Kokyū (instrument)
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Kokyū ( Japanese 胡 弓 , "foreign bow", from ko , "foreign" and kyū , "bow") denotes a group of long-necked names in Japan that are bowed with a bow . The kokyūs were introduced from China with the related plucked lute shamisen and have been around since the 17th and 18th centuries . Known in Japan in the 19th century. The individual types differ in size, material and sound. The Okinawa version is called kucho .
The kokyu of Japan's main islands is 70 centimeters long, with a neck Rosewood , East Indian rosewood , Chinese quince or Pterocarpus indicus . The sound box is made of Chinese quince or Pterocarpus indicus (the instrument commonly used in Ryukyu uses blackened ebony ) and is covered in cat skin (or snake skin in Okinawa) on the front and back. There is a bridge on the front . It has three (less often four) strings and is played upright. The bow is covered with horse hair, the strings are made of silk. In central Japan, the kokyū was previously used as an integral part of the sankyoku ensemble, along with the koto and shamisen. Since the beginning of the 20th century, this role has mostly been taken over by the shakuhachi .
Since Shinei Matayoshi, a kokyū and sanshin player and sanshin farmer, developed a 4-string version of the kokyū to expand its sound range , it has become more widespread again. In Japan there is a Kokyū Society dedicated to promoting the instrument.
The American multi-instrumentalist Eric Golub also used the kokyū in jazz and blues.
literature
- Yosihiko Tokumaru: Chamber Music for Kokyû. In: Robert Provine (Ed.): The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. Volume 7: East Asia: China, Japan, and Korea. Garland, New York 2000, pp. 711-713
Web links
- Eric Golub's blog
- Co-Q.com (Japanese)
- Different Kokyu on one side of the Europeana