No, it's not some sort of Asian virus, or type of pork fried rice (much like one's first impression when they hear the word Hangul, for example). The China bug is hitting me hard. I have been asked often what things I would want to buy when I'm in China. Much like my culinary endeavors that I've explained in a previous "Pot Luck" post, souvenirs for me are never simple or ordinary.
Sure, I could get a bazillion t-shirts, embroidery, jade, fans, or the like. But, as a souvenir, I want something that's going to be as unusual as its owner. Take for example my trip to Morocco. I could have gotten a monkey, a donkey, a fez, or some stinky leather. But instead, I opted for a first-rate rug that is absolutely beautiful, not to mention an exquisite chalaba, shirt, pants, and shoes (traditional Moroccan garb).
Well, I have spent several months thinking about what to buy in China. This week, I thought, "why not bring home a traditional Chinese musical instrument?" After all, I have a piano performance degree, and why not get something that I will be able to treasure for years.
There were several instruments to choose. First, the erhu. It's like a two-stringed bowed instrument (like a vertical violin) that has a haunting sound to it, when played well. The problem is: I don't play the violin. My biggest fear is that if I tried to play such an instrument, I think it would either 1) loosen the fillings in my teeth hearing me play it, 2) drive my dogs to involuntarily crap on my carpet, or 3) cause the neighbors to call the cops on me thinking that the wailing sound of the instrument must mean I have a torture chamber in my house or something. After all, I remember hearing my brother try to learn the violin when he was little, and trust me, I'd prefer hearing cats screeching all evening instead.
Second, the pipa. This is a chinese mandolin. While another string instrument, again, I have no guitar skills. I'm still working on trying to play the banjo, which up until now (as I'm trying to learn it on my own) has been a complete failure, and I don't like musical failures. Hence, I don't think the pipa is a good fit, until, that is, I get a grasp of the banjo.
The third option I came across was the guzheng (pronounced goo-jung). It's a chinese zither. A lap harp by design, to me, it is the most pleasing to the ear. Tuning is much simpler (and from what I've researched, VERY much simpler), and who doesn't like the sound of a glissando from the harp. So I made up my mind. I'm going to look for one of these thingamajigs in China and ship it home.
The above clip is something that (in my opinion) shows this instrument in its finest form, not to mention, this musician is utterly amazing! It shows the virtuosity and dynamics that this instrument can possess, not to mention sound exciting in the process. I may be 92 years old by the time I would ever accomplish playing something like this in the event I should find one. But, we all have things to aspire to, don't we?
Enjoy the clip, and let me know what your thoughts are!
1 comment:
Get two = dueling guzhengs.
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