Ancient Chinese zither transmits its delicate sounds beyond home

Sitting next to an incense burner that emits wisps of sandalwood-scented smoke, a demure girl in traditional Chinese qipao dress lightly raises her right hand above the strings of the zither in front of her. Pressing on the strings with her other hand, she plucks confidently at the instrument. The sounds are elegantly penetrating, bringing to mind the cloud-covered mountain peaks and majestic flowing rivers of China.

The musician is playing the guzheng, a traditional plucked zither instrument, ubiquitous in Chinese musical performances, that is also becoming increasingly popular in the West.

"Gu in Chinese means ancient. It's a Chinese plucked zither and sometimes called the zheng. It is the ancestor of many Asian zither instruments," says Kate Bennett, a Briton who has studied the guzheng in China for two years.

Guzheng renditions include a "high mountain and flowing water" metaphor used to describe close friends and melodious music in Chinese, and is borrowed from a famous tune of the Spring and Autumn period (770-476 BC). The song describes a friendship between the composer and his bosom friend during that time, when they shared the same musical tastes and outlook on life.

The echoes of the valley, fast-flowing streams and powerful waterfalls in the mountains are all sounds that can be vividly heard in guzheng playing.

"This melody is a masterpiece that expresses the loftiness of the mountains and the magnificence of running water. The vibrato of the guzheng pulls at people's heart strings, bit by bit," Bennett says.

The guzheng was popular as early as the Warring States Period (475-221 BC), especially in the State of Qin in northwest China. The instrument is made of a wooden body, usually in red sandalwood or platane wood, and with strings arched across its movable bridges along the length of the instrument for tuning.

Originally, the guzheng had five strings. These were later developed into 12 to 13 strings in the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), and 16 strings in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Modern versions have 21-25 strings.

The guzheng is tuned to a pentatonic scale, with the 16-string zheng tuned to give three complete octaves, while the 21-string zheng has four complete octaves and is the most commonly used. But some traditional musicians still use the 16-string version, especially in the southeastern coastal provinces of China.

"The guzheng is a movable-bridge zither, and in China, it's also the most dynamic solo instrument. But the unique feature of the guzheng is its sound, which can reflect a scenic mountain village, cascading waterfall, rain, breeze, and even thunder," says Yang Wanting, a music teacher from the Capital Normal University in Beijing.

Many people pick the guzheng not only because it can express emotions and feelings but also because of the intrinsic natural beauty it exudes when played. The fascination derived from guzheng includes a "graceful artistic conception and magnificent timbre" unique in the traditional music field.

"The guzheng is sometimes hailed as the 'oriental piano', because it is often played solo, or with an ensemble of two or more instrumentalists. It also has a wide repertory, from ancient pieces to various folk songs and even operas," Yang says.

The guzheng's string arrangement allows it to produce extremely fine phrases so that audiences hear the "sound" of natural landscapes. These are expressed through various hand techniques such as sliding, skimming, kneading and slight vibrating, to pick out the delicate changes of human feelings.

"In general, the performer uses three fingers of the right hand to pluck the strings. Nowadays, the left hand often joins the right to create tonalities and ornaments," Yang says.

Classic guzheng pieces have been played and enjoyed for thousands of years but still remain fresh to fans. Modern works have also been performed successfully.

During the increasingly popular contemporary performances, guzheng players need to use both their hands to generate complicated harmonies, using four fingers on each hand. This requires finger plectrums to pluck the strings properly.

"I recently saw a popular online video about only using the guzheng to perform British singer Adele's Rolling in the Deep, and it's now attracting many Western netizens. That's possible because of this old instrument's richness in playing techniques," says Zhang Lifan, founder and director of the Guyun Chinese National Music Conservatory.

Zhang's students range from 5- to 60-year-olds and some of them hail from Europe. The number of people learning guzheng in China is second only to that of the piano, he says.

Chinese rock stars Cui Jian and Xie Tianxiao and pop icon Jay Chou have all used the guzheng in their compositions and performances. The Twelve Girls Band, a contemporary Chinese instrumental group that features the guzheng as well as other traditional Chinese instruments, has created a sensation in music circles with their characteristic combination of classical Chinese music and Western pop.

"It is not unusual for the guzheng to be combined with pop music. It indicates that people are recognizing the potential and fascination of this traditional old instrument," Zhang says.

Zhang aims to cultivate the appreciation of traditional Chinese music and Chinese heritage in his school.

Many Chinese people also believe that the guzheng can play an integral part in Chinese religious outlook. Composing and arranging Buddhist melodies brings out the instrument's ethereal and serene beauty, and can help listeners gather more insight into the mysteries and wisdom of Zen.

"The spirit behind playing the guzheng is to cultivate one's inner self," Zhang says.

yinyin@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 06/01/2012 page18)