biwa instrument classification

Japanese and foreign musicians alike have begun embracing traditional Japanese instruments, particularly the biwa, in their compositions. The piece is in Hy-j mode (E Dorian) and the basic melody is centered on the pitches: E, B, and A, three of the four fundamental pitches of the Japanese modes. [citation needed]. As a result, younger musicians turned to other instruments and interest in biwa music decreased. [10] An instrument called xiantao (), made by stretching strings over a small drum with handle, was said to have been played by labourers who constructed the Great Wall of China during the late Qin dynasty. A string instrument which is made of Paulownia wood that is used in an ensemble in gagaku or a solo instrument. It was those blind monks who fell outside of governmental protection who, during the 17. century, creatively modified the biwa to introduce a shamisen flavor, such as making frets higher to play in-between notes. He premiered the oldest Dunhuang Pipa Manuscript (the first interpretation made by Ye Dong) in Shanghai in the early 1980s. However, another variant of the biwa known as the ms-biwa or the kjin-biwa also found its way to Japan, first appearing in the Kyushu region. [19] Pipa acquired a number of Chinese symbolisms during the Han dynasty - the instrument length of three feet five inches represents the three realms (heaven, earth, and man) and the five elements, while the four strings represent the four seasons.[7]. The fingers normally strike the strings of pipa in the opposite direction to the way a guitar is usually played, i.e. Traditionally, the duration of each pitch subdivides the measure into two equal durations. Interest in the biwa was revived during the Edo period (16001868), when Tokugawa Ieyasu unified Japan and established the Tokugawa shogunate. Another Chinese four-string plucked lute is the liuqin, which looks like a smaller version of the pipa. The fish is an auspicious symbol of Buddhism signifying wakeful attention since most fish lack eyelids and remain alert. The biwa is a four stringed lute and it is approximately 106 cm long (42 inches). Clara H. Rose (d. 1914) Catalogue of the Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments: Asia, Gallery 27. 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. 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. Although typically it is used to play short standardized phrases between lines of vocal text, it may be used for longer programmatic pieces depicting battles, storms, or other dramatic events. An apsara (feitian) playing pipa, using fingers 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. Popular Japanese three-stringed lute. Over the centuries, several types of biwa were created, each having a certain size plectrum, a specialized purpose, a unique performance technique, and varying numbers of strings and frets. 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. Among the major variants are the gakubiwa (used in court music), the msbiwa (used by Buddhist monks for the chanting of sutras), the heikebiwa (used to chant stories from the Heike monogatori), the chikuzenbiwa (used for an amalgam of narrative types), and the satsumabiwa (used for samurai narratives). 20002023 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Pipa is also an important component of regional chamber ensemble traditions such as Jiangnan sizhu, Teochew string music and Nanguan ensemble. 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. This type of biwa music has been preserved until now in gagaku (), or the court orchestra. Fine strings murmur like whispered words, At the beginning of the Meiji period, it was estimated that there were at least one hundred traditional court musicians in Tokyo; however, by the 1930s, this number had reduced to just 46 in Tokyo, and a quarter of these musicians later died in World War II. Its plectrum is much smaller than that of the satsuma-biwa, usually about 13cm (5.1in) in width, although its size, shape, and weight depends on the sex of the player. Biwa traditions began with blind priests who traveled from village to village singing sutras. Players hold the instrument vertically. Finally, measure 5 shows a rare instance where a melodic tone (F# in this case) is doubled on the second beat of the biwa's pattern. The biwa developed into five different types in its long history: . With the abolition of Todo in the Meiji period, biwa players lost their patronage. [68] The Shanghai progressive/folk-rock band Cold Fairyland, which was formed in 2001, also use pipa (played by Lin Di), sometimes multi-tracking it in their recordings. Different sized plectrums produced different textures; for example, the plectrum used on a ms-biwa was much larger than that used on a gaku-biwa, producing a harsher, more vigorous sound. This instrument also disappeared in the Chinese court orchestras. [49] In Nanguan music, the pipa is still held in the near-horizontal position or guitar-fashion in the ancient manner instead of the vertical position normally used for solo playing in the present day. There are 4-string and 5-string biwas, both with 5 frets, and the soundboard is made from soft paulownia wood. (80 30 3.4 cm), The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889, "Musical Instruments in the Metropolitan Museum": The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 35, no. In biwa, tuning is not fixed. Each type has different and unique tones, techniques, and musical styles. The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889, Accession Number: Liu also studied with other musicians and has developed a style that combines elements from several different schools. Type. 2. It is assumed that the performance traditions died out by the 10th or 11th century (William P. Malm). Corrections? The biwa player with whom we worked, NAKAMURA Kahoru, improvised ten different versions of this rhythm. [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. the finger and thumb separate in one action), it is called fen (), the reverse motion is called zhi (). This singing style is complemented by the biwa, which biwa players use to produce short glissandi throughout the performance. Chikuzen was an historic northern province on Kyushu, the southern-most main island of Japan. [53] The introduction of pipa from Central Asia also brought with it virtuoso performers from that region, for example Sujiva (, Sujipo) from the Kingdom of Kucha during the Northern Zhou dynasty, Kang Kunlun () from Kangju, and Pei Luoer () from Shule. The pipa has also been used in rock music; the California-based band Incubus featured one, borrowed from guitarist Steve Vai, in their 2001 song "Aqueous Transmission," as played by the group's guitarist, Mike Einziger. In Japan the loquat is known as biwa (, ) and has been grown for over . 3 (Winter, 19771978). 89.4.2088. From the 3rd century onwards, through the Sui and Tang dynasty, the pear-shaped pipas became increasingly popular in China. Further important collections were published in the 20th century. In the performers right hand the bachi (plectrum) is held, its upward-pointing tip used to pluck the strings near the string holder. ________. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Since the biwas pegs do not move smoothly, tuning the instrument to a different mode requires time. After almost dying out post-World War II, the tradition was revived in part due to interest shown in the instrument by the internationally known contemporary composer Tru Takemitsu, who wrote instrumental compositions for the instrument. biwa, Japanese short-necked lute, distinguished by its graceful, pear-shaped body. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. A player holds it horizontally, and mostly plays rhythmic arpeggios in orchestra or ensemble. 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. The stroking motion always starts from the 1st string, sequentially sweeping toward the others until it reaches the arpeggios last string. 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). Rubbing the strings: The plectrum is used to rub an open string. These cookies do not store any personal information. Heike-biwa is an accompaniment instrument specifically used to chant the Tale of Heike stories () in the traditional way dating from the medieval era. 592 AD, Sui dynasty. The biwas shallow body is a bouncing board that sharply projects its sound forward. There are seven main types of Biwa, each distinguished by the number of strings, sound produced, and use. 5, period of the Northern Wei (384-441 A.D.), A Song dynasty fresco depicts a female pipa player among a group of musicians, Group of female musician from the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period (907-960 AD), A mural from a Yuan dynasty tomb found in Hengshan County, Shaanxi, showing a man playing the pipa, A group of Qing dynasty musicians from Fuzhou. The typical 5-stringed Satsuma-biwa classical tuning is: CGCG, from first string to fourth/fifth string, respectively. Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API. [14][15][16], The pear-shaped pipa is likely to have been introduced to China from Central Asia, Gandhara, and/or India. By the middle of the Meiji period, improvements had been made to the instruments and easily understandable songs were composed in quantity. The instrument itself resembles gaku-biwa but is slightly smaller, and is held horizontally. Updates? later versions were played by the blind Japanese lute priests of the Heian period and it was also played as background music for story-telling This is a type of biwa that wandering blind monks played for religious practice as well as in narrative musical performances during the medieval era, widely seen in the Kyushu area. Ye Xuran (), a student of Lin Shicheng and Wei Zhongle, was the Pipa Professor at the first Musical Conservatory of China, the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. In the 20th century, two of the most prominent pipa players were Sun Yude (; 19041981) and Li Tingsong (; 19061976). It was originally used by traveling biwa minstrels, and its small size lent it to indoor play and improved portability. Cheng Yu researched the old Tang dynasty five-stringed pipa in the early 2000s and developed a modern version of it for contemporary use. [11] The style of singing accompanying biwa tends to be nasal, particularly when singing vowels, the consonant , and syllables beginning with "g", such as ga () and gi (). This scale sometimes includes supplementary notes, but the core remains pentatonic. Beginning in the late 1960s to the late 1980s, composers and historians from all over the world visited Yamashika and recorded many of his songs; before this time, the biwa hshi tradition had been a completely oral tradition. In addition, there are a number of techniques that produce sound effects rather than musical notes, for example, striking the board of the pipa for a percussive sound, or strings-twisting while playing that produces a cymbal-like effect. [22] Some delicately carved pipas with beautiful inlaid patterns date from this period, with particularly fine examples preserved in the Shosoin Museum in Japan. The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889, Accession Number: During the Qing dynasty, scores for pipa were collected in Thirteen Pieces for Strings. Different schools however can have sections added or removed, and may differ in the number of sections with free meter. This overlap resulted in a rapid evolution of the biwa and its usage and made it one of the most popular instruments in Japan. [citation needed]. The same piece of music can therefore differ significantly when performed by students of different schools, with striking differences in interpretation, phrasing, tempo, dynamics, playing techniques, and ornamentations. [45] Other collections from the Qing dynasty were compiled by Li Fangyuan () and Ju Shilin (), each representing different schools, and many of the pieces currently popular were described in these Qing collections. [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. Typically, the lowest notes of the arpeggios are open strings, while the highest ones can either be fingered pitches or an open string. The main part of the music is vocal and the biwa part mostly plays short interludes. 105-126. It is one of the more popular Chinese folk music, often paired with singing. The excerpt is performed by the ensemble Reigakusha. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The biwa ( Japanese: ) is a Japanese short-necked wooden lute traditionally used in narrative storytelling. Techniques that produce vibrato, portamento, glissando, pizzicato, harmonics or artificial harmonics found in violin or guitar are also found in pipa. greatest width of resonator Because of this bending technique oshikan (. Blind priests would play them in order to tell stories and tales of ancient war. However, following the collapse of the Ritsury state, biwa hshi employed at the court were faced with the court's reconstruction and sought asylum in Buddhist temples. [1] The fourth/fifth string G is an octave higher than the second string G. Again, note this is relative tuning; it could be AEAE, GDGD, etc, depending on the players range of voice. 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. Plucking in the opposite direction to tan and tiao are called mo () and gou () respectively. The fourth and fifth strings, if 5-stringed, are tuned to the same note. Biwa is a 4-stringed lute played with a large spectrum. Traditionally they are lashed with heavier rope, though some modern instruments are tightened with large screws. [56], Texts from Tang dynasty mentioned many renowned pipa players such as He Huaizhi (), Lei Haiqing (), Li Guaner (), and Pei Xingnu (). '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. It is not used to accompany singing. 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. In the Meiji period (1868-1912), sighted musicians created new styles of secular biwa narrative singing inspired by Kyushu ms traditions and introduced them to Tokyo. The instrument is tuned to match the key of the singer. The pipa, pp, or p'i-p'a (Chinese: ) is a traditional Chinese musical instrument, belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Hazusu: This is a sequence of two pitches, where the first one is attacked, and leades to a second one which is not attacked. The six fret type is tuned to B, E, B and b. Typically, the three-note rhythm is either short-short-long or long-short-short. Biwa performers also vary the volume of their voice between barely audible to very loud. [6] The strings were played using a large plectrum in the Tang dynasty, a technique still used now for the Japanese biwa. Kaeshibachi: The performance of arpeggio with an up-ward motion of the plectrum, and it is always soft. The heike-biwa (), a biwa with four strings and five frets, is used to play The Tale of the Heike. On the plectrum, figure of a golden phoenix with flowers in its beak, [6] Another Han dynasty text, Fengsu Tongyi, also indicates that, at that time, pipa was a recent arrival,[7] although later 3rd-century texts from the Jin dynasty suggest that pipa existed in China as early as the Qin dynasty (221206 BC). Each group can include either two open strings or one open and one fingered string. Though formerly popular, little was written about the performance and practice of the biwa from roughly the 16th century to the mid-19th century. Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded. A player holds it horizontally, and mostly plays rhythmic arpeggios in orchestra or ensemble. This type of biwa is used for court music called gagaku (), which has been protected by the government until today. And thanks to the low tension of the strings, it is easy to bend the strings by adding pressure. Kakisukashi: This is a three or four-note arpeggio with two strings in unison. [44] The first volume contains 13 pieces from the Northern school, the second and third volumes contain 54 pieces from the Southern school. This music called heikyoku () was cherished and protected by the authorities and particularly flourished in the 14-15th centuries. Also known as mouth organ. Yoko Hiraoka, a member of the Yamato Komyoji ryu, presents a lecture/recital of Japanese Biwa music. The short neck has four raised frets, each one specifically assigned to one of the left hand fingers. The flowers fluttered, and from Heaven the phoenix trilled, Heike-biwa is an accompaniment instrument specifically used to chant the Tale of Heike stories () in the traditional way dating from the medieval era. 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. The wen style is more lyrical and slower in tempo, with softer dynamic and subtler colour, and such pieces typically describe love, sorrow, and scenes of nature. The chikuzen biwa is played with the performer in the seiza position (on the knees, legs folded under) on the floor. Shakuhachi One of the most popular traditional Japanese wind instruments is the shakuhachi. Waribachi: This is a downward sweeping of the four strings, dividing the motion into two groups of two notes. The satsuma-biwa is traditionally made from Japanese mulberry, although other hard woods such as Japanese zelkova are sometimes used in its construction. Since biwa pieces were generally performed for small groups, singers did not need to project their voices as opera singers did in Western music tradition. This type of instrument was introduced to Korea (the bipa ), to Japan (the biwa ), and to Vietnam (the tyba ). This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen. [24], In the subsequent periods, the number of frets gradually increased,[26] from around 10 to 14 or 16 during the Qing dynasty, then to 19, 24, 29, and 30 in the 20th century. The biwa (Japanese: ) is a Japanese short-necked wooden lute traditionally used in narrative storytelling. [43] The collection was edited by Hua Qiuping (, 17841859) and published in 1819 in three volumes. 5. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. Players hold the instrument vertically. There is also evidence that other biwa instruments came from the Indian lute tradition. Malm, William P. 1959. Its classification is a type of a Chordophone. to the present. There were originally two major schools of pipa during the Qing dynastythe Northern (Zhili, ) and Southern (Zhejiang, ) schoolsand from these emerged the five main schools associated with the solo tradition. The loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) is a large evergreen shrub or tree, grown commercially for its orange fruit and for its leaves, which are used to make herbal tea.It is also cultivated as an ornamental plant.. greatest width of resonator . This next instrument seems to have some spiritual meaning behind it. Traditional Chinese narrative prefers the story of the Han Chinese Princess Liu Xijun sent to marry a barbarian Wusun king during the Han dynasty, with the pipa being invented so she could play music on horseback to soothe her longings. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. She now performs with Red Chamber and the Vancouver Chinese Music Ensemble. [41] Three Ming dynasty pieces were discovered in the High River Flows East (, Gaohe Jiangdong) collection dating from 1528 which are very similar to those performed today, such as "The Moon on High" (, Yue-er Gao). These, according to the Han dynasty text by Liu Xi, refer to the way the instrument is played "p" is to strike outward with the right hand, and "p" is to pluck inward towards the palm of the hand. In the 9th century the Ms (blind monks') biwa began to be used by blind musicians as an accompaniment to chanted religious texts and sutras. [32][33][34] A famous poem by Bai Juyi, "Pipa xing" (), contains a description of a pipa performance during a chance encounter with a female pipa player on the Yangtze River:[35]. Outside influence, internal pressures, and socio-political turmoil redefined biwa patronage and the image of the biwa; for example, the nin War of the Muromachi period (13381573) and the subsequent Warring States period (15th17th centuries) disrupted the cycle of tutelage for heikyoku[citation needed][a] performers. The typical 5-stringed Satsuma-biwa classical tuning is: CGCG, from first string to fourth/fifth string, respectively. However, false nails made of horn existed as early as the Ming period when finger-picking became the popular technique for playing pipa.[24]. It may be played as a solo instrument or as part of the imperial orchestra for use in productions such as daqu (, grand suites), an elaborate music and dance performance. It is a lute with a round, hollow soundboard, a short fretted neck, and usually four strings. In 1956, after working for some years in Shanghai, Lin accepted a position at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. [17][14] Starting about the 10th century, players began to hold the instrument "more upright", as the fingernail style became more important. 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 (710-794). The pipa pieces in the common repertoire can be categorized as wen (, civil) or wu (, martial), and da (, large or suite) or xiao (, small). 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. During the 1910s a five-string model was developed that, since the 1920s, has been the most common form of the instrument (gallery #2). They included Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, and Su Shi. Today, the instrument is played in both narrative and instrumental formats, in the traditional music scene as well as in various popular media. Among ethnomusicologists, it is the most widely used system for classifying musical instruments. The 5-string specimen is larger (the vibrating length of its strings is 30.3 inches) and heavier than the 4-string specimen and also has some delicate decorative detail added that is carved out of mother-of-pearl (detail #8 and #9). Note however that the frets on all Chinese lutes are high so that the fingers and strings never touch the fingerboard in between the frets, this is different from many Western fretted instruments and allows for dramatic vibrato and other pitch changing effects. The pipa, pp, or p'i-p'a ( Chinese: ) is a traditional Chinese musical instrument, belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Because of this tradition as a narrative music, the biwa is mostly played solo and is less commonly played with other types of instruments, except in gagaku () or the court orchestra where it is used in its original instrumental role, and in modern instrumental repertoire. Typically, the duration of each group subdivides the measure into two equal durations. to the present. Biwa players no longer enjoyed special privileges and were forced to support themselves. [1] An English translation was published in the Galpin Society Journal in 1961. Its plectrum is slightly larger than that of the gagaku-biwa, but the instrument itself is much smaller, comparable to a chikuzen-biwa in size. For the left hand, as mentioned above under the Construction section, bending of the strings (oshikan, ) and delicate control of it to create a vibrato effect (yuri. ) The number of frets is considerably fewer than other fretted instruments. Wei Zhongle (; 19031997) played many instruments, including the guqin. Multiple strings are often played in one pluck like an arpeggio. The archlute ( Spanish: archilad, Italian: arciliuto, German: Erzlaute) is a European plucked string instrument developed around 1600 as a compromise between the very large theorbo, the size and re-entrant tuning of which made for difficulties in the performance of solo music, and the Renaissance tenor lute, which lacked the bass range of the In the narrative traditions where the pipa is used as an accompaniment to narrative singing, there are the Suzhou tanci (), Sichuan qingyin (), and Northern quyi () genres. A. Biwa B. Koto C. Shakuhachi D. Shamisen 3. It is however possible to produce the tremolo with just one or more fingers. In modern biwa, particularly in Satsuma-biwa, one sometimes strikes the soundboard sharply to get percussive effects. [31] Celebrated performers of the Tang dynasty included three generations of the Cao familyCao Bao (), Cao Shancai () and Cao Gang (),[59][60] whose performances were noted in literary works. Resonator design, chordophone: bowl with wood soundboard, Vibrational length: tension bridge to ridge-nut, Pitches per string course: multiple (by pressure stopping against fretted fingerboard), 4-string biwa (gallery #1): General tones and pitches can fluctuate up or down entire steps or microtones. Sun performed in the United States, Asia, and Europe, and in 1956 became deputy director of the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra. Its pick or bachi () is the largest among all types of biwa it sometimes used to strike the hard soundboard sharply to create percussive effects, adding a more dynamic flavor to the music. An example tuning of the four string version is B, e, f and b, and the five string instrument can be tuned to C, G, C, d and g. For the five string version, the first and third strings are tuned the same note, the second string three steps down, the fifth string an octave higher than the second string, and the fourth string a step down from the fifth.