''Bachi'' (, ; also ''batchi'') are straight,

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

en sticks used on

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese

taiko are a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called and to the form of ensemble drumming m ...

drums, and also the

plectrum A plectrum is a small flat tool used for plucking or strumming of a stringed instrument. For hand-held instruments such as guitars and mandolins, the plectrum is often called a pick and is held as a separate tool in the player's hand. In harpsic ...

(written ) for stringed instruments of Japanese origin such as the

shamisen The , also known as the or (all meaning "three strings"), is a three-stringed traditional Japanese musical instrument derived from the Chinese instrument . It is played with a plectrum called a bachi. The Japanese pronunciation is usual ...

and ''

biwa The is a Japanese short-necked wooden lute traditionally used in narrative storytelling. The is a plucked string instrument that first gained popularity in China before spreading throughout East Asia, eventually reaching Japan sometime duri ...

''.

For percussion

Drum bachi (, ) are made in a wide variety of sizes and materials, as appropriate to the drum it will be used to play. A typical bachi is about 22 mm (7/8 inches) in diameter, 400 mm (16 inches) long and made out of a

hardwood Hardwood is wood from dicot trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes from ...

such as

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

. These would be suitable for a wide variety of playing styles. A bachi for playing a larger drum like the O-daiko would be bigger both in circumference and length. Similarly, smaller bachi are used for smaller drums. Distinctions between the characters and are not always made in technical terms, but can also literally refer to the white oak tree, or

Quercus An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably '' ...

. Some other woods commonly used to make bachi are (Japanese names in parentheses): , , , , and . Magnolia is one of the lightest and softest woods, most suitable for playing smaller drums with a sharp attack and less decay. On a larger drum, however, a magnolia bachi usually sounds "slappy" and flat, because it is too light to strike the thicker head of the drum with enough power to generate the lower tones of the drum. It is also too soft to strike the rim of the drum (in

kuchi shoka Kochis or Kuchis (Pashto: کوچۍ Kuchis) are pastoral nomads belonging primarily to the Ghilji Pashtuns. In the southern, western and northern regions of Afghanistan they are also referred to at times as maldar (Pashto: مالدار maldar, ...

, it is called a ) without denting the wood. Cypress is slightly harder than magnolia, and is usually cheaper as well. On the opposite extreme, an bachi is heavy and hard. It brings out a better, fuller sound when playing larger taiko, but it muffles the higher harmonics of smaller taiko, sounding "thunky" and dead.

Taiko are a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called and to the form of ensemble drumming m ...

drumming is a highly visual art form, and so bachi are sometimes decorated with bells or tassels for use during performance.

For stringed instruments

Bachi used for stringed instruments () are actually picks. They are very distinct in form and use from Western-style picks, which are usually smaller in order to be held between or mounted to fingers. In shape, bachi are similar to an

ice scraper An ice scraper is a handheld tool for removing frost, ice, and snow from windows, usually on automobiles. Basic scrapers have a plastic blade and handle, though some have blades made out of metal. More complex models often include brushes to h ...

or a

putty knife A putty knife is a specialized tool used when glazing single glazed windows, to work putty around the edges of each pane of glass. An experienced glazer will apply the putty by hand, and then smooth it with the knife. Modern insulated glazing ma ...

. Bachi can be made of various materials and with varying levels of strength. Similarly to guitar picks, bachi were traditionally made of or , but these materials are rare and expensive (and illegal to trade in some territories, due to protection of endangered species), therefore making bachi in these materials highly expensive and impractical. Modern and more affordable variants are often made of acrylic, plastic or wood. Generally, bachi made of softer, more flexible materials are easier to play with for beginners, but harder materials produce a stronger sound and last longer.

External links

* {{wiktionary-inline, ばち Drums Japanese traditional music Percussion instrument beaters