The zheng (pinyin: zhēng), also called the guzheng (Chinese: 古筝; pinyin: gǔzhēng; meaning "ancient zheng"), is a Chinese musical instrument played by plucking strings. The modern guzheng usually has 21, 25, or 26 strings. It is about 64 inches (1.6 meters or 5 feet 4 inches) long and is tuned to a major pentatonic scale. The instrument has a large, hollow board made from Paulownia wood. Other parts are often made from different types of wood for strength or decoration. Players often wear fingerpicks made of materials like plastic, resin, tortoiseshell, or ivory on one or both hands.
The guzheng can have different types of strings, such as nylon steel, steel, or silk, depending on the music style. The most common version has 21 strings. High-pitched strings are positioned near the player, while low-pitched strings are on the far side. The strings are numbered from 1 to 21, starting from the inside to the outside.
The guzheng is the ancestor of other Asian zithers, including the Japanese koto, the Korean gayageum and ajaeng, the Mongolian yatga, and the Vietnamese đàn tranh. It should not be confused with the guqin, a seven-string Chinese zither played without moveable bridges.
Over time, the guzheng has changed in design. The oldest known example had 13 strings and may date back to the Warring States period (475–221 BCE). It became popular during the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE) and was widely played in China during the Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE). Today, the guzheng is played across China with many different techniques depending on the region and time period. It has a light sound, wide range, and strong expressive power, and has been loved by many people in China for a long time.
Origin
The guzheng has several stories about its beginning. One story says that Meng Tian, a general from the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE), created an instrument similar to the guzheng, which was influenced by the se. Another story claims the guzheng began as a bamboo-tube zither, as written in the Shuowen Jiezi. Later, it changed to use larger curved wooden boards with movable bridges to resemble the se. A third story tells of two people fighting over a 25-string se. They broke it, and one person got the 12-string part while the other received the 13-string part.
In the past, guzheng strings were made of silk. During the Qing dynasty (1644–1912), the strings changed to wires like brass. Today, strings are mostly made of steel covered in nylon. These multi-material strings were first used in the 1970s. They made the instrument louder while keeping a good sound quality.
The guzheng is often decorated with art. Artists add unique cultural and artistic designs to the instrument. Decorations include carved art, carved lacquer, straw, mother-of-pearl inlays, painting, poetry, calligraphy, shell carving (jade), and cloisonné.
Guzheng music is similar to folk songs. It was created based on people’s daily lives. Through performances, it shows the work and lives of people during the time it was played.
Styles and techniques
The guzheng is played by plucking its strings with fingers or using small picks called plectra. The instrument has 21 strings, but none are specifically assigned to the notes F or B. These notes can be created by pressing the strings to change the pitch of E and A. Most modern players use plectra attached to up to four fingers on each hand. In the past, plectra were made from simple materials like bamboo, bone, or animal teeth, or from more valuable materials like ivory, tortoiseshell, and jade.
Traditional playing methods use the right hand to pluck the strings and the left hand to add effects like sliding the pitch or creating a vibrating sound by pressing the strings near the movable bridges. Modern methods often use both hands to pluck the strings on the right side of the instrument. Many techniques are used to strike the strings. One famous sound is called tremolo, made by rapidly rotating the right thumb around the same note. Another technique is harmonics (Fanyin), where a string is plucked and tapped at the same time, creating a higher-pitched note.
Some guzheng techniques were borrowed from other instruments. For example, the Lun technique involves plucking a single string with all five fingers to create a tremolo sound similar to the Pipa.
Playing styles differ between Northern and Southern China, creating unique sounds and traditions. Northern styles include music from the Shandong and Henan regions. Shandong songs include "High Mountain and Flowing Water [Shandong Version]" and "Autumn Moon Over the Han Palace." Henan songs include "High Mountain and Flowing Water [Henan Version]" and "Going Upstairs." According to Samuel Wong, Henan songs are energetic, with frequent use of left-hand slides, vibrato, and thumb-based tremolo. Shandong songs are described as "glamorous" with dramatic, rising and falling melodies that are light and refreshing. Sliding downward notes and glissandos (smooth, sliding notes) are used less often in Shandong compared to Henan, and glissandos in Shandong are always on the beat.
Southern styles include the Chaozhou and Kejia (Hakka) regional schools, as well as the Zhejiang regional school in southeastern China. Southern songs include "Jackdaw Plays with Water" from Chaozhou and "Lotus Emerging from Water" from the Hakka school. Zhejiang songs include "The General's Command." According to Mei Han, Hakka melodies are similar to Chaozhou melodies but have fewer decorations. Chaozhou songs use fewer sliding downward notes, and glissandos are played with free rhythm. Chaozhou songs also use irregular beats and alternate between hard and soft taps on the strings. Zhejiang songs use techniques similar to the Pipa, including frequent tremolo and left-hand glissandos. Another technique is sidian, where 16th notes are played quickly using the thumb, index finger, and middle finger.
The guzheng is played using a pentatonic scale, which has five notes. The notes "fa" and "ti" are created by bending the strings. The scale can change by using "flat," "natural," or "sharp" notes. Chaozhou songs use multiple scales, including both "flat" and "natural" notes. The tone of a song can change depending on the scale used.
Since the 1950s, many new techniques have been developed, and modern compositions often mix elements from both Northern and Southern styles. Examples include "Spring on Snowy Mountain" by Fan Shang E and "Fighting the Typhoon" by Wang Changyuan. Newer methods include using the left hand to play harmony and counterpoint.
Since the 1980s, experimental and atonal (non-traditional) pieces have been composed. Examples include "Ming Mountain" and "Gloomy Fragrance," which do not use the traditional pentatonic scale.
In 2021, Chinese/Australian guzheng composer Mindy Meng Wang collaborated with Australian electronic musician Tim Shiel, releasing a single called "Hidden Qi 隐.气" in February and an EP called "Nervous Energy 一 触即发" in March. She has previously worked with the British band Gorillaz and the Australian band Regurgitator. She plans to continue creating modern music in Australia.
Notable people
Important 20th-century guzheng players and teachers include Wang Xunzhi (1899–1972), who helped spread the Wulin zheng school from Hangzhou, Zhejiang. Lou Shuhua changed a traditional guzheng piece and called it Yu Zhou Chang Wan. Liang Tsai-Ping (1911–2000) created the first guzheng guide, Nizheng Pu, in 1938. Cao Dongfu (1898–1970) was from Henan. Gao Zicheng (born 1918) and Zhao Yuzhai (born 1924) were both from Shandong. Su Wenxian (1907–1971) was another teacher. Guo Ying (born 1914) and Lin Maogen (born 1929) were from Chaozhou. The Hakka musician Luo Jiuxiang (1902–1978) and Cao Guifen and Cao Zheng (1920–1998) studied in the Henan school. The Cao family from Henan are known as experts in playing the guzheng.
Important 21st-century Chinese guzheng players include Xiang Sihua, Wang Zhongshan, Chang Jing, Jing Xia, and Funa. Most guzheng music is Chinese classical music, but the American composer Lou Harrison (1917–2003) played and wrote music for the instrument. Modern guzheng pieces have also been written by non-Chinese composers such as Halim El-Dabh, Kevin Austin, David Vayo, Simon Steen-Andersen, and Jon Foreman.
Zhang Yan (1945–1996) played the guzheng and performed and recorded with Asian American jazz bandleader Jon Jang. Other musicians who play in different styles include Wu Fei, Xu Fengxia, Randy Raine-Reusch, Mohamed Faizal b. Mohamed Salim, Mei Han, Bei Bei He, Zi Lan Liao, Levi Chen, Andreas Vollenweider, Jaron Lanier, Mike Hovancsek, Chih-Lin Chou, Liu Le, David Sait, and Moyun. Koto player Brett Larner also created new music for the guzheng and performed with electronic musician Samm Bennett on his CD Itadakimasu.
In popular culture
In the television drama series My Fair Princess, actress Ruby Lin's character, Xia Ziwei, pretends to play the guzheng while listening to the music. The guzheng is featured in the 1980 pop song "Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime" by the Korgis.
In the film Kung Fu Hustle, a group of assassins called The Harpists use a long zither to create attacks with blades and rhythmic sounds. This instrument has raised bridges like a guzheng but is shaped like a guqin. The sound it makes is similar to that of a guqin.
The guzheng has been used in rock music by several artists. These include Wang Yong of Cui Jian, English musician Jakko Jakszyk (on the 2011 album A Scarcity of Miracles), J.B. Brubaker of August Burns Red (on the 2013 song "Creative Captivity" from the album Rescue & Restore), and the virtual band Gorillaz (on the 2005 song "Hong Kong" from the Help! A Day in the Life compilation). Bradley Fish, a multi-instrumentalist from Jerusalem, used the guzheng with rock influences and electronic effects on his 1996 collaboration "The Aquarium Conspiracy" with drummer Sigtryggur Baldursson. He is the most recorded artist for guzheng loops. Mandopop singer Lay Zhang is known for using traditional Chinese instruments like the guzheng in his music.
In the first book of Liu Cixin's Remembrance of Earth's Past trilogy, a military operation is named "Guzheng." This operation involves placing thin strands of nanomaterial across the Panama Canal to cut a ship called Judgment Day into pieces as it passes through. The name "Guzheng" refers to how the strands resemble the strings of the guzheng instrument.