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The pipa (Chinese: 琵琶; pinyin: pípá) is a plucked Chinese string instrument. Sometimes called the Chinese lute, the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body. It has been played for nearly two thousand years of history in China, and belongs to the plucked category of instruments (彈撥樂器). Several related instruments in East and Southeast Asia are derived from the pipa; these include the Japanese biwa, the Vietnamese đàn tỳ bà, and the Korean bipa. The Korean instrument is the only one of the three that is no longer used. Attempts to revive the instrument have failed, although examples survive in museums. Photo by user:spencer195. ...
Photo by user:spencer195. ...
The New York City Subway system, a large rapid transit system operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) in New York City, is one of the most extensive public transportation systems in the world. ...
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Pinyin is a system of romanization (phonemic notation and transcription to Roman script) for Standard Mandarin, where pin means spell(ing) and yin means sound(s)). This article describes the most common variant called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: 汉è¯æ‹¼éŸ³; Traditional Chinese: 漢語拼音; pinyin: Hà nyÇ” PÄ«nyÄ«n), also known as scheme...
A string instrument (or stringed instrument) is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. ...
The lute is a plucked string instrument with a fretted neck and a deep round back. ...
See Lake Biwa for the lake in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. ...
The đà n tỳ bà is a Vietnamese traditional plucked string instrument. ...
Playing and performance
The name "pípá" is made up of two Chinese syllables, "pí" (琵) and "pá" (琶). These are the two most common ways of playing this instrument. "Pí" is to push the index finger of the right hand from right to left, and "pá" is to pull the thumb of the right hand from left to right, in the opposite direction. The strings were originally played using a large plectrum in the Tang Dynasty, then gradually replaced by the fingernails of the right hand. Since the revolutions in Chinese instrument making during the 20th century, the softer twisted silk strings of earlier times have been exchanged for nylon-wound steel strings, which are far too strong for human fingernails, so false nails are now used, constructed of plastic or tortoise-shell, and affixed to the fingertips with the player's choice of elastic tape.
 A Tang Dynasty five-stringed Pipa Image File history File links Download high resolution version (481x1271, 67 KB) Summary Photo of a Tang Dynasty five-stringed pipa. ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (481x1271, 67 KB) Summary Photo of a Tang Dynasty five-stringed pipa. ...
History and construction Prototypes of the pipa already existed in China in the Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 206 BC). At that time, there were two types of pipa. One was straight-necked, with a round sound box, and two faces mounted with leather. The other was believed to be inspired by the primitive forms of zheng, konghou, and zou. It also has a straight neck, a round sound box, and also four strings, along with twelve standards of notes. This model was later developed into the instrument known today as the ruan. The modern pipa is closer to the instrument which originated in Persia/Middle-East (where it was called barbat) and was introduced into China beginning in the late Jin Dynasty (265-420 A.D.). The Qin Dynasty (Chinese: 秦æœ; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chin Chao) (221 BC - 206 BC) was preceded by the Zhou Dynasty and followed by the Han Dynasty in China. ...
Centuries: 4th century BC - 3rd century BC - 2nd century BC Decades: 270s BC 260s BC 250s BC 240s BC 230s BC - 220s BC - 210s BC 200s BC 190s BC 180s BC 170s BC Years: 226 BC 225 BC 224 BC 223 BC 222 BC - 221 BC - 220 BC 219 BC...
Centuries: 4th century BC - 3rd century BC - 2nd century BC Decades: 250s BC 240s BC 230s BC 220s BC 210s BC - 200s BC - 190s BC 180s BC 170s BC 160s BC 150s BC Years: 211 BC 210 BC 209 BC 208 BC 207 BC - 206 BC - 205 BC 204 BC...
In a stringed instrument, a sound box amplifies the vibrations made by the strings. ...
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The konghou is an ancient Chinese harp. ...
In a stringed instrument, a sound box amplifies the vibrations made by the strings. ...
The ruan (阮, pinyin: ruǎn) is a Chinese plucked string instrument. ...
// History The barbat is an ancient instrument of Persian origin, refined during the Arab age into the current form of oud. ...
The Jin Dynasty (晉 pinyin: jìn, 265-420), one of the Six Dynasties, followed the Three Kingdoms and preceded the Southern and Northern Dynasties in China. ...
By the Tang era, the pipa had become popular in the imperial court. It had a crooked neck, 4 or 5 silk strings, and 5 or 6 frets, and was played with a plectrum in a horizonal position. As the ages went by, the crooked neck was replaced by a straight one, the number of frets increased to between 14 or 16, and to 17, 24, 29, or 30 in the 20th century. The 14 or 16 fret pipa had frets arranged in approximately equivalent to the western tone and semitone, starting at the nut, the intervals were T-S-S-S-T-S-S-S-T-T-3/4-3/4-T-T-3/4-3/4, (some frets produced a 3/4 tone or "neutral tone"). In the 1920s and 1930s, the number of frets was increased to 24, based on the 12 tone equal temperament scale, with all the intervals being semitones. Since then the number of frets has been extended to 29 or 30. The traditional 16 fret pipa is becoming less common, although it is still used in some regional styles such as the pipa in the southern genre of nanguan/nanyin. The plectrum was replaced by fingernails and the horizontal playing position was replaced by the vertical (or near-vertical) position. During this time, the five-stringed pipa became lost. Nanguan (å—管; pinyin: nánguÇŽn; literally southern pipe; also called nanyin, nanyue, or nanqu) is a traditional musical genre originating in the Fujian province of China. ...
The pipa became a favourite in the Tang Dynasty, during which time Persian performers and teachers were in demand in the capital, Chang'an (which had a large Persian community). Many delicately carved pipas with beautiful inlaid patterns date from this period. Masses of pipa-playing Buddhist semi-deities are depicted in the wall paintings of the Mogao Caves near Dunhuang. For the band, see Tang Dynasty (band). ...
Moosiqi Asil or Persian music is the traditional and indigenous music of Persia and Persian-speaking countries: musiqi, the science and art of music, and moosiqi, the sound and performance of music (Sakata 1983). ...
Changan ▶(?) (Simplified Chinese: 长安; Traditional Chinese: 長安; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chang-an) is the ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in China. ...
A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, SiddhÄrtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by...
View of the Mogao Grottoes from outside The Mogao Caves, or Mogao Grottoes (Traditional Chinese: 莫高窟; Simplified Chinese: 莫高窟; pinyin: mò gÄo kÅ«) form a system of 492 temples near Dunhuang, in Gansu province, China. ...
Location of Dunhuang Dunhuang (Chinese: 敦煌, also written as 燉煌 till early Qing Dynasty; pinyin: Dūnhuáng; ) is a city in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China. ...
The pipa is referred to frequently in Tang Dynasty poetry, where it is often praised for its refinement and delicacy of tone. Bai Juyi's famous "Pipa Xing" (Pipa Song) describes a chance encounter with a female pipa player on the Yangtze River: This is a Chinese name; the family name is Bai. ...
Afternoon light on the jagged grey mountains rising from the Yangtze River gorge The Yangtze River or Chang Jiang is the longest river in Asia and the third longest in the world after the Nile in Africa and the Amazon in South America. ...
- 大絃嘈嘈如急雨 : The bold strings rattled like splatters of sudden rain,
- 小絃切切如私語 : The fine strings hummed like lovers' whispers.
- 嘈嘈切切錯雜彈 : Chattering and pattering, pattering and chattering,
- 大珠小珠落玉盤 : As pearls, large and small, on a jade plate fall.
Repertoire There are numerous pipa pieces in the common repertoire which can be split into four distinctive styles: 「文」 wen (civil), 「武」 wu (martial), 「大」 da (suite), and 「小」 xiao (solo).
Famous pieces include 《十面埋伏》 Shimian Maifu [Ambushed from Ten Sides], 《夕陽簫鼓》 Xiyang Xiaogu [Flute and Drum at Sunset], 《陽春白雪》 Yangchun Baixue [White Snow in a Sunny Spring], 《龍船》 Long Chuan [Dragon Boat], 《彝族舞曲》 Yizu Wuqu [Dance of the Yi People], 《大浪淘沙》 Dalang Taosha [Big Waves Pushing the Sand], 《昭君出塞》 Zhaojun Chusai [Zhaojun Outside the Frontier] and 《霸王卸甲》 Bawang Xiejia [King Chu Takes Off his Armour].
New compositions In the late 20th century, largely through the efforts of Wu Man, Min Xiao-Fen, and other performers, Chinese and Western contemporary composers began to create new works for the pipa (both solo and in combination with chamber ensembles and orchestra). Most prominent among these are Terry Riley, Philip Glass, Lou Harrison, Tan Dun, Bright Sheng, Chen Yi, Zhou Long, Bun-Ching Lam, and Carl Stone.[1] In the broadest sense, contemporary music is any music being written in the present day. ...
Terry Riley – (Portrait by Betty Freeman) Terry Riley (born 24 June 1935) is an American composer associated with the minimalist school. ...
This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...
Lou Silver Harrison (May 14, 1917 - February 2, 2003) was an American composer. ...
Tan Dun (èšç›¾ born August 18, 1957) is best known as the Grammy and Oscar award winning composer for the soundtracks of the movies Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Hero. ...
Bright Sheng (surname Sheng, born Sheng Liang, Shanghai, China, December 6, 1955) is a Chinese composer of contemporary classical music. ...
Chen Yi (surname Chen, b. ...
Zhou Long (surname Zhou, b. ...
Bun-Ching Lam (b. ...
Carl Stone (born Carl Joseph Stone, February 10, 1953) is an American composer, primarily working in the field of live electronic music. ...
The pipa has also been used in rock music; the California-based band Incubus featured it in their song "Aqueous Transmission," as played by the group's guitarist, Mike Einziger. [2] Incubus is a five-man alternative rock band based out of Calabasas, CA. Members include Brandon Boyd (vocals and percussion), Mike Einziger (guitar), Ben Kenney (bass), Jose Pasillas (drums) and DJ Kilmore (turntables). ...
Mike Einziger Michael Aaron Einziger (born 21 June 1976) is the guitarist of the rock band Incubus. ...
 A standard modern pipa with white ox horn for neck and pegs Image File history File links Download high resolution version (438x900, 28 KB) Summary Photo of own pipa, 2000. ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (438x900, 28 KB) Summary Photo of own pipa, 2000. ...
Performers In the 20th century, two of the most prominent pipa players were Sun Yude (1904-1981) and Li Tingsong (1906-1976). Both were pupils of Wang Yuting (1872–1951), and both were active in establishing and promoting guoyu (national music), a combination of traditional regional musics and Western musical practices. Sun Yude performed in the United States, Asia, and Europe, and in 1956 became deputy director of the Shanghai minzu yuetuan (Shanghai Folk Orchestra). As well as being one of the leading pipa players of his generation, Li Tingsong held many academic positions and also carried out research on pipa scales and temperament. Wei Zhongle (1908 or 1909 - 1998) played many instruments, including the guqin. In the early 1950s, he founded the traditional instruments department at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. The guqin (Chinese: å¤ç´; Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: ku-chin; literally ancient stringed-instrument) is the modern name for a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument of the zither family (ä¸è¯çµƒæ¨‚å™/ä¸åŽå¼¦ä¹å™¨). It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favored by scholars and literati as an instrument of great...
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Lin Shicheng (1922- ) born in Shanghai, began learning music under his father and was taught by Shen Haochu (1899–1953), a leading player in the Pudong school style of pipa playing. Liu Dehai (1937 - ) also born in Shanghai, was a student of Lin Shicheng and in 1961 graduated from the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. Liu also studied with other musicians and has developed a style that combines elements from several different schools. The Central Conservatory of Music (ä¸å¤®éŸ³ä¹å¦é™¢) is a university in Beijing, China. ...
Probably the best known pipa player internationally is Wu Man, a virtuoso performer and former student of Lin Shicheng. Wu received the first-ever master's degree in pipa and won China's first National Academic Competition for Chinese Instruments. She lives in San Diego, California and works extensively with Chinese, cross-cultural, new music, and jazz groups. Wu Man (surname Wu) (b. ...
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Other contemporary players who have introduced the pipa to North America, Europe, or Japan include Min Xiao-Fen, Tang Liangxing, Jiang Ting, Gao Hong, Qiu Xia He, Liu Fang, Yang Jing, Ting Ting (Zong Tingting), and Zhou Yi. Beijing-born, London-resident pipa performer Cheng Yu (程玉) performs on a five-string pipa, a revival of a version of the instrument that formerly existed in China before the eighth century A.D. MIN XIAO-FEN Pipa player / vocalist Min Xiao-Fen, internationally known for her virtuosity and fluid style, is a prototype artist in this tradition. ...
Gao Hong (surname Gao, b. ...
Qiu Xia He (surname He; b. ...
Cheng Yu 程玉 is a musician of Chinese descent, originally from China, but now resides in London, UK. She specializes in pipa, the Chinese four-stringed pear-shaped lute, but also plays the guqin, the seven-stringed zither. ...
Prominent pipa players in China include Yu Jia (俞嘉), Yang Wei (杨惟) and Fan Wei (樊薇).
Interesting facts The loquat tree and fruit, called pipa (枇杷) in Mandarin Chinese, are named after the instrument, likely due to the distinctive shape of the tree's fruit and leaves, both of which resemble the body of the pipa. Binomial name Eriobotrya japonica (Thunb. ...
Recordings
References - New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell (London, 2001).
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