古箏

The instrument

The modern zheng is about 1.6 metres long, with a curved soundboard of paulownia wood. Each string runs over a bridge, called in Chinese a "goose pillar" (yanzhu), and moving a bridge changes the string's pitch. The strings are laid out in a pentatonic scale, with the highest strings closest to the player. Silk strings gave way to brass and other wire in the Qing dynasty, and since the 1970s most players use steel strings wrapped in nylon, which are louder.

Most players wear picks taped to the fingers, made today of plastic, resin or tortoiseshell; older picks were of bamboo, bone, ivory or jade.

How to listen

In the traditional way of playing, the right hand plucks to the right of the bridges while the left hand presses the strings on the other side. Pressing raises the pitch, so the left hand can bend a note upward, let it sink back, or make it waver. It also supplies the two notes missing from the pentatonic tuning. These slides and vibratos give zheng music its singing quality, and the amount of ornament is one of the main differences between regional schools. Listen also for the right thumb's rapid tremolo on a single string, which sustains a melody note. Since the 1950s players have also used the left hand on the plucking side, for harmony and counterpoint.

A short history

Accounts of the zheng's origin vary, and some are plainly legend, such as the story of two people who broke a 25-string se in half and shared it. The oldest instrument yet found had 13 strings and may date from the Warring States period. The zheng was prominent in the Qin dynasty, and by the Tang dynasty it was perhaps the most commonly played instrument in China. It reached Japan in the seventh and eighth centuries.

Over the centuries strongly regional styles grew up. Northern schools include those of Henan and Shandong; southern schools include Chaozhou, Hakka and Zhejiang. Cao Dongfu of Henan and Wang Xunzhi, who popularised the Zhejiang school, were among the leading players and teachers of the twentieth century. New pieces since the 1950s have mixed northern and southern techniques into a modern concert style.

Start with

Yang Yi plays zheng alongside the gaohu of Tien-juo Wang and the pipa of Wu Man in the Chinese program of the Brooklyn Folk Arts series. For the zheng as everyday music, listen to the 2006 recording of a guzheng in a Xintiandi restaurant in Shanghai. More is on the guoyue page.

Questions

What is a guzheng?

The guzheng is a Chinese plucked zither with movable bridges, most commonly with 21 strings. Its player plucks with finger picks on one side of the bridges and bends the pitch by pressing on the other.

What is the difference between the guzheng and the guqin?

The guzheng has many strings, each on a movable bridge, and is plucked with picks. The guqin has seven strings and no bridges, and it is a much quieter instrument plucked with the fingers.

Is the koto the same as the guzheng?

No, but they are related. The Japanese koto descends from the Chinese zheng, which was introduced to Japan in the seventh and eighth centuries.