Yang Qin

The yangqin was traditionally fitted with bronze strings (though older Chinese stringed instruments used silk strings), which gave the instrument a soft timbre. This form of instrument is still occasionally heard today in the "hudie qin" played in the traditional silk and bamboo genre from the Shanghai region known as Jiangnan sizhu, as well as in some Cantonese music groups. The Thai and Cambodian khim are nearly identical in their construction, having been introduced to those nations by southern Chinese musicians. Since the 1950s, however, steel alloy strings (in conjunction with copper-wound steel strings for the bass notes) have been used, in order to give the instrument a brighter, and louder tone. The modern yangqin can have as many as five courses of bridges and may be arranged chromatically. Traditional instruments, with three or more courses of bridges, are also still widely in use. The instrument's strings are struck with two lightweight bamboo beaters (also known as hammers) with rubber tips. A professional musician often carries several sets of beaters, each of which draws a slightly different tone from the instrument, much like the drum sticks of Western percussionists. The yangqin is used both as a solo instrument and in ensembles.






Bridges and strings of a yangqin. This particular image is of the lower strings, which are thicker and wound with copper.
Modern yangqin usually have 144 strings in total, with each pitch running in courses, with up to 5 strings per course, in order to boost the volume. The strings come in various thicknesses, and are tied at one end by screws, and at the other with tuning pegs. The pegs and screws are covered during playing by a hinged panel/board. This panel is opened up during tuning to access the tuning pegs.
There are usually four to five bridges on a yangqin. From right to left, they are: bass bridge, "right bridge", tenor bridge, "left bridge", and the chromatic bridge. During playing, one is supposed to strike the strings on the left side of the bridges. However, the strings on the "chromatic bridge" are struck on the right, and strings on the "left bridge" can be struck on both sides of the bridge.




A pair of yangqin hammers.




The hammer on the left plays fourths, and the one on the right plays thirds.


Furthermore, some songs require the use of shuāng yīn qín zhǔ, literally "double-note yangqin hammers". These specially-constructed hammers have 2 striking surfaces, allowing the player to play up to 4 notes simultaneously (or even 8 notes, if the strings of the "left bridge" and "tenor bridge" are struck at a point where they intersect each other), resulting in a rich, powerful tone, which is especially pronounced in the lower The hammers are made of flexible bamboo, and one end is half covered by rubber.

Due to their unique construction, there are two ways to play: with the rubber side for a softer sound, and with the bamboo side for a crisper, more percussive sound. This technique, known as fǎnzhǔ, is best utilized in the higher ranges of the yangqin. Additionally, the ends of the sticks can be used to pluck the strings, producing a sharp, clear sound. Glissandos can also be achieved in this way by running the ends of the sticks up or down the strings.
When using it, the left hand holds a beater that plays intervals of a perfect fourth, while the right hand's beater plays thirds. These intervals are standard over most of the yangqin's range, due to the positioning of its strings.



The bodies of a pair of yangqin hammers. The pointed ends of the sticks are used to pluck strings, producing a crisp, clear tone.


On both sides of the yangqin, aside from the tuning screws, are numerous cylindrical metal Nuts that can be moved for fine tuning the strings or to raise the strings slightly to eliminate unwanted vibrations that may occur. More modern designs also have moveable ball-shaped nuts that can be adjusted on the fly with the fingers; this provides some micro tuning and additional dynamics during performances, such asportamentos and vibratos




Cylindrical nuts, fitted into fine-tuning devices.