Changes

==Construction and Manner of Playing==

==Construction and Manner of Playing==

The neck, or ''sao'' 竿, of the instrument is normally made from a single solid piece of wood, [[lacquer]]ed black. The wood traditionally used is called ''kuruchi'' in [[Okinawan language|Okinawan]], and ''kokutan'' 黒檀 in Japanese; the tree is a sort of ebony or persimmon.<ref>Scientific name ''Diospyros ferrea''.</ref> Another type of wood, from the ''isunoki'' (''Distylium racemosum'') was also traditionally used.<ref name=museum>Gallery labels, Okinawa Prefectural Museum.</ref> While many sanshin continue to be made of this wood today, cheaper instruments made from other, lighter, woods are now widely available.　The wood is typically selected from pieces laid out to dry for as much as three years. The rough shape of the instrument's neck is drawn on with a stencil, roughly carved out, and then more finely shaped with the use of rulers and gauges. Finally, lacquer is applied.

The neck, or ''sou'' 棹, of the instrument is normally made from a single solid piece of wood, [[lacquer]]ed black. The wood traditionally used is called ''kuruchi'' in [[Okinawan language|Okinawan]], and ''kokutan'' 黒檀 in Japanese; the tree is a sort of ebony or persimmon.<ref>Scientific name ''Diospyros ferrea''.</ref> Another type of wood, from the ''isunoki'' (''Distylium racemosum'') was also traditionally used.<ref name=museum>Gallery labels, Okinawa Prefectural Museum.</ref> While many sanshin continue to be made of this wood today, cheaper instruments made from other, lighter, woods are now widely available.　The wood is typically selected from pieces laid out to dry for as much as three years. The rough shape of the instrument's neck is drawn on with a stencil, roughly carved out, and then more finely shaped with the use of rulers and gauges. Finally, lacquer is applied.

The sanshin is a non-fretted instrument, and thus finger placements with the left hand (the hand not holding the plectrum/pick) must be fairly precise to get the correct sound. The vast majority of songs use the top section of the neck, and can be played without the hand moving down the neck. A particular finger of the hand is meant to be used for each note; generally, the hand remains at the top of the neck, with the index finger handling the nearest fingering points, the middle finger further ones, and the pinky finger reaching down to the furthest ones. However, some songs make use of finger positions far down the neck of the instrument, to achieve particularly high notes. An Okinawan system of musical notation called ''[[kunkunshi]]'' 工工四 is used when playing sanshin; it bears similarities to systems of notation used for traditional instruments in China and Japan, but bears no resemblance to standard Western staff notation.

The strings are named ''wuujiru'' 男弦 (lit. "male string"), ''nakajiru'' 中弦 (lit. "middle string"), and ''miijiru'' 女弦 (lit. "female string"), with the "male" string playing the lower notes, and the "female" string being the one which plays the highest notes. Three large tuning pegs, called ''karakuri'' 範, are used to tighten or loosen the strings in order to tune the instrument. Though some modern variations on the instrument, known as "peg sanshin," use pegs which can be screwed in along a groove, like guitar pegs, traditionally, the ''karakuri'' are simply carefully carved so as to fit tightly into the holes in the head of the instrument, a section known as the ''tin'' 天, or "heaven".<ref>O: ''tin'' or ''chira'', J: ''ten'', lit. "heaven"</ref> The ''tin'' bends gracefully backward at the top, and is wider than the rest of the neck. The strings, attached to the ''karakuri'', run through a small board called ''chirutamai'' 糸蔵 (J: ''itokura'') which guides them to run straight down the neck of the instrument. The ''tin'' then narrows as it meets the neck, creating a curved bulging section known as the ''miruku mimi'' 乳袋. The strings then run along the flat, front, side of the neck, an area known as ''tuui'' 野, while the back side of the neck is rounded, and is known as ''tii atai'' 野丸. The neck then curves again as it meets the body, creating a broad flat space on the front known as the ''sun'uri'' 野坂, and a thick, bulging part on the back known as ''utuchikara'' 鳩胸. This broad section of the neck, known as the ''utudamai'', contains within it a thinner section, the "heart" or ''chiiga tamuchi'' 心, which pierces through the body of the instrument, and pokes out the bottom end (the "earth" or ''chii'' 地 of the instrument, in contrast to the "heaven" at the top). The strings are secured at their bottom ends to a set of threads known as the ''itokake'' 糸掛, which is in turn secured to this "monkey tail" (''mijiati'', 猿尾), the bottom end of the spike which pierces through the instrument.

 

The body of the instrument, the ''chiiga'' 胴, is a rounded square wooden box, made of four sections of wood, and pierced through by the ''sou'', which extends a half-inch or so beyond the bottom of the instrument. A decorative cloth known as ''tiigaa'' 手掛 is wrapped around the body and secured with a number of tightly-knotted ropes. There are a number of different woods which are typically used for the body of the instrument, including ''inumaki'' (''Podocarpus macrophyllus''), mulberry, camphor (''kusunoki''), and ''iju'' (''Schima wallichii'').<ref name=museum/>

Three large tuning pegs, called ''karakuri'' 範, are used to tighten or loosen the strings in order to tune the instrument. Though some modern variations on the instrument, known as "peg sanshin," use pegs which can be screwed in along a groove, like guitar pegs, traditionally, the ''karakuri'' are simply carefully carved so as to fit tightly into the holes in the top of the instrument (''tin''<ref>O: ''tin'' or ''chira'', J: ''ten'', lit. "heaven"</ref>). The scale employed is fairly different from that of traditional Japanese music, and closely resembles that used in Indonesian gamelan. In the standard tuning, called ''honchôshi'', the three strings are most typically tuned to B-E-B, though variations exist. Two of the most common alternate tunings are ''niagi'', in which the middle string is raised up to a higher pitch, and ''sansagi'', in which the bottom, highest-pitched, string is lowered to a lower pitch.

Python skin is used for the skin of the body of the instrument, in contrast to the cat or dogskin used traditionally on Japanese [[shamisen]]. Though Okinawa is famous for the venomous ''[[habu]]'' snake, the ''habu'' is in fact too small for its skin to be used to make sanshin, and it is believed that the snakeskin for sanshin has always been imported from Southeast Asia. Though the pythons used to make sanshin skins today are not an endangered species, the difficulty of distinguishing one snakeskin from another makes transporting real-skin (J: ''hongawa'' 本皮) sanshin internationally somewhat risky. However, cheaper sanshin with plastic skins are quite common today as well. A small wooden or bamboo bridge, known as ''nma'' 駒, sits atop the skin.

The body of the instrument is a rounded square wooden box, made of four sections of wood, and pierced through by the ''sao'', which extends a half-inch or so beyond the bottom of the instrument (''chii''<ref>O: ''chii'', J: ''chi'', lit. "earth"</ref>). There are number of different woods which are typically used for the body of the instrument, including ''inumaki'' (''Podocarpus macrophyllus''), mulberry, camphor (''kusunoki''), and ''iju'' (''Schima wallichii'').<ref name=museum/>

The sanshin is a non-fretted instrument, and thus finger placements with the left hand (the hand not holding the plectrum/pick) must be fairly precise to get the correct sound. The vast majority of songs use the top section of the neck, and can be played without the hand moving down the neck. A particular finger of the hand is meant to be used for each note; generally, the hand remains at the top of the neck, with the index finger handling the nearest fingering points, the middle finger further ones, and the pinky finger reaching down to the furthest ones. However, some songs make use of finger positions far down the neck of the instrument, to achieve particularly high notes. An Okinawan system of musical notation called ''[[kunkunshi]]'' 工工四 is used when playing sanshin; it bears similarities to systems of notation used for traditional instruments in China and Japan, but bears no resemblance to standard Western staff notation.

Python skin is used for the skin of the body of the instrument, in contrast to the cat or dogskin used traditionally on Japanese shamisen. Though Okinawa is famous for the venomous ''[[habu]]'' snake, the ''habu'' is in fact too small for its skin to be used to make sanshin, and it is believed that the snakeskin for sanshin has always been imported from Southeast Asia. Though the pythons used to make sanshin skins today are not an endangered species, the difficulty of distinguishing one snakeskin from another makes transporting real-skin (J: ''hongawa'') sanshin internationally somewhat risky. However, cheaper sanshin with plastic skins are quite common today as well.

The scale employed is fairly different from that of traditional Japanese music; in the standard tuning, called ''honchôshi'' 本調子, the three strings are most typically tuned to what Western notation would consider B-E-B or C-F-C, though variations exist. Two of the most common alternate tunings are ''niagi'' 二上, in which the middle string is raised up to a higher pitch, and ''sansagi'' 三下, in which the bottom, highest-pitched, string is lowered to a lower pitch.

The sanshin's strings are played with a small claw-like piece called a ''chimi''<ref>O: ''chimi'', J: ''tsume'', lit. "claw"</ref>, made of water buffalo horn, lacquered wood, ivory, or another material, which is fitted over the index finger and held in place with the thumb and other fingers. Rather than plucking or picking at the strings, as is done with certain other instruments, the sanshin ''chimi'' is simply passed through the strings, coming to rest on the next string as each string is played. The sanshin is a monophonic instrument, meaning it does not make extensive use of chords, but rather is played almost exclusively one note at a time.

The sanshin's strings are played with a small claw-like piece called a ''chimi'' 爪<ref>O: ''chimi'', J: ''tsume'', lit. "claw"</ref>, made of water buffalo horn, lacquered wood, ivory, or another material, which is fitted over the index finger and held in place with the thumb and other fingers. Rather than plucking or picking at the strings, as is done with certain other instruments, the sanshin ''chimi'' is simply passed through the strings, coming to rest on the next string as each string is played. The sanshin is a monophonic instrument, meaning it does not make extensive use of chords, but rather is played almost exclusively one note at a time.

In addition to noticeable differences in the size and shape of the instrument overall, its tuning, and the snakeskin, the shape of the ''chimi'' is one of the more noticeable differences between the Okinawan sanshin and the Japanese shamisen, which uses a larger, flatter plectrum, called a ''bachi'', which is held in the hand and often used to strike the strings or the body of the instrument in a percussive manner. The sanshin's delicate snakeskin could not long survive such strikes, and they are not used in Okinawan music.

In addition to noticeable differences in the size and shape of the instrument overall, its tuning, and the snakeskin, the shape of the ''chimi'' is one of the more noticeable differences between the Okinawan sanshin and the Japanese shamisen, which uses a larger, flatter plectrum, called a ''bachi'', which is held in the hand and often used to strike the strings or the body of the instrument in a percussive manner. The sanshin's delicate snakeskin could not long survive such strikes, and they are not used in Okinawan music.

===Types of Sanshin===

===Types of Sanshin===

While the ''sanshin'' overall has a distinctive look and sound differentiating it from the Chinese ''sanxian'' or the Japanese ''shamisen'', and while all ''sanshin'' are recognizable as Ryukyuan ''sanshin'', there are a number of types with slight variations in size and shape.

While the sanshin overall has a distinctive look and sound differentiating it from the Chinese ''[[sanxian]]'' or the Japanese shamisen, and while all sanshin are recognizable as Ryukyuan sanshin, there are a number of types with slight variations in size and shape.

The ''yuuna'' or ''yuuna gushiku'' style of ''sanshin'' is one of the most common. Said to originate from the [[Yonagusuku]] area, it has a thick neck (''sao'')

The ''yuuna'' 与那 or ''yuuna gushiku'' 与那城 style of sanshin is one of the most common. Said to originate from the [[Yonagusuku]] area, it has a thick neck

The ''Kuba sundun'' (久場春殿) type, after a design by [[Kuba Sundun]], has the thickest neck of any ''sanshin'' style, and a less curved head than most other styles. The neck grows gradually thicker along nearly its entire length, in contrast to many styles of ''sanshin'' which have a more noticeable point at which the neck begins to curve out. Kuba Sundun is also credited with inspiring the ''Kuba nu funi'' (久葉ぬ骨) style of ''sanshin'', which has the narrowest neck of any ''sanshin'' type - a stark contrast to the ''Kuba sundun'' style. The slim neck is said to resemble a palm leaf, or ''kuba'', giving it a name coincidentally homophonous with that of its designer.

The ''Kuba sundun'' 久場春殿 type, after a design by [[Kuba Sundun]], has the thickest neck of any sanshin style, and a less curved head than most other styles. The neck grows gradually thicker along nearly its entire length, in contrast to many styles of sanshin which have a more noticeable point at which the neck begins to curve out. Kuba Sundun is also credited with inspiring the ''Kuba nu funi'' 久葉ぬ骨 style of sanshin, which has the narrowest neck of any sanshin type - a stark contrast to the ''Kuba sundun'' style. The slim neck is said to resemble a palm leaf, or ''kuba'', giving it a name coincidentally homophonous with that of its designer.

==History==

==History==

The three-stringed instrument is derived from the Chinese ''[[sanxian]]'', and served as the basis from which the Japanese [[shamisen]] developed, beginning in the late 16th century. Throughout the early modern period, access to high quality sanshin was limited exclusively to the aristocracy, though it is believed that commoners may have possessed equivalent instruments using tanned paper in place of the more expensive snakeskin. It was only after [[1879]], when the Ryûkyû Kingdom fell and was annexed by Japan, and the aristocracy abolished, that sanshin became more widely available.

The three-stringed instrument is derived from the Chinese ''sanxian'', and served as the basis from which the Japanese shamisen developed, beginning in the late 16th century. Throughout the early modern period, access to high quality sanshin was limited exclusively to the aristocracy, though it is believed that commoners may have possessed equivalent instruments using tanned paper in place of the more expensive snakeskin. It was only after [[1879]], when the Ryûkyû Kingdom fell and was annexed by Japan, and the aristocracy abolished, that sanshin became more widely available.

The Chinese ''sanxian'' dates back to the [[Yuan dynasty]] ([[1279]]-[[1368]]), and is most commonly seen in two forms. In northern China, ''sanxian'' tend to have longer necks. The Okinawan sanshin, however, developed out of the shorter-necked ''sanxian'' common in folk traditions in southern China,<ref>i.e. played mainly by the common people, and ignored for the most part by the [[literati]], who revered the ''[[qin]]'' as their musical instrument of choice.</ref> especially [[Fujian]] province, the area which historically interacted much more directly with Ryûkyû. As such, it is believed the ''sanxian'' may have been first (or most significantly) introduced to Ryûkyû by the 36 Min families who traveled to Ryûkyû in [[1392]], and settled there, establishing the community of [[Kumemura]], and setting the basis for the future Ryukyuan scholar-bureaucrat aristocracy.

The Chinese ''sanxian'' dates back to the [[Yuan dynasty]] ([[1279]]-[[1368]]), and is most commonly seen in two forms. In northern China, ''sanxian'' tend to have longer necks. The Okinawan sanshin, however, developed out of the shorter-necked ''sanxian'' common in folk traditions in southern China,<ref>i.e. played mainly by the common people, and ignored for the most part by the [[literati]], who revered the ''[[qin]]'' as their musical instrument of choice.</ref> especially [[Fujian]] province, the area which historically interacted much more directly with Ryûkyû. As such, it is believed the ''sanxian'' may have been first (or most significantly) introduced to Ryûkyû by the 36 Min families who traveled to Ryûkyû in [[1392]], and settled there, establishing the community of [[Kumemura]], and setting the basis for the future Ryukyuan scholar-bureaucrat aristocracy.

==References==

==References==

*[[Robin Thompson|Thompson, Robin]]. "The Music of Ryukyu." ''Ashgate Research Companion to Japanese Music''. Surrey: Ashgate Publishing, 2008. pp303-322.

*[[Robin Thompson]]. "The Music of Ryukyu." ''Ashgate Research Companion to Japanese Music''. Surrey: Ashgate Publishing, 2008. pp303-322.

*Thompson, Robin. "The Sanshin and its Place in Okinawan Music." ''Okinawa bijutsu zenshû'' 沖縄美術全集. vol. 5. pp. i-vi.

*Robin Thompson. "The Sanshin and its Place in Okinawan Music." ''Okinawa bijutsu zenshû'' 沖縄美術全集. vol. 5. pp. i-vi.

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