Sanxian
Sanxian or San hsien ( Chinese 三弦 , Pinyin sānxián , W.-G. san1-hsien2 - "three strings", also San hsiän ) is a three-stringed long-necked lute that is played in Chinese music .
Form and structure
The sanxian is a spit lute developed from Turkestan forerunners (a box lute whose stem goes through the body) and has a long, fretless fingerboard; the round sound box is usually covered with snakeskin. It is made in different sizes for different purposes, and a four-string version has existed since the end of the 20th century. The sanxian of the north usually measures around 122 cm, while the southern variant only measures around 95 cm.
sound
The instrument produces a dry, powerful tone and has a considerable volume of sound similar to the banjo . In the larger versions, the range extends over three octaves . In general, the strings (made of silk) are plucked with a thin, hard plectrum made of animal horn, now also made of plastic, more rarely with the fingernails.
use
The sanxian is mainly used as an accompanying instrument both in orchestras and in smaller ensembles; however, there are also solo pieces for her. In recent times, pop and rock musicians have also occasionally resorted to the sanxian , which actually belongs to traditional Chinese music ; The singer He Yong is famous for this . Nonetheless, the meaning of the sanxian is declining today and is only learned by a few students , especially compared to the pipa or the guzheng .
The Japanese shamisen later developed from the sanxian , but its resonance body is usually covered with dog or cat fur instead of snake skin.
Web links
- Sanxian on Paul and Bernice Noll's website
- Sanxian photos
Audio samples
- Sanxian audio (click on headphones to call up the individual tracks)
Individual evidence
- ^ Franz Jahnel: The guitar and its construction. Erwin Bochinsky, Frankfurt am Main 1963; 8th edition 2008, ISBN 978-3-923639-09-0 , pp. 15 and 19 f.