Fanso

• Okinawan: 半笙 (fansou)

The fansô is the chief mode of transverse flute used in traditional Okinawan music. Closely related to the Ming flute (J: minteki) and Qing flute (J: shinteki), it takes its name from the Chinese for "transverse flute" (横笛 or 橫簫, héng xiāo).

In contrast to the oboe-like suǒnà used in processional music and uzagaku, which is said to have been a symbol of royal authority, the fansô has been described as symbolic of ritual occasions.

References

• Liao Zhenpei 廖真珮, "Ryûkyû kyûtei ni okeru Chûgoku kei ongaku no ensô to denshô" 琉球宮廷における中国系音楽の演奏と伝承, in Uzagaku no fukugen ni mukete 御座楽の復元に向けて, Naha, Okinawa: Uzagaku fukugen ensô kenkyûkai 御座楽復元演奏研究会 (2007), 93-94.
• Kaneshiro Atsumi 金城厚, “Ryūkyū no gaikō girei ni okeru gakki ensō no imi” 「琉球の外交儀礼における楽器演奏の意味」, Musa ムーサ 14 (2013), 57-59.