The pipa (琵琶) is a Chinese four-string plucked chordophone belonging to the lute family. Like the European lute, the pipa descended from pear-shaped Persian and Central Asian lutes such as the oud (‘ūd). These prototype lutes spread both east and west along trade routes but appeared in China centuries before it did in Europe, gaining popularity during the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534).
Tejaprabha Buddha (897 AD) | Painting of a Chinese Venus playing pipa with a plectrum in oud (‘ūd) style. | British Museum
China | China's history encompasses nearly five thousand years, ruled by a series of dynasties until the twentieth century. | Wikimedia Commons
History of the Pipa
The pipa has enjoyed nearly 1500 years of continuous popularity and an unbroken legacy of performers, teachers and composers. In contrast to the nearly vertical position of contemporary players, ancient pipa performers held the instrument horizontally like an oud (‘ūd), plucking the silk strings with a rice scooper shaped plectrum (pick). The pipa's closest relative, the Japanese biwa, is still played with a large plectrum in gagaku ensembles.
Female Pipa Musician | Seventh century Chinese ceramic | Pipa player playing Arabic oud style with a plectrum. | Metropolitan Museum of Art
Initially considered to be a foreign instrument of questionable reputation, the pipa was assimilated into Chinese society and became standard instrumentation in yayue ( 雅樂 court music) and yanyue (燕樂 banquet music). Chinese yayue and yanyue are considered to be the direct ancestors of Japanese gagaku.
Chinese Court Music | Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) court music with pipa (4:03).
Tang Dynasty
The pipa achieved intense popularity during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and was the principal instrument of the Chinese imperial court. Like the European lute, the pipa's success was partially due to its versatility: portable and able to function as a solo instrument or as part of an ensemble.
Tang Dynasty Palace Concert | Ninth century silk painting depicting palace musicians. Note the central position of the pipa. | National Palace Museum
Pipa (c. 1600) | This Ming dynasty (1368-1644) pipa is made of wood and ivory, and strung with silk strings tuned A-D-E-A. | Museum of Fine Arts
Solo Pipa
During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), pipa players began using fingernails to pluck the strings and held the instrument in an upright position. Early pipa had four frets on the neck, but the Ming Dynasty pipa added additional bamboo frets to the soundboard, increasing upper range. The number of frets continued to increase and modern instruments have as many as thirty frets. The soft twisted silk strings of ancient times gave way to louder nylon-wound steel strings—too strong for fingernails—so plastic finger picks are now used by most modern players.
Repertoire
Pipa solo repertoire stretches from ancient to modern times and is well known outside of China. Solo pipa repertoire is often both virtuosic and programmatic, evoking images of nature or battles. The pipa shares many of the same left-hand techniques as the guitar: vibrato, portamento, tremolo, glissando, natural harmonics, artificial harmonics and string bending. Listen to pipa virtuoso, Wu Man, talk about the pipa's history, technique and repertoire:
Playing the Pipa | Wu Man (4:03)
White Snow in Spring (阳春白雪) | Wu Man, traditional solo pipa (4:25)
Zhongruan
The zhongruan (中阮) is a Chinese plucked string instrument of the lute family and a relative of the pipa. Like the pipa, the zhongruan has an ancient legacy extending back two millennia to the Qin dynasty (秦), c. 200 BC.
Zhongruan (left) | Su-Min and Su-Hui of MUSA_SG | Photo courtesy MUSA_SG
The zhongruan has a guitar like neck with twenty-four frets and, like the pipa, four strings. Traditionally, strings were made of silk but modern instruments use nylon strings with a metal core similar to pipa strings. Besides the round body, the zhongruan differs from the pipa by producing a darker and lower pitched sound (tenor range). The zhongruan is typically played with a plectrum but may be plucked finger style like a pipa. Listen to Su-Min, zhongruan, and Su-Hui, guzheng (Chinese zither) play a traditional style duet entitled The Drunkard or Wine Madness (酒狂):
The Drunkard (酒狂) | Zhongruan and guzheng duet preformed by Su-Min, zhongruan, and Su-Hui, guzheng (4:05)
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China
History of the Pipa
Solo Pipa
Zhongruan
