Japanese musical instruments

A mandolin (, ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of eight strings. A variety of string types are used, with steel strings being the most common and usually the least expensive. The courses are typically tuned in an interval of perfect fifths, with the same tuning as a violin (G3, D4, A4, E5). Also, like the violin, it is the soprano member of a family that includes the mandola, octave mandolin, mandocello and mandobass.

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]]

traditional Japanese stringed musical instrument

thumb|Tokyo geisha with , thumb|Kitagawa Utamaro, "Flowers of Edo: Young Woman's Narrative Chanting to the ", thumb|A Japanese people|Japanese man playing a while another sings thumb|A accompanying the traditional Kouta (music)|kouta

thumb|right|This performance at the Tsukiji Hongan-ji Festival involves several performers switching between . Performers lean toward and away from the drum by adjusting the degree of bend in their left knee.|alt=Video of

A is a Japanese longitudinal, end-blown flute that is made of bamboo. The bamboo end-blown flute now known as the was developed in Japan in the 16th century and is called the . A bamboo flute known as the or was derived from the Chinese xiao in the Nara period and died out in the 10th century. After a long blank period, the appeared in the 15th century, and then in the 16th century, the was developed in Japan. The flourished in the 18th century during the Edo period, and eventually the also died out. The developed in Japan is longer and thicker than the and has one finger hole less. It is long

The is a Japanese short-necked wooden lute traditionally used in narrative storytelling. The is a plucked string instrument that first gained popularity in China before spreading throughout East Asia, eventually reaching Japan sometime during the Nara period (710–794).

thumb|A tsuzumi drum thumb|A tsuzumi being demonstrated. The or tsuzumi is a hand drum of Japanese origin. It consists of a wooden body shaped like an hourglass, and it is taut, with two drum heads with cords that can be squeezed or released to increase or decrease the tension of the heads respectively. This mechanism allows the player to raise or lower the pitch of the drum while playing, not unlike the African talking drum and the Indian dhadd.

The is an electronic musical synthesizer. Shaped like an eighth note, the ribbon controller on its stem is used to control pitch, while the notes produced by the synthesizer are played from the Otamatone's "head". It was developed in Japan by the CUBE Works toy company and the Maywa Denki design firm, led by the brothers Masamichi and Nobumichi Tosa, and is produced and marketed by Hamee.

thumb|A Yayoi period dōtaku, 3rd century are richly decorated Japanese bells cast in bronze. They were used for about 400 years, between the second century BCE and the second century CE (corresponding to the end of the Yayoi period), and were used almost exclusively as decorations during rituals. They were richly decorated with patterns representing nature and animals, among which the dragonfly, praying mantis and spider are featured. Historians believe that dōtaku were used to pray for good harvests, as the animals featured are natural enemies of insect pests that attack paddy fiel

The is a double reed Japanese used as one of two main melodic instruments in music. It is one of the "sacred" instruments and is often heard at Shinto weddings in Japan. Its sound is often described as haunting.

percussion instrument originating in eastern Asia

Japanese free reed musical instrument

The Omnichord is an electronic musical instrument introduced in 1981 by the Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation. Conceived as an electronic autoharp, it allows users to play harp-like arpeggios produced through an electronic strum plate, simulating the experience of playing a stringed instrument. The Omnichord found popularity due to its portability, unique timbre, and kitsch value.

The is the only traditional Japanese string instrument played with a bow. A variant of the instrument also exists in Okinawa, called () in Okinawan.

thumb|right|Two The , also known as the ("box ") or ("board "), is a traditional Japanese three-stringed plucked instrument, often regarded as either a relative or derivative of the , itself a relative of the .

thumb|The Taishōgoto, also known as the Nagoya harp The , or Nagoya harp, is a Japanese stringed musical instrument. The name derives from the Taishō period (1912–1926) when the instrument first appeared. It is essentially a Keyboard Psalmodikon with multiple strings.

thumb|From left, 7-hole Uta-you Shinobue in B-flat ("6-hon choshi") top binding 7-hole Uta-you Shinobue in B ("7-hon choshi") black painted 7-hole Uta-you Shinobue in C ("8-hon choshi") without binding The shinobue (kanji: 篠笛; also called takebue (kanji: 竹笛) in the context of Japanese traditional arts) is a Japanese transverse flute or fue that has a high-pitched sound.

instrument used in traditional japanese music

thumb|330x330px|19th century (Edo period) yamato-goto (shown here without bridges); collection of the [[Tokyo National Museum]]

thumb|A Japanese ryūteki player in Kamakura, Kanagawa 48px|thumb|right|A traditional ryūteki Fue (flute)|fue

thumb|A player

300px|thumb|A lacquered nohkan The is a high pitched, Japanese transverse bamboo flute, or . It is commonly used in traditional Imperial Noh and Kabuki theatre. The nohkan flute was created by Kan'ami and his son Zeami in the 15th century, during the time when the two were transforming the Noh theatre forms Dengaku and Sarugaku.

thumb The is a small Japanese drum. It has a short but wide body with animal skin drumheads on both its upper and bottom sides. The hide is first stretched on metal hoops, then stretched over the body. Similar to the tsuzumi and to African talking drums, both drum heads are bound together with cords so that the drum heads are bound by each other. Like the larger taiko drums, the shime-daiko is played with sticks called "bachi," while it's suspended on a stand. Being very taut, the shime-daiko has a higher pitch than that of normal taiko. Shime-daiko are used in various Japanese music ensembles

Vietnamese and South Korean musical instrument

thumb|A komabue Fue (flute)|fue The ("Koma flute") is a transverse bamboo flute, a fue that is used in traditional Japanese court music.

thumb|200px|A binzasara thumb|200px is a traditional Japanese percussion instrument used in folk songs, and rural dances. It was originally used as a cleaning tool. The instrument is made up of several wooden plates strung together with a cotton cord, with handles at both ends. Typically, a binzasara will have 108 wooden slats which is a significant number in Buddhism. The stack of wooden plates is played by making them move like a wave.

class of flutes native to Japan

drum machine

300px|thumb|right|Japanese horagai, a conch shell used for religious purposes or as a signal instrument|signal for [[samurai]] Horagai () (or jinkai ) are large conch shells, usually from Charonia tritonis, that have been used as trumpets in Japan for many centuries. The instrument, which has served a number of purposes throughout Japanese history, has been given a number of Japanese names depending on its function. Special schools still teach students to play the traditional music associated with the conch.

The denden-daiko or is a Japanese children's toy drum or tambourine attached to a long handle. It has two small bells attached with strings, which strike the drumhead when the handle is shaken. "Denden" is an onomatopoeia for the sound it makes, which gives the toy its name. They were popular during the 17th century.

The is a simple Japanese musical instrument, consisting of two pieces of hardwood or bamboo often connected by a thin ornamental rope. The clappers are played together or on the floor to create a cracking sound. Sometimes they are struck slowly at first, then faster and faster.

thumb|Various kinds of Yokobue A is a Japanese transverse flute or fue. The various types include the komabue, nōkan, ryūteki, and shinobue.

Teisco was a Japanese musical instrument manufacturing company from 1948 until 1967, when the brand "Teisco" was acquired by Kawai (河合楽器製作所; Kawai Gakki Seisakusho). The company produced guitars as well as synthesizers, microphones, guitar amplifiers and drum kits. Teisco products were widely exported to the United States and the United Kingdom.

Japanese musical instrument

musical instrument

right|thumb|300px The is a six or seven-hole transverse bamboo flute used to support Japanese kagura performance.

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percussion instrument

The kokiriko (kanji: こきりこ; is a Japanese musical instrument used when singing and dancing to Japanese folk songs such as the "Kokiriko Bushi" (Kokiriko Dance). In kanji, it is written as "Chikuko." In the Middle Ages, it was a type of street performer, known as a kokiriko, which was always carried by the houka, who mainly performed acrobatics.

Japanese drum used in gagaku music