7/10 – The Pipa’s Musical Journey

The pipa, one of the oldest Chinese instruments, is a lute-like instrument enjoying a history of more than two thousand years. Prototypes of the pipa already existed in China in the Qin Dynasty (221 BC – 206 BC). The modern pipa is closer to the instrument which originated in Persia/Middle-East (where it was called barbat) and was introduced through the Silk Road from little Asia into China beginning in the late Jin Dynasty (265-420 A.D.).Today’s instrument consists of twenty-six frets and six ledges arranged as stops, and its four strings are tuned respectively to A, D, E, A. The name “pípá” is made up of two Chinese syllables, “pí” (琵) and “pá” (琶). The two most common ways of playing this instrument are a forward plucking motion and a backward plucking motion.

The pipa’s many left and right hand fingering techniques, rich tonal qualities and resonant timbre endow its music with an extremely expressive voice and a delicate soul. Bai Ju-yi, a poet in Tang Dynasty, vividly captured the sound of pipa in his poem “Pipa Xing” (Pipa Play):

The bold strings rattled like splatters of sudden rain,
The fine strings hummed like lovers’ whispers.
Chattering and pattering, pattering and chattering,
As pearls, large and small, on a jade plate fall.

The pipa is mainly a solo instrument and its traditional repertoire consists of ancient Chinese pieces whose composers are mostly anonymous. There are numerous pipa pieces in the common repertoire which can be split into four distinctive styles: wen (civil), wu (martial), da (suite), and xiao (solo). Many of them often refer to sophisticated music or classical music as opposed to folklore. Traditional pipa music in this sense is intimately linked to poetry and to various forms of lyric drama. In the same manner as poetry, this music sets out to express human feelings, soothe suffering and bring spiritual elevation.

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