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1,117 bytes added ,  08:37, 20 August 2015
Created page with "right|thumb|320px|A ''sanxian'' on display at the Metropolitan Museum, with a ''[[yueqin'' to the left]] *''Chinese/Japanese'': 三線 ''(sānxiàn / sa..."
[[File:Sanxian.jpg|right|thumb|320px|A ''sanxian'' on display at the Metropolitan Museum, with a ''[[yueqin]]'' to the left]]
*''Chinese/Japanese'': 三線 ''(sānxiàn / sansen)'' or 三絃 ''(sānxián / sangen)''

The ''sanxian'' is a Chinese tradition three-stringed plucked lute, from which the Ryukyuan ''[[sanshin]]'' developed, and the Japanese [[shamisen]], in turn, from the ''sanshin''. It shares with the ''sanshin'' a wooden body and snakeskin face, but is a larger instrument, with a longer neck.

There are two chief forms of ''sanxian'' today. A northern Chinese form is larger, and incorporates a thin metal plate inside the instrument to enrich the sound, while the southern Chinese form is smaller.

Like the ''sanshin'' and ''shamisen'', and like the ''[[pipa]]'' within China's own traditions, the ''sanxian'' is often played as accompaniment to narrative song, and can be tuned specifically to accommodate a singer's voice, or range.

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==References==
*Gallery labels, Musical Instruments gallery, Metropolitan Museum.

[[Category:Art and Architecture]]
[[Category:Poetry and Theater]]
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