.html

Traditional Instruments in Chinese Music


Erhu
The Erhu (or Chinese violin) is a kind of two-stringed bowed musical
instrument. Its history can be dated back to Tang Dynasty over 1,000
years ago. Erhu can be used as a solo performance as well as in small
musical groups and large orchestras. It is one of the most popular bowed
string instruments used by many ethnic groups in China.

7. Guzheng

The Guzheng is a Chinese plucked zither. It is made of 18-23 or more strings
and movable bridges. People believe that it has been invented during
the Warring States Period (475-221 BC). The performer pluck the strings at
the right portion with right hand, and left hand presses the string on the left
side of the bridge to produce pitch ornamentation and vibrato. The skilled
player can create sounds that can evoke the sense of waterfall, thunder, and
even the scenic countryside.

8. Dizi (Chinese bamboo flute)
The Dizi (or Bamboo Flute) is a Chinese style flute. Dizi is made of bamboo,
the body has six finger-holes, one blow-hole, and an extra hole between
them covered by a thin membrane of reed. Dizi is a classical Chinese musical
instrument widely used many genres of Chinese music. It is also very popular
among the common Chinese people as it is easier to make and play than
other music instruments.

9. Suona
The Suona, also called Laba, is double-reed woodwind instrument. It can
produce particularly loud and high-pitched sound and is widely used in
Chinese traditional music ensembles especially in northern China. It is can be
played solo or many times together with Sheng, drums, and other instruments
in wedding and funeral ceremonies.

10. Reference: http://www.chinawhisper.com/top-10-chinese-musical-instruments/