Chinese Musical Instruments

Like every country has its own traditional music and musical instruments, China also has traditional musical instruments that have been developed over the centuries. Traditionally, Chinese musical instruments have been classified according to the materials they are made up of. These materials are namely, stone, silk, gourd, metal, bamboo, clay, skin, and wood. Among these, the stone and wood instruments have become outdated. Chinese musical instruments may also be classified into string, wind, or percussion instruments. String instruments may be classified into plucked string instruments and bowed string instruments. The older instruments consist of long zithers, panpipes, flutes, the sheng, or mouth organ, and percussion instruments, such as clappers, gongs, and drums. Various lutes and fiddles were introduced later to China from Central Asia.

Erhu is a type of bowed string instrument. It is a two-stringed fiddle and is one of the most popular Chinese instruments in the Hu-qin family. Gao-hu is another bowed string instrument. Gao-Hu is mostly used for high-pitched tunes that Erhu cannot play and frequently used for performing vivid and brisk rhythms. Gao-Hu has louder volume yet brighter tones, and thus it serves as both a solo and leading instrument in performing Cantonese operas and folk melodies.

Pipa is a type of plucked string instrument and belongs to the Lute family. It is a four-stringed lute with 30 frets and pear-shaped body. The Pipa is to be held upright by the instrumentalist and played with five small plectra attached to each finger of the right hand. This musical instrument has a remarkable expressive power and an extremely dynamic range. Yueqin, a plucked string instrument, is a moon shaped lute with shorter neck and four strings. Gugin is another important plucked string instrument, which is like a seven-stringed zither.

Wind musical instruments are very popular in China. A Dizi, traditionally made of bamboo, is the simplest wind instrument. This instrument is especially popular, as it is a low cost instrument and is relatively easy to learn.
audio technica at875r short shotgun microphone, behringer eurolive b208d active 220 watt 2 way pa speaker system with 8 woofer and 1 35 compression driver, mxr m169 carbon copy analog delay, shure sm58s vocal microphone with on off switch, boss me 25, casio wk 225 76 key premium portable keyboard package with headphones stand and power supply, mendini mds80 bl complete full size senior 5 piece 6 ply birch wood blue drum set with cymbals drumsticks and throne, sony uwp v1 wireless lavalier eng microphone package 3032 566 to 590mhz, blue microphones yeti usb condenser plug and play microphone with studio headphones and microphone pop filter, mxl 990 condenser microphone with shockmount, mackie 802 vlz3 8 ch compact recordingsr mixer, fender starcaster acoustic guitar bundle with hardshell case guitar stand capo instructional dvd strap picks strings string winder tuner and polishing cloth natural, boss db 90 metronome, fender 950815100 fa 100 acoustic guitar pack natural, casio ctk 2300 61 key premium portable keyboard package with headphones stand and power supply, audio technica pro88w r35 wireless lavalier system with atr3350mw omnidirectional mic 170 mhz, casio wk 500 76 key personal keyboard with mp3audio connection 670 tones and power supply, akai mpk 49 controller keyboard, cremona sv 175 premier student violin full size, vandoren sm711 mouthpiece optimum al3 alto saxophone, tascam tascam dr 07mkii portable digital recorder, pyle pro pmdk102 heavy duty aluminum anodizing dual speaker stand 14 cable kit, dluca meister student cello 44 package with free stand bag strings chromatic tuner rosin and bow, american dj supply mega bar 50rgb rc led wash light with ir remote, dean guitars vnxmt tbks m10 kit vendetta xmt black satin electric guitar with tremolo guitar kit with amp includes guitar cable guitar strap planet waves 12 pick shredder pack stand gig bag a, on stage stands mic stand package, mendini by cecilio mas l92dpb gold lacquer e flat alto saxophone with tuner case mouthpiece 10 reeds and more, eliminator lighting special effect series mushroom special effects lighting, applause by ovation ae128 5 acoustic electric guitar, emerson gf827 dvd karaoke player, shure pg24pg58 wireless vocal system h7, pioneer ddj series ddj ergo dj controller, numark idj pro premium dj controller for ipad 1 2 and 3, mxl 990991 recording microphone package, alesis multimix 8 usb fx, numark im9 4 channel dj mixer with effects, voodoo lab pedal power 2 plus universal power supply, anaxa concert band real silver plated trumpet wcase approvedwarranty, new complete 5 piece black junior drum set with cymbals stands sticks hardware stool, shure sm57 lc cardioid dynamic microphone