1. Traditional Musical Instruments
Ancient Chinese believed music cleansed people’s minds. There were
around 70 types of traditional musical instruments. The instruments
were a string, wind, and percussion. These are ten of the most
common traditional instruments.
Here are some instruments for your interest
Xiao
The Xiao is a vertically played bamboo flute with 6-8 finger holes. The
melody of this flute reminds the listener of a lonely moon in the autumn
night sky. This flute works on the same principle of blowing air over an
empty bottle to make a noise.
Sheng
The sheng is a wind instrument made out of bamboo. It was used to
accompany dancers in their performances and is now used for melody
in orchestras. There can be many pipes, but the first sheng had 17
pipes with a curved mouthpiece.
Pipa
The pipa is a four-stringed lute with 12-26 frets on a pear-shaped body.
The musician holds the instrument upright and plays with plectrums
attached to each finger of the right hand. A smaller version is called a
liuqin.
Guzheng
The guzheng was first made with a bamboo frame and silk strings. It is
a Chinese zither of 18-23 strings and movable bridges. This
instrument is typically played by plucking the strings.
Guqin
2. The guqin is also known as the seven-stringed qin. The body is a long
and narrow wooden sound box with seven strings stretched along the
top of the box. On the edges are 13 inlaid jade markers. Catalpa wood
is used for the base and there are two holes to help make the sound.
Erhu
The erhu is one of the most popular Chinese string instruments. It is a
two-stringed vertical fiddle that plays both traditional and contemporary
music in China today.
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