According to tradition, the qin originally had five strings, representing the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire and earth. Later, in the Zhou dynasty, Zhou Wen Wang 周文王 added a sixth string to mourn his son, Bo Yihou 伯邑考. His successor, Zhou Wu Wang 周武王, added a seventh string to motivate his troops into battle with the Shang. The thirteen "hui" 『徽』 on the surface represent the 13 months of the year (the extra 13th is the 'leap month' in the lunar calendar). The surface board is round to represent Heaven and the bottom board flat to represent earth. The entire length of the qin (in Chinese measurements) is 3 feet, 6.5 inches, representing the 365 days of the year (though this is just a standard since qins can be shorter or longer depending on the period's measurement standard or the maker's preference). Each part of the qin has meaning, some more obvious, like "dragon pool" 『龍池』 and "phoenix pond" 『鳳沼』.
The sound chamber of the qin is constructed with two boards of wood, typically of differing wood types. The slightly rounded top board (soundboard) is usually made of "tong" wood 『桐』, the Chinese parasol tree, or Chinese paulownia. The bottom board is made of "zi mu" 『梓木』 catalpa ("Catalpa ovata") or, more recently, "nan mu" 『楠木』 camphor wood ("Machilus nanmu"). The wood must be well aged, that is, the sap and moisture must be removed (of the top board wood). If sap remains then the sound will not be clear and, as the moisture evaporates, the wood will warp and crack. Some makers use old or ancient wood to construct qins because most of the sap and moisture has been removed naturally by time (old "shan mu" 『杉木』, Chinese Cunninghamia or Japanese Cryptomeria, is often used for creating modern qins). Some go to lengths to obtain extremely ancient wood, such as that from Han dynasty tomb structures or coffins. Although such wood is very dry, it is not necessarily the best since it may be infected with wood worm or be of a bad quality or type. Many modern qins made out of new "tong" wood (such as those made by Zeng Chengwei) can be better than the quality of antique qins.
There are two sound holes in the bottom board, as the playing techniques of the qin employ the entire surface of the top board which is curved / humped. The inside of the top board is hollowed out to a degree. Inside the qin, there are 'nayin' 『納音』 sound absorbers, and a 'tian chu' 『天柱』 and 'di chu' 『地柱』 soundposts that connect the bottom board to the top. The boards are joined using bamboo nails. Lacquer 『漆』 from the Chinese lacquer tree ("Rhus vernicifera") is then applied to the surfaces of the qin, mixed with various types of powder, the most common being "lujiao shuang" 『鹿角霜』, the remains of deer antler after the glue has been eremoved. Often, ceramic powder is used instead of deer antler powder, but the quality is not as good. After the lacquer has dried (a qin will need several layers), the surface will be polished using oil stones. At the head end of the instrument is the "yue shan" 『岳山』 or bridge, and at the other end is the "long yin" 『龍齦』 (dragon's gums) or nut. There are 13 circular mother-of-pearl inlays which mark the harmonic positions, as well as a reference point to note position, called "hui" 『徽』 ("insignia").
Until the Cultural Revolution, the guqin's strings were always made of various thicknesses of twisted silk 『絲』, but since then most players use modern nylon-flatwound steel strings 『鋼絲』. This was partly due to the scarcity of high quality silk strings and partly due to the newer strings' greater durability and louder tone.
Silk strings are made by gathering a prescribed number of strands of silk thread, then twisting them tightly together. The twisted cord of strings is then wrapped around a frame and immersed in a vat of liquid of natural glue that binds the strands together. The strings are taken out and left to dry, before being cut into the appropriate length. The top thicker strings (i.e. strings one to four) are further wrapped in a thin silk thread, coiled around the core to make it smoother.
Recently in China, production of very good quality silk strings has resumed and more players are beginning to use them. Although most contemporary players use nylon-wrapped metal strings, some argue that nylon-wrapped metal strings cannot replace silk strings for their refinement of tone. Furthermore, it is the case that nylon-wrapped metal strings can cause damage to the wood of old qins. Many traditionalists feel that the sound of the fingers of the left hand sliding on the strings to be a distinctive feature of qin music. The modern nylon-wrapped metal strings were very smooth in the past, but are now slightly modified in order to capture these sliding sounds.
To string a qin, one traditionally had to tie a butterfly knot ("shengtou jie" 『蠅頭結』) at one end of the string, and slip the string through the twisted cord ("rongkou" 『絨剅』) which goes into holes at the head of the qin and then out the bottom through the tuning pegs ("zhen" 『軫』). The string is dragged over the bridge ("yueshan" 『岳山』), across the surface board, over the nut ("longyin" 『龍齦』 dragon gums) to the back of the qin, where the end is wrapped around two legs ("fengzu" 『鳳足』 "phoenix feet" or "yanzu" 『雁足』 "geese feet"). Afterwards, the strings are fine tuned using the tuning pegs. The most common tuning, "zheng diao" 〈正調〉, is pentatonic: 1245612 in the traditional Chinese number system or "jianpu" 〔簡譜〕. Today this is generally interpreted to mean C D F G A c d, but this should be considered do re fa so la do re, since historically the qin was not tuned to absolute pitch. In fact the same tuning can also be considered as 5612356 when the third string is played as do. Thus, except when accompanied by other instruments, only the pitch relations between the seven strings needs to be accurate. Other tunings are achieved by adjusting the tension of the strings using the tuning pegs at the head end. Thus "manjiao diao" 〈慢角調〉 (slackened third string) gives 1235612 and "ruibin diao" 〈蕤賔調〉 (raised fifth string) gives 1245712, which is transposed to 2356123.
The guqin is nearly always used a solo single instrument, as its quietness of tone means that it cannot be heard over the sounds of most other instruments or an ensemble. It can, however, be played together with a "xiao" (end-blown bamboo flute), with other qin, or played while singing. In old times, the "se" (a long zither with movable bridges and 25 strings, similar to the Japanese koto) was frequently used in duets with the qin.
In order for an instrument to accompany the qin, its sound must be mellow and not overwhelm the qin. Thus, the "xiao" generally used for this purpose is one pitched in the key of F, known as "qin xiao", which is narrower than an ordinary "xiao". If one sings to qin songs (which is rare nowadays) then one should not sing in an operatic or folk style as is common in China, but rather in a very low pitched and deep way; and the range in which one should sing should not exceed one and a half octaves. The style of singing is similar to that used to recite Tang poetry. To enjoy qin songs, one must learn to become accustomed to the strange style some players may sing their songs to.
Traditionally, the qin was played in a quiet studio or room by oneself, or with a few friends; or played outdoors in places of outstanding natural beauty. Nowadays, many qin players perform at concerts in large concert halls, almost always, out of necessity, using electronic pickups or microphones to amplify the sound. Many qin players attend yaji (『雅集』 literally "elegant gatherings"), at which a number of qin players, music lovers, or anyone with an interest in Chinese culture can come along to discuss and play the qin.
Chinese books on qin:
English books on qin:
Qin society sites
General Qin sites
Other specialist Qin sites
Sites with music samples
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