Chinese musical instruments

lamellophone instrument

thumb|262px|Two men (right) are lifting the gong depicted on the 13th-century temple reliefs at the Candi Induk, Penataran|Panataran temple complex in [[East Java, Indonesia]] thumb|262px|A gong collection in a gamelan ensemble of instruments – Indonesian Embassy [[Canberra]]

The ocarina (otherwise known as a potato flute) is a wind musical instrument; it is a type of vessel flute. Variations exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the body. It is traditionally made from clay or ceramic, but other materials are also used, such as plastic, wood, glass, metal, or bone. The Italian Ocarina was invented in 1853 by 17-year-old Giuseppe Donati, who also gave it the name ocarina. Donati handmade each ocarina from clay, with anything from 7 to 10 finger-holes and a spout for a mouthpiece.

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The pipa () is a traditional Chinese musical instrument belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets ranging from 12 to 31. Another Chinese four-string plucked lute is the liuqin, which looks like a smaller version of the pipa. The pear-shaped instrument may have existed in China as early as the Han dynasty, and although historically the term pipa was once used to refer to a variety of plucked chordophones, its usage since the Song dynasty refers exclusively to the pear-shaped

Chinese mouth-blown free reed instrument

The zheng (), or guzheng (), is a Chinese plucked zither. The modern guzheng commonly has 21, 25, or 26 strings, is long, and is tuned in a major pentatonic scale. It has a large, resonant soundboard made from Paulownia wood. Other components are often made from other woods for structural or decorative reasons. Guzheng players often wear a fingerpick made from materials such as plastic, resin, tortoiseshell, or ivory on one or both hands.

The also called or , is a traditional double-reeded Chinese musical instrument. The 's basic design originated in ancient Iran, then called "Sorna". It appeared in China around the 3rd century and it's also popular in parts of northern and southern China, including Shandong, Henan, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, Northeast China, Guangdong, Fujian, and other regions. It has a distinctively loud and high-pitched sound, and was used frequently in Chinese traditional music ensembles, particularly in those that perform outdoors. It was an important instrument in the folk music of northern China, pa

thumbnail|right|300px|A yangqin on a stand The trapezoidal yangqin () is a Chinese hammered dulcimer, likely derived from the Iranian or the European dulcimer. It used to be written with the characters (lit. "foreign zither"), but the first character was changed in the early 20th century to (also pronounced ), meaning "acclaimed". It is also spelled '''yang ch'in'''. Hammered dulcimers of various types are now very popular not only in China, but also Eastern Europe, the Middle East, India, Iran, and Pakistan. The instruments are also sometimes known by the names "santoor" and "cymbalom". This

wooden percussion instrument used in Buddhist rituals in East Asia

thumb|A Brown Swiss cow grazing with a cowbell thumb|Bells on a herd of cows grazing on Monte Baldo, Italy thumbnail|Goat with cowbell thumb|Various types of cowbells from Karnataka, India thumb|Various types of cowbells from the Swiss Alps thumb|250px|right|The cowbells are different depending on the species, sex and age of animals. These are used in the Pyrenees area.

Chinese end-blown flute

The banhu () is a Chinese traditional bowed string instrument in the huqin family of instruments. It is used primarily in northern China. Ban means a piece of wood and hu is short for huqin.

The ''''' (; ; ; or ), also called a moon lute or moon guitar', is a traditional Chinese string instrument. It is a lute with a round, hollow soundboard, a short fretted neck, and usually four strings. It is an important instrument in the Peking opera orchestra, often taking the role of main melodic instrument in lieu of the bowed string section.

thumb|right|240px|A hulusi thumb|right|240px|The free reed of a hulusi

The (, literally "three strings") is a three-stringed traditional Chinese lute. It has a long fretless fingerboard, and the body is traditionally made from snake skin stretched over a rounded rectangular resonator. It is made in several sizes for different purposes and in the early 20th century a four-stringed version, the , was developed. The northern is generally larger, at about in length, while southern versions of the instrument are usually about in length.

percussion instrument originating in eastern Asia

Chinese plucked string instrument

Chinese bowed string instrument

Bianzhong (; ) is an ancient Chinese musical instrument consisting of a set of bronze bells, played melodically. China is the earliest country to manufacture and use musical chimes. They are also called chime bells. These sets of chime bells were used as polyphonic musical instruments and some of these bells have been dated at between 2,000 and 3,600 years old. They were hung in a wooden frame and struck with a mallet. Using a wooden hammer and a rod to beat the bronze bell can make different pitch. Along with the stone chimes called , they were an important instrument in China's ritual and co

Chinese double reed wind instrument

globular vessel flute

thumb|100px|right|Side view of an erhu, a common huqin

traditional instruments of China, particularly in Han culture

The ghijak is a group of related spike fiddles, used by Afghans, Uzbeks, Uyghurs, Tajiks, Turkmens, Qaraqalpaks and in the Xinjiang province of western China. Despite the similarity of the name, it is more closely related to the Persian kamancheh than the ghaychak.

The gaohu (高胡; pinyin: gāohú, ; Cantonese: gou1 wu4; also called yuehu 粤胡) is a Chinese bowed string instrument developed from the erhu in the 1920s by the musician and composer Lü Wencheng (1898–1981) and used in Cantonese music and Cantonese opera. It belongs to the huqin family of instruments, together with the zhonghu, erhu, banhu, jinghu, and sihu; its name means "high-pitched huqin". It is the leading instrument of Cantonese music and opera ensembles. Well known pieces for the gaohu include Bu Bu Gao (步步高, Higher Step By Step) and Ping Hu Qiu Yue (平湖秋月, Autumn Moon on Calm Lake).

thumb|right|290px|A bawu in the key of F The bawu (; also ba wu) is a Chinese wind instrument. Although shaped like a flute, it is actually a free reed instrument, with a single metal reed. It is played in a transverse (horizontal) manner. It has a pure, clarinet-like timbre and its playing technique incorporates the use of much ornamentation, particularly bending tones.

ancient Chinese zither

The '''''' () is a Chinese plucked string instrument. In ancient China, the term came to refer to three different musical instruments: a zither and two different types of harp.

The liuqin () is a three, four or five-stringed Chinese mandolin with a pear-shaped body. The range of its voice is much higher than other Chinese plucked string instruments, and it is used in both orchestral music and solo pieces in Chinese music. This has been the result of a modernization in its usage in recent years, leading to a gradual elevation in status of the from an accompaniment instrument in folk Chinese opera, to an instrument known for its unique tonal and acoustic qualities. The instrument is held diagonally like the Chinese and . Its strings are elevated by a bridge and the sou

thumb|Bowed zhonghu The zhonghu (), short for zhongyin erhu () is a low-pitched Chinese bowed string instrument. Together with the erhu and gaohu, it is a member of the huqin family. It was developed in the 1940s as the alto member of the huqin family (similar in range to the European viola) to increase the pitch range of the instruments used in a Chinese orchestra.

thumb|Paixiao of the Tang Dynasty - reproduction The paixiao () is a Chinese wind instrument, a form of pan flute. A major difference between the Chinese Paixiao and the panpipes used in European and South American traditions, is that at the top of the Chinese instrument the pipe holes are each cut angled or with notches. This allows for bending the pitch in similar capacity to the dongxiao down a minor second. This allows Chinese paixiao to be fully chromatic without loss in timbre, even though the included pipes are tuned diatonically. The method of blowing so is to hold the head of the fram

ancient Chinese percussion instrument

The erxian () is a Chinese bowed string instrument in the family of instruments. It has two strings and is used primarily in Cantonese music, most often in "hard string" chamber ensembles. In the 1920s, following the development of the , the experienced a decline and since the late 20th century has been little used outside the tradition of Cantonese opera.

The gehu () is a Chinese instrument developed in the 20th century by the Chinese musician Yang Yusen (, 1926–1980). It is a fusion of the Chinese huqin family and the cello, essentially an erhu cello or Chinese cello. Like standard cellos, its four strings are also tuned (from low to high) C-G-D-A; it also uses standard cello strings. Unlike most other musical instruments in the huqin family, the bridge does not contact the snakeskin drum head, which faces to the side. Instead the bridge is connected to a mechanism inside the body that touches the drum head. The bridge transmits the string vib

The bianqing (; ; ) is a traditional Chinese percussion instrument consisting of a set of L-shaped flat stone chimes known as qing, played melodically. The chimes were hung in a wooden frame and struck with a mallet. Along with the bronze bells called bianzhong, they were an important instrument in China's ritual and court music going back to ancient times.

Chinese double-headed barrel drum

The fangxiang (also fang xiang, fang hsiang; ; also known in the West as the Chinese chang) is an organized-suspended (bianxuan) Chinese metallophone that has been used for over 1,000 years. It was first used in the Liang dynasty (502—557 CE), and then standardized in the Sui and Tang dynasties mostly for court music.

Vietnamese and South Korean musical instrument

string instrument from China and Mongolia

ancient Chinese musical wind instrument

thumb|right|190px|A musician playing a qinqin with python-skin resonator in a Cantonese street band in San Francisco thumb|Front and back views of modern Qinqin. The qinqin (秦琴; pinyin: qínqín; Vietnamese: Đàn sến) is a plucked Chinese lute. It was originally manufactured with a wooden body, a slender fretted neck, and three strings. Its body can be round, hexagonal (with rounded sides), or octagonal. Often, only two strings were used, as in certain regional silk-and-bamboo ensembles. In its hexagonal form (with rounded sides), it is also referred to as meihuaqin (梅花琴, literally "plum blossom

thumb|200px|Painting of a musician playing a paiban. Mogao Caves, cave 159, paiban thumb|right|155px|A paiban used in Chaozhou people|Chaozhou music The () is a clapper made from several flat pieces of hardwood or bamboo (or, formerly, sometimes also ivory or metal), which is used in many different forms of Chinese music. There are many different types of , and the instrument is also referred to as , , , or . Typical materials used for the include , , or , or bamboo, with the slats tied together loosely on one end with cord. It is held vertically by one hand and clapped together, producing a s

The rawap () is a variant of the rubab used in traditional Uyghur music of Xinjiang, China.

Chinese flute

Chinese percussion instrument

wooden percussion instrument carved in the shape of a tiger

The leiqin (雷琴 or 擂琴, literally "thunderous instrument"; also called leihu) is a Chinese bowed string musical instrument.

type of orient flute

The bass gehu (, ; also called digehu or beigehu , literally "bass gehu") is a Chinese bowed string instrument in the huqin family. It was developed by Yang Yusen along with the gehu in the 20th century. It has four strings and is the Chinese equivalent of the double bass.

thumb |This is a part of Dunhuang fresco, showing pipas and jiegu drums. The jiegu (羯鼓; Wade–Giles: chieh2-ku3; pinyin: jiégǔ; sometimes translated as "wether drum"; also written as 鞨鼓) was a drum used in ancient China. It was hourglass-shaped and played with two wooden sticks. As for the structure, the leather on both sides is thin and the size is the same, and it is played with sticks in both hands.

ancient Chinese string instrument

The duxianqin is a Chinese plucked string instrument with only one string; it is derived from the Vietnamese đàn bầu. Chinese sources describe duxianqin as being an instrument of the Jing (also spelled Gin or Kinh) ethnic group, who are ethnic Vietnamese living in China. It is still commonly played by this ethnic group. Sometimes the body of the instrument is made from a large tube of bamboo rather than wood, which is more common in Vietnam.

The zhuihu (坠胡; pinyin: zhùihú; Yale romanization: jwèi-hú) is also called zhuiqin (坠琴; pinyin: zhùiqín; Yale romanization: jwèi-chín), zhuizixian (坠子弦; pinyin: zhùzixián; Yale romanization: jwèi-dz-syán), erxian (二弦; pinyin: èrxián; Yale romanization: èr-syán), or quhu (曲胡; pinyin: qǔhú; Yale romanization: chyǔ-hú). It is a two-stringed bowed string instrument from China. In construction, it resembles the sanxian, and likely evolved as a bowed version of that musical instrument. Unlike bowed string instruments in the huqin family (such as the erhu), the zhuihu has a fretless fingerboard again

thumb|right|upright=0.8|Female performer with five-gong yunluo, from Chinese engraving The ( ; literally "cloud gongs" or "cloud of gongs"), is a traditional Chinese musical instrument. It is made up of a set of gongs of varying sizes held within a frame. It was also called in ancient times.

The khushtar (Chinese: 胡西它尔; Uyghur: خۇشتار, Хуштар, also hushtar or hustar) is a bowed lute from the Uyghur Region, Western China. It has four strings in four courses and is tuned G, D, A, E.

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The koudi ( also spelled kou di) is a very small Chinese flute made from bamboo. It is the smallest flute in the Chinese flute family. Its original shape derives from prehistorical instruments made with animal bone, but the modern koudi is made with wood, bamboo or PVC. It was invented in 1971 by dizi master Yu Xunfa (, 1946–2006).