[25] Extra frets were added; the early instrument had 4 frets (, xing) on the neck, but during the early Ming dynasty extra bamboo frets (, pn) were affixed onto the soundboard, increasing the number of frets to around 10 and therefore the range of the instrument. Through the next several centuries, players of both traditions intersected frequently and developed new music styles and new instruments. 3 in. It is not used to accompany singing. Mural from Kizil, estimated Five Dynasties to Yuan dynasty, 10th to 13th century. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute ", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets ranging from 12 to 31. [17] Even higo-biwa players, who were quite popular in the early 20th century, may no longer have a direct means of studying oral composition, as the bearers of the tradition have either died or are no longer able to play. HornbostelSachs 1 Hornbostel - Sachs Hornbostel - Sachs (or Sachs - Hornbostel) is a system of musical instrument classification devised by Erich Moritz von Hornbostel and Curt Sachs, and first published in the Zeitschrift fr Ethnologie in 1914. For a long time, the biwa tradition was carried on by wandering blind monks who used the instrument to tell stories such as the Tale of Heike (). The instrument is played with a large wedge-shaped plectrum called a bachi. It is assumed that the performance traditions died out by the 10th or 11th century (William P. Malm). As well as being one of the leading pipa players of his generation, Li held many academic positions and also carried out research on pipa scales and temperament. Moreover, it always starts from the 1st string and stops on either the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th string depending if the arpeggio contains 2, 3, or 4 pitches, respectively. 11.7 in. The body of the instrument is never struck with the plectrum during play, and the five string instrument is played upright, while the four string is played held on its side. Player - Instrument Interface and Sound Production. Koto. Because of this bending technique oshikan (. Yamashika, born in the late Meiji period, continued the biwa hshi tradition until his death in 1996. Each group can include either two open strings or one open and one fingered string. [69] The instrument is also played by musician Min Xiaofen in "I See Who You Are", a song from Bjrk's album Volta. The plectrum also contributes to the texture of biwa music. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments. Pipa has been played solo, or as part of a large ensemble or small group since the early times. Kaeshibachi: The performance of arpeggio with an up-ward motion of the plectrum, and it is always soft. Sort by. Another often-used technique is rubbing the long side of the bachi on the strings to get wind-like sounds. Traditionally they are lashed with heavier rope, though some modern instruments are tightened with large screws. The rhythm in biwa performances allows for a broad flexibility of pulse. Instrument Information Origins. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/502655, Mary Elizabeth Adams Brown ; Clara H. Rose (d. 1914), The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can now connect to the most up-to-date data and images for more than 470,000 artworks in The Met collection. The chikuzen biwa is played with the performer in the seiza position (on the knees, legs folded under) on the floor. The design and construction of the 5-string Chikuzen biwa pictured in gallery #2 is basically the same as for the 4-string model described above except accommodations need to be made to the pegbox (detail #7) and bridge (detail #8) for the additional string. 13 in. Typically, the lower strings of the arpeggio are open, as indicated with the '0' in Example 4, while the last string hit may either be open or fingered (numbers 1 to 4 refers to the left hand's fingers from the index to the 4th finger, respectively). This music called heikyoku () was, cherished and protected by the authorities and particularly flourished in the 14-15. The fingers normally strike the strings of pipa in the opposite direction to the way a guitar is usually played, i.e. In the present day, there are no direct means of studying the biwa in many biwa traditions. And thanks to the low tension of the strings, it is easy to bend the strings by adding pressure. It is a lute with a round, hollow soundboard, a short fretted neck, and usually four strings. The body is often made of stretched snakeskin, and come in varying sizes. Chordophone-Lute-plucked-fretted, Credit Line: The pipa is one of the most popular Chinese instruments and has been played for almost two thousand years in China. The first and second strings are generally tuned to the same note, with the 4th (or doubled 4th) string is tuned one octave higher. [1] This scale sometimes includes supplementary notes, but the core remains pentatonic. Dunhuang, Mogao Caves. Painted panel of the sarcophagus of Y Hung, depicts one of the Persian or Sogdian figures playing pipa. The artist Yang Jing plays pipa with a variety of groups. The six fret type is tuned to B, E, B and b. Like the heike-biwa, it is played held on its side, similar to a guitar, with the player sitting cross-legged. The sanxian is made in several sizes. There are seven main types of Biwa, each distinguished by the number of strings, sound produced, and use. These players had considerable influence on the development of pipa playing in China. Blind priests would play them in order to tell stories and tales of ancient war. de Ferranti, Hugh. During the 1910s a five-string model was developed that, since the 1920s, has been the most common form of the instrument (gallery #2). [citation needed]. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Ms Biwa () Japanese. Songs are not always metered, although more modern collaborations are metered. [12][13] Yet another term used in ancient text was Qinhanzi (), perhaps similar to Qin pipa with a straight neck and a round body, but modern opinions differ on its precise form. It was those blind monks who fell outside of governmental protection who, during the 17th century, creatively modified the biwa to introduce a shamisen flavor, such as making frets higher to play in-between notes. The instrument has seen a great decline . https://japanese-music.com/profile/nobuko-fukatsu/. And thanks to the low tension of the strings, it is easy to bend the strings by adding pressure. The instrument was invented in China in the 3rd to 5th centuries AD, during the Jin dynasty. In performance it was held sideways and played with a plectrum. On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 681. This is the original form of biwa that came to Japan in the 8th century. However, the biwas cultural significance is due to its evolution during the medieval era into a narrative musical instrument. The basic technique is to pluck down and up with the sharp corner. The Koto came from the Chinese zither "Gu Zheng" during the Nara period in Japan. (92.7 20 12.7 cm), Classification: In 2015, pipa player Jiaju Shen () released a mini album composed and produced by Li Zong (),[73] with E-pa music that has a strong Chinese flavor within a modern Western pop music mould. Noted contemporary pipa players who work internationally include Min Xiao-Fen, Yang Jin(), Zhou Yi, Qiu Xia He, Liu Fang, Cheng Yu, Jie Ma, Yang Jing(, Yang Wei (),[64] Guan Yadong (), Jiang Ting (), Tang Liangxing (),[65] and Lui Pui-Yuen (, brother of Lui Tsun-Yuen). But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. The stroking motion always starts from the 1st string, sequentially sweeping toward the others until it reaches the arpeggios last string. One of the biwa's most famous uses is for reciting The Tale of the Heike, a war chronicle from the Kamakura period (11851333). Continent: Asia. Modern biwa music is based on that medieval narrative biwa music. 'five-stringed biwa'), a Tang variant of biwa, can be seen in paintings of court orchestras and was used in the context of gagaku; however, it was removed with the reforms and standardization made to the court orchestra during the late 10th century. The instrument itself resembles gaku-biwa but is slightly smaller, and is held horizontally. The sanxian (Mandarin for 'three strings') is a type off fretless plucked Chinese lutes. By the Kamakura period (11851333), the heike-biwa had emerged as a more popular instrument, a cross between both the gaku-biwa and ms-biwa, retaining the rounded shape of the gaku-biwa and played with a large plectrum like the ms-biwa. Two basic types of wood are used to make stringed musical instruments: woods for soundboards (top plates) and those for frame boards (back and side plates). Most contemporary performers use the five string version. Biwa traditions began with blind priests who traveled from village to village singing sutras. Chikuzen was an historic northern province on Kyushu, the southern-most main island of Japan. The Edo period proved to be one of the most prolific and artistically creative periods for the biwa in its long history in Japan. Koto 3. Samurai ethics and battles were selected as the main themes for this style, called Satsuma-biwa (), and more dynamic techniques were developed. [67] It is very much the same as the modern pipa in construction save for being a bit wider to allow for the extra string and the reintroduction of the soundholes at the front. [21] The pipa underwent a number of changes over the centuries. Idiophones African Thumb Pianos A number of Western pipa players have experimented with amplified pipa. However, the playing of the biwa nearly became extinct during the Meiji period following the introduction of Western music and instruments, until players such as Tsuruta Kinshi and others revitalized the genre with modern playing styles and collaborations with Western composers. In modern biwa, particularly in Satsuma-biwa, one sometimes strikes the soundboard sharply to get percussive effects. There is also evidence that other biwa instruments came from the Indian lute tradition. Most ms biwas have tear-shaped bodies, but this rustic fish-shaped example was probably used by a wandering Buddhist monk. Harmonics: The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th harmonics of each open string can be performed by attacking the string with either the plectrum or the finger, and in both cases, the overall sonority is quite soft. Wu Man is probably the best known pipa player internationally, received the first-ever master's degree in pipa and won China's first National Academic Competition for Chinese Instruments. [13] What the plectrum is made of also changes the texture, with ivory and plastic plectrums creating a more resilient texture to the wooden plectrum's twangy hum. Shakuhachi One of the most popular traditional Japanese wind instruments is the shakuhachi. On the plectrum, figure of a golden phoenix with flowers in its beak, Kindai-biwa still retains a significant number of professional and amateur practitioners, but the zato, heike, and moso-biwa styles have all but died out. The biwa strings are plucked with large wooden pick called bachi () that requires a full-handed grip. (80 30 3.4 cm), Classification: There are three small soundholes on the soundboard: two visible ones (hangetsu) partially covered with moon-shaped caps made of ivory and a hidden one (ingetsu) beneath the string holder. 20002023 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The body is narrower and smaller than the other types of biwa. A rapid strum is called sao (), and strumming in the reverse direction is called fu (). Today, the instrument is played in both narrative and instrumental formats, in the traditional music scene as well as in various popular media. Example 4 also shows the biwa's standard one-measure motive. The 5 String Pipa is tuned like a Standard Pipa with the addition of an Extra Bass String tuned to an E2 (Same as the Guitar) which broadens the range (Tuning is E2, A2, D3, E3, A3). Classification: Chordophone-Lute-plucked-fretted. The pipa is held in a vertical or near-vertical position during performance, although in the early periods the instrument was held in the horizontal position or near-horizontal with the neck pointing slightly downwards, or upside down. Its plectrum is the same as that used for the satsuma-biwa. [1] An English translation was published in the Galpin Society Journal in 1961. This music was cherished and protected by the authorities and particularly flourished in the 14th-15th centuries. The biwa is a plucked string instrument that first gained popularity in China before spreading throughout East Asia, eventually reaching Japan sometime during the Nara period (710794). Jiaju Shen from The Either also plays an Electric 5 String Pipa/Guitar hybrid that has the Hardware from an Electric Guitar combined with the Pipa, built by an instrument maker named Tim Sway called "Electric Pipa 2.0". The strings on a biwa range in thickness, with the first string being thickest and the fourth string being thinnest; on chikuzen-biwa, the second string is the thickest, with the fourth and fifth strings being the same thickness on chikuzen- and satsuma-biwa. [8] The varying string thickness creates different timbres when stroked from different directions. Biwa hshi performances overlapped with performances by other biwa players many years before heikyoku (, The Tale of the Heike),[further explanation needed] and continues to this day. This type of instrument was introduced to Korea (the bipa ), to Japan (the biwa ), and to Vietnam (the tyba ). Bodmin, Cornwall, Great Britain: MPG Books, pp. Each school is associated with one or more collections of pipa music and named after its place of origin: These schools of the solo tradition emerged by students learning playing the pipa from a master, and each school has its own style, performance aesthetics, notation system, and may differ in their playing techniques. often-used technique is rubbing the long side of the bachi on the strings to get wind-like sounds. The encounter also inspired a poem by Yuan Zhen, Song of Pipa (). The scores were written in tablature form with no information on tuning given, there are therefore uncertainties in the reconstruction of the music as well as deciphering other symbols in the score. 36 1/2 7 7/8 5 in. [34][57][58] Duan Anjie described the duel between the famous pipa player Kang Kunlun and the monk Duan Shanben () who was disguised as a girl, and told the story of Yang Zhi () who learned how to play the pipa secretly by listening to his aunt playing at night. The performers left hand is used both to steady the instrument, with the thumb hooked around the backside of the neck, and to depress the strings, the index finger doing most of the work but sometimes aided by the middle finger. 36 1/2 7 7/8 5 in. During the war time in early 20th century, biwa music was easily adapted to the nationalism of Imperial Japan, and many songs that emphasized the virtue of loyalty and sacrifice for the country were created and widely played. [27] The traditional 16-fret pipa became less common, although it is still used in some regional styles such as the pipa in the southern genre of nanguan/nanyin. The pipa pieces in the common repertoire can be categorized as wen (, civil) or wu (, martial), and da (, large or suite) or xiao (, small). Influenced by the shamisen, its music is rather soft, attracting more female players. greatest width of resonator The number of frets is considerably fewer than other fretted instruments. This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen. greatest width of plectrum There are a number of different traditions with different styles of playing pipa in various regions of China, some of which then developed into schools. Catalogue of the Crosby Brown . Sun performed in the United States, Asia, and Europe, and in 1956 became deputy director of the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra. Of the remaining post-war biwa traditions, only higo-biwa remains a style almost solely performed by blind persons. https://japanese-music.com/profile/nobuko-fukatsu/. Title: Satsuma Biwa () Date: ca. The pear-shaped biwa lute has enchanted listeners in Japan for centuries. By the Song dynasty, the word pipa was used to refer exclusively to the four-stringed pear-shaped instrument. Pieces in the Wu style are generally more rhythmic and faster, and often depict scenes of battles and are played in a vigorous fashion employing a variety of techniques and sound effects. 2.2 in. In 1868, the Tokugawa shogunate collapsed, giving way to the Meiji period and the Meiji Restoration, during which the samurai class was abolished, and the Todo lost their patronage. The Kyushu biwa traditions, in The Ashgate Research Companion to Japanese Music, edited by Alison McQueen Tokita and David W. Hughes. An apsara (feitian) playing pipa, using fingers with the pipa held in near upright position. The left hand techniques are important for the expressiveness of pipa music. Lin Shicheng (; 19222006), born in Shanghai, began learning music under his father and was taught by Shen Haochu (; 18991953), a leading player in the Pudong school style of pipa playing. 89.4.123. It is one of the most enduring work in Chinese theatre, and one that became a model for Ming dynasty drama as it was the favorite opera of the first Ming emperor. The sound can be totally different depending on where the instrument is hit, how the plectrum is held, and which part of the plectrum hits the surface. The four-string specimen is tuned to a shamisen tuning called honchshi (interval structure, from the lowest string upwards, of P4 - P5, with the top two strings tuned in unison): approximately B2 E3 B3 B3; a typical tuning for the 5-string instrument has the intervallic sequence of P4 (down) P4 (up) M2 (up) P4 (up), approximately E3 B2 E3 F-sharp3 B3. Its tuning is A, E, A, B, for traditional biwa, G, G, c, g, or G, G, d, g for contemporary compositions, among other tunings, but these are only examples as the instrument is tuned to match the key of the player's voice. Other noted players of the early 20th century include Liu Tianhua, a student of Shen Zhaozhou of the Chongming school and who increased the number of frets on the pipa and changed to an equal-tempered tuning, and the blind player Abing from Wuxi. When Yamashika died in 1996, the era of the biwa hshi tutelage died with him, but the music and genius of that era continues thanks to his recordings. 4. Chordophone-Lute-plucked-fretted, Credit Line: [6][7] According to Liu Xi's Eastern Han dynasty Dictionary of Names, the word pipa may have an onomatopoeic origin (the word being similar to the sounds the instrument makes),[6] although modern scholarship suggests a possible derivation from the Persian word "barbat", the two theories however are not necessarily mutually exclusive. The biwa, considered one of Japan's principal traditional instruments, has both influenced and been influenced by other traditional instruments and compositions throughout its long history; as such, a number of different musical styles played with the biwa exist. A distinctive sound of pipa is the tremolo produced by the lunzhi () technique which involves all the fingers and thumb of the right hand. Although no longer as popular as it once was, several chikuzen biwa schools have survived to the present day in Japan and to a lesser extent in Japanese communities abroad (such as in Hawaii). Players hold the instrument vertically. This next instrument seems to have some spiritual meaning behind it. It helps illustrate the neglible amount of resonance the biwa produces, because already after 1 second most of its sound energy is below the threshold of hearing. Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API. Shamisen players and other musicians found it financially beneficial to switch to the biwa, bringing new styles of biwa music with them. Interest in the biwa was revived during the Edo period (16001868), when Tokugawa Ieyasu unified Japan and established the Tokugawa shogunate. Typically 60 centimetres (24in) to 106 centimetres (42in) in length, the instrument is constructed of a water drop-shaped body with a short neck, typically with four (though sometimes five) strings. Heike-biwa is an accompaniment instrument specifically used to chant the Tale of Heike stories () in the traditional way dating from the medieval era. The strings are usually tuned to A2 D3 E3 A3 , although there are various other ways of tuning. The traditional pieces however often have a standard metrical length of 68 measures or beat,[46] and these may be joined together to form the larger pieces dagu.[47]. As part of, Metalwork by Goto Teijo, 9th generation Goto master, Japan (16031673). [17][18] The pear-shaped pipa may have been introduced during the Han dynasty and was referred to as Han pipa. Options are limited when considering that a fingered string between two open strings must be fingered on the 4th fret to avoid damping. We speculate that being half-way in the section, the purpose of this clash may be to avoid a too strong feeling of cadence on the 'tonic E,' since there is one more phrase to come before completing this section. [42] During the Qing dynasty there originally two major schools of pipathe Northern and Southern schools, and music scores for these two traditions were collected and published in the first mass-produced edition of solo pieces for pipa, now commonly known as the Hua Collection (). Pipa is commonly associated with Princess Liu Xijun and Wang Zhaojun of the Han dynasty, although the form of pipa they played in that period is unlikely to be pear-shaped as they are now usually depicted. This biwa often has five strings (although it is essentially a 4-string instrument as the 5th string is a doubled 4th that are always played together) and five or more frets, and the construction of the tuning head and frets vary slightly. . The flowers fluttered, and from Heaven the phoenix trilled, The instrument's rounded rectangular resonator has a snakeskin front and back, and the curved-back pegbox at the end of the neck has lateral, or side, tuning pegs that adjust three silk or nylon strings. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Pipa is also an important component of regional chamber ensemble traditions such as Jiangnan sizhu, Teochew string music and Nanguan ensemble. He also qualified as a doctor of Chinese medicine. The biwa, originally an instrument of high society, gradually spread among wandering blind monks who used this instrument to tell stories. A. Biwa B. Koto C. Shakuhachi D. Shamisen 3. They included Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, and Su Shi. Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. Biwa music is based on a pentatonic scale (sometimes referred to as a five-tone or five-note scale), meaning that each octave contains five notes. Omissions? Multiple strings are often played in one pluck like an arpeggio. The instrument is tuned to match the key of the singer. Few pieces for pipa survived from the early periods, some, however, are preserved in Japan as part of togaku (Tang music) tradition. A Sound Classification Musical instruments can be classified by the Western orchestral system into brass, percussion, strings, and woodwinds; but the S-H system allows non-western instruments to be classified as well. Even the biwa hshi transitioned to other instruments such as the shamisen (a three-stringed lute).[15]. This singing style is complemented by the biwa, which biwa players use to produce short glissandi throughout the performance. The biwa developed into five different types in its long history: . Its tuning is C, G, c, g, g. Gaku-biwa, chikuzen-biwa, heike-biwa, ms-biwa, satsuma-biwa and their plectra. Figure 6 shows a spectral analysis of the arpeggio read at the attack and one second later. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Upon its arrival, the biwa was used in purely instrumental music in the court culture the instrument appears in various works of literature and art in the 10th -12th centuries, depicting nobles enjoying it in rituals as well as in their private lives. [74], Modern pipa player, with the pipa held in near upright position. The phrase structure is of four measures of four beats, and each section is composed of two phrases. Rubbing the strings: The plectrum is used to rub an open string. 2008. In the 18th century, samurai in the Satsuma area (southern part of Kyushu island) adopted the blind monks biwa music into their musical practices. These works present a radical departure from the compositional languages usually employed for such an instrument. Members of these schools are sighted and include both females and males. Like with the shamisen, a distinctive raspy tone quality called sawari is associated with the chikuzen biwa. The satsuma-biwa is traditionally made from Japanese mulberry, although other hard woods such as Japanese zelkova are sometimes used in its construction. Japanese Music and Musical Instruments. Due to the slow growth of the Japanese mulberry, the wood must be taken from a tree at least 120 years old and dried for 10 years before construction can begin. The nishiki-biwa (), a modern biwa with five strings and five frets, was popularised by the 20th-century biwa player and composer Suit Kinj (, 19111973).
