The Pipa: A Unique Ancient Chinese Musical Instrument - Research Paper

Introduction

Pipa is a Chinese musical instrument with a four-stringed grasped lute (Chin & Berger, 2010). The instrument originated from Central and West Asian prototypes and was first used in China during the era of the Northern Wei dynasty. Initially, pipa was held horizontally in a similar way with a guitar and the twisted silk twines were plucked using a large plectrum on the right hand (Chen & Huang, 2011). The name pipa describes plucking strokes of the triangular plectrum: pi means to play forward while pa is means playing backward (Chin & Berger, 2010). After some time, some musicians started to pluck pipa using their fingernails and hold it in an upright manner. According to Chinese bayin (eight-tone), pipa is grouped as a silk musical instrument due to its traditional relation to silk strings (Chen & Huang, 2011).

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San Xian

San xian is a musical instrument used during solo performances (Ruismaki & Juvonen, 2009). San xian is one of the oldest Chinese instruments that is mostly played during traditional music events (Jin, 2011). In some cases, San xian is played together with other traditional Chinese musical instruments during ensemble performances (Jin, 2011). San xian is a low tension instrument and produces a limited range of tunes. Also, is essential in producing a soft voice during performances; therefore, complementing other musical instruments in the ensemble (Ruismaki & Juvonen, 2009).

Gu Zheng

Gu zheng is a large Chinese musical instrument with 18-23 strings (Waltham, Koster, Smit-Anseeuw, & Zimmer, 2013). In some cases, it is said to be an ancestor of a Japanese instrument called koto. Normally, gu zheng is not played in streets like other Chinese music instruments, rather, it used in traditional musical ensembles (Waltham et al., 2013) Also, the instrument is often played by women artists. Gu zheng is played when the musician is sitting in front of the instrument's desk (Yu, Chen, & Yang, 2008). The instrument is usually performed solo. Due to advancements in the music industry, modern gu zheng is played through pinching of strings, especially in producing heptatonic chords and notes (Yu, Chen, & Yang, 2008).

Guitar

A guitar was introduced in the 16th century in Spain (Alves, 2015). The name was derived from guitarra latina, which was a historical instrument with four strings body having a waist appearance (Alves, 2015). Since the 16th century, several changes were made on the guitar to improve its musical performances (Wade, 2010). Before the beginning of the 18th century, a double course structure in the guitar was removed and replaced with single strings tuned as E-A-D-G-B-E (Wade, 2010). The single strings approach is still used as a standard tuning in modern music.

Jazz Drum

Jazz drumming involves playing percussion that includes cymbals and a variety of drums. Jazz drum was introduced in 1910 during the era of Dixieland (Honing & De Haas, 2008). Jazz drum was improved by great musicians like Max Roach in the 1940s (Honing & De Haas, 2008). Drummers influenced the changes applied during jazz drumming. Cultural mixing influenced the use of jazz drums, rhythms, and the art form (Lee, 2016). For example, the Moorish invasion of Europe, where people from France, African, and Spain interacted and shared their cultural practices; therefore, contributing to the use of jazz drums in music (Lee, 2016). African rhythms and music greatly influenced the use of jazz due to the creation of a general mix Lee, 2016).

Double bass

The double bass is a stringed instrument that produces the lowest pitch. The double bass varies in size with the largest having a total length of about 1.8 meters (Mihajlovski, 2013). A modern double bass is normally strung using four heavy strings that are pitched as E1-A1-D-G. Some double basses have an additional fifth string; therefore, allowing musicians to play high notes easily (Mihajlovski, 2013). Also, a group of basses may be designed with a levered mechanical device instead of a fifth string. The introduction of double bass date back in the 15th century (Kelleher, Campbell, & Dickey, 2013). The device was mostly used in the 18th century, especially during the symphony orchestra (Kelleher et al., 2013).

Piano

A piano is a stringed and acoustic musical instrument (Neuhaus, 2008). The Piano was invented by an Italian musician called Bartolomeo Cristofori around 1700 (Ehrlich & Perley, 1990). The instrument is played through the use of a keyboard. According to Neuhaus (2008), the keyboard comprises a row of small levers or keys in which the performer presses with thumbs and fingers of both hands; therefore, making the hammer to strike the instrument's strings. The piano produces a soft and loud voice depending on the variations volume. The loudness of a voice produced is determined by pressure applied by the pianist on the keyboard.

Harp

A harp considered to be among the oldest musical instruments in the globe. The ancient harps were constructed from a hunting bow (Marson, 2005). The harp was invented in Egypt because some tombs in 3000 B.C. show some simple instruments resembling the hunter's bow (Chadefaux, Le Carrou, Fabre, & Daudet, L. (2012). A fore-pillar was added to support the instrument and improve its structure. Later, metallic strings made from copper and brass were used to improve sound production (Chadefaux, Le Carrou, Fabre, & Daudet, L. (2012). demands by harpists to have an instrument that produces a range of pitch resulted in the development of modern harps.

References

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