#Chinese two stringed instrument movie#
#Chinese two stringed instrument skin#

He is now known as the “Father of Modern Koto”.

Yatsuhashi is credited for the development of a new style of Koto and expanding the repertoire beyond the limited selection of songs. This changed in the 17th century when one of court’s Koto musicians decided to teach Koto to a blind musician by the name of Yatsuhashi Kengyo. It’s fascinating the Koto remained an instrument of the Japanese Imperial Court for a long period of time since it first appeared during the Nara period (710-794).

Regarded as Japan’s national instrument, the Koto is a a large plucked zither similar to the Chinese Guzheng.

#Chinese two stringed instrument movie#

It was even featured in the 2016 movie Kubo and the Two Strings where the main character is seen performing in his local streets. Besides its closely knit relationship with traditional folk music (minyo), it has evolved and adapted to suit modern styles & genres.Ĭontemporary musicians have brought more individuality & personality into their music using the Shamisen for a variety of genres from rock, bluegrass, jazz to even metal. Shamisen has been historically popular both as a solo instrument and as an accompaniment at Kabuki and Bunraku theatre performances. The instrument is played with a large triangular plectrum, called a “baichi”, which can be used to pluck the strings or hit the body to add percussive effects. It’s similar in length to a guitar neck but has no frets or fretboard.Ī distinct feature of the Shamisen is that the first two strings rest on the brass nut, but the third string runs over a cavity on the nut, which is purposefully done to create a characteristic “buzzing” timbre. The neck ( sao) consists of 3 or 4 pieces of wood perfectly fit together and houses three silk or nylon strings.

#Chinese two stringed instrument skin#

On either side, stretched dog or cat skin is glued to form a drum-like body.

Its body ( dō) is made from 4 pieces of hardwood joined together to form a square frame. However, the use of these skins gradually declined and was replaced with plastic. The instrument is believed to have been brought into Japan during the Edo period (1603 – 1868) via the Chinese Sanxian and Okinawan Sanshin.Īlthough both Sanxian and Sanshin used to be covered in python skin, the Japanese started using dog and cat skin for their instruments. Shamisen literally means “three strings” in Japanese.