The pipa is a four-stringed Lute, one of the oldest Chinese musical instruments which appeared in Chinese written texts of the second century BC. Xi Liu of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 AD) described in his book, The definition of Terms -- On Musical Instruments, that the name of the instrument pipa originally refers to two finger techniques. The two Chinese characters pi and pa stands originally for the two finger techniques, i.e. plucking at the strings forwards and backwards, respectively. In the Qin Dynasty (222-207 BC), there had been a kind of pluck-instrument, known as xiantao, with straight neck and a round sound-body played horizontally. In the preface to his verse Ode to Pipa, Xuan Fu of the Jin Dynasty (265-420 AD) wrote: "...the pipa appeared in the late Qin period. When the people suffered from being forced to build the Great Wall, they played the instrument to express their resentment". By Han Dynasty (206 BC -- 220 AD), the instrument developed into a form of four strings and twelve frets, plucked with fingernails and known as pipa or qin-pipa. In the Western Jin Dynasty (256-316), the qin-pipa was named after the famous scholar, Ruan Xian, who was a virtuoso in such an instrument. The instrument is still called ruan till present day.
During the Northern and Southern Dynasty (420-589 AD), a similar instrument, called oud with a crooked neck and four or five strings was introduced through the Silk Road from little Asia, known as the Hu Pipa (Hu stands for "foreign" in Chinese), which was played horizontally with a wooden plectrum (see the picture below for Tang Dynasty pipa player). By combining the original Chinese lute and the Hu pipa the making of the instrument gradually became what the present pipa looks like. Meanwhile the playing method has been developed and repertoire increased. One of the greatest developments was that the left hand became totally free by holding the instrument vertically, i.e. the pipa rests on the thigh of the instrumentalists in an upright position, and was played vertically with five fingers of the right hand instead of horizontally with a plectrum (see the above photo of Liu Fang). By the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907), the pipa was one of the most popular instruments, and has maintained its appeal in solo as well as chamber genres ever since.
The Tang pipa was larger than the modern instrument. It usually has four or five strings and fewer frets (compared to the present day pipa). Probably influenced by the hu pipa, the Tang pipa was often played with a wooden plectrum, a technique still used by its Japanese descendent, the biwa. Since the mid Tang Dynasty, and particularly since the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the instrument has been gradually developed into the present form of a lute played with fingernails while the techniques with the plectrum were totally abandoned. The strings of the instrument were made of silk. Musicians used their real nails of the right hand to pluck the strings. Exception to this is the Nanguan pipa which is popular in Fujian Province (South-East China) and Taiwan in a particular kind of traditional music called Nanguan music which can be traced back to at least the Song Dynasty. Pipa players in the Nanguan music playing the pipa horizontally and using one piece plectrum just like the Tang pipa.
The modern instrument is half-pear-shaped, with a short, bent neck, and has 30 frets which extend down the neck and onto the soundboard, giving a wide range and a complete chromatic scale. The usual tuning is A - E - D - A (La - Mi - Re - La). Since early last century, steel strings began to be used by some musicians while most still kept using silk string. Since the 50s, the making of the pipa was standardized in measure and the strings are made of steel rapped with nylon. Thus the real nail becomes almost impossible, instead, a little plectrum (or faked nail) is attached to each finger of the right hand. The plectrums is usually made of turtle shell or special plastics.
Notation for pipa combines symbols for pitch (Kung-ch'e system) with abbreviated characters for special finger techniques. Today, the simplified version of music scores are commonly used in which numbers representing pitch and symbols representing finger techniques are used. Today the standard western music score has been used increasingly because it shows advantage in ensemble pieces and in particular pieces for pipa concertos.
There were huge repertoires of pipa music in Chinese history, particularly during the Tang Dynasty. But most of them were lost. Fortunately, there are precious pipa pieces handed down from one generation to another by individual artists and scholars. Some pieces have been preserved in Japan and some more pieces of musical scores were discovered along the Silk Road in Gansu Province, China, around 1900. These musical notes, known as the Dunhuang scores, triggered great concern and interest in China as well in abroad. However, they remained a mystery until the early 80s, when the scholar, Prof. Ye Dong from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music successfully "decoded" 25 pieces of them. The beauty and elegance of these pieces have thus first been revealed to the public after having slept for a thousand years.
The pipa music has been loved by Chinese people through the centuries. During the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1645-1911) Dynasties, various pipa schools with different styles were flourishing in the South, centered in Wuxi, Suzhou and Shanghai, and the North, centered in Beijing. The development of finger techniques for both hands achieved a high standard by the masters from each school. The present day pipa techniques are mostly the fusion of those different schools. Now the pipa is one of most popular instruments in China. Many of the compositions that make up the traditional repertoire, which were handed down from generation to generation through individual artists and scholars, date back hundreds of years, while others are part of a body of compositions that are dynamic and growing. In the recent decades, composers have explored the possibilities for pipa and other Chinese and western instruments and even with orchestra. Nowadays, there are also celebrated pieces for pipa concerti with orchestras.
The playing techniques consists of the right hand fingers plucking the strings and the left hand fingers touch the strings in a varieties of ways to create melodies and ornaments and special effects. The fingers that pluck the strings move outwards, just opposite to guitar techniques. The frets are pretty high, which allows to string to be pushed, twisted, and pressed. There are over 60 different techniques that have been developed through the centuries.
Pipa's technique is characterized by spectacular finger dexterity and virtuosi programmatic effects. Rolls, slaps, pizzicato, harmonics, noises are often combined into extensive tone-poems vividly describing famous battles or other exciting scenes, such as the Ambush which describes the decisive battle field fought in the second century BC between Chu (Xiang Yu) and Han (Liu Bang). The instrument is also capable of more lyric effects, as the tune Sai Shang qu (Songs from the other side of the border). This tune is said to represent the sorrowful song of a Han dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD) noblewoman, who was compelled for political reasons to marry a barbarian prince. This story appears in several versions connected with the origin of the pipa. There are also a lot of written texts and famous poems about the pipa music played by virtuoso performers in history. For instance, the following comments can be found in the texts from the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907) describing the intensity of the Ambush played by artists of that time : "... as if thousands of warriors and horses are roaring on the battle field, as if the earth is torn and the sky is falling". In his poem, the Pipa Song, Bai Juyi, one of the leading poets in the Tang Dynasty, described vividly the pipa music performed by an artist: "... The thicker strings rattled like splatters of sudden rain, the thinner ones hummed like a hushed whisper. Together they shaped strands of melody, like larger and smaller pearls falling on a jade plate."
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