The is an

Okinawa is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 Square kilometre, km2 (880 sq mi). ...

n and

Amami Islands The The name ''Amami-guntō'' was standardized on February 15, 2010. Prior to that, another name, ''Amami shotō'' (奄美諸島), was also used. is an archipelago in the Satsunan Islands, which is part of the Ryukyu Islands, and is southwest o ...

musical instrument A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...

and precursor of the mainland Japanese (). Often likened to a

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

, it consists of a

snakeskin Snakeskin may either refer to the skin of a live snake, the shed skin of a snake after molting, or to a type of leather that is made from the hide of a dead snake. Snakeskin and scales can have varying patterns and color formations, providing prot ...

-covered body, neck and three strings.

Origins

Its close resemblance in both appearance and name to the Chinese suggests Chinese origins, the then-

Ryūkyū Kingdom The Ryukyu Kingdom, Middle Chinese: , , Classical Chinese: (), Historical English names: ''Lew Chew'', ''Lewchew'', ''Luchu'', and ''Loochoo'', Historical French name: ''Liou-tchou'', Historical Dutch name: ''Lioe-kioe'' was a kingdom in t ...

(pre-Japanese Okinawa) having very close ties with Imperial China. In the 16th century, the reached the Japanese trading port at

Sakai is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or kofun, which date from the fifth century and inclu ...

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

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 n ...

. In mainland Japan, it evolved into the larger , and many people refer to the as or due to its snakeskin covering. The is considered the soul of Okinawan folk music. Played by youth as young as 2, to older people aged 100 or more, there is a in most Okinawan homes. It is the center of small informal family gatherings, weddings, birthdays, other celebrations, community parties, festivals. The is held in great respect among the Ryukyuan culture, and is often viewed as an instrument that carries the voice of the deities, and is regarded as a deity itself. This is reflected in the traditional construction of the . are generally designed to last more than a lifetime, as they are often passed down through the generations of a family. A traditional Okinawan story, the tale of the 'Husband and Wife ', tells of a pair of made from the same core of Okinawan Ebony tree. They were owned by a husband and wife prior to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. At the onset of the war, the husband was forced into military service by the Japanese, and therefore had to leave his wife and home. Due to the destruction to main island during the war, the pair of were in danger, and the war wiped out almost half of the native population. In an attempt to preserve his and his wife's , the husband wrapped them up, put them into a wooden box, and buried them deep in the Okinawan forest. Later, they were dug up, and brought back to their rightful home, having made it safely through the violent war. They are currently preserved by the son of the couple.

Construction

Traditionally, the was covered with the skin of the

Burmese python The Burmese python (''Python bivittatus'') is one of the largest species of snakes. It is native to a large area of Southeast Asia and is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Until 2009, it was considered a subspecies of the Indian pytho ...

, but today, due to CITES regulations, the skin of the

reticulated python The reticulated python (''Malayopython reticulatus'') is a python species native to South and Southeast Asia. It is the world's longest snake, and is among the three heaviest. It is listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List because of its ...

is also used. Python skin is used for the skin of the body of the instrument, in contrast to the cat or dogskin used traditionally on the . Though Okinawa is famous for the venomous habu viper, the habu is in fact too small for its skin to be used to make , and it is believed that the snakeskin for the has always been imported from Southeast Asia. Though the pythons used to make skins today are not an endangered species, the difficulty of distinguishing faux snakeskin from real snakeskin makes transporting real-snakeskin () internationally somewhat risky. Due to international wildlife protection treaties, it is not legal to export snakeskin-covered to some countries, such as the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. There is some room for interpretation of this, in that the treaties specify that the restriction is for endangered snake species. Naturally-skinned instruments - while considered unparalleled in sound quality, producing a warm, deep yet pronounced tone - are infamous for cracking and tearing, especially when the is taken out of its natural habitat, the humid tropicality of the Ryukyu Islands. Up until recent times, skin breakage was never considered much of a problem, as the 's construction allows for it to be fully disassembled, re-skinned, and reassembled, usually with little time, cost, and inconvenience, as a number of craftsmen were heavily dotted throughout the Prefecture. When began to be exported across the world, skin breakages became a more prevalent issue, as no craftsmen existed outside of Okinawa, with Western luthiers unfamiliar with the construction of the instrument, or its use of natural skins. exported to cold and/or dry countries have an increased vulnerability to skin cracks, tears and breaks, leading to the development of artificial skins made from a variety of materials, such as

nylon Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers composed of polyamides ( repeating units linked by amide links).The polyamides may be aliphatic or semi-aromatic. Nylon is a silk-like thermoplastic, generally made from pet ...

and

polyester Polyester is a category of polymers that contain the ester functional group in every repeat unit of their main chain. As a specific material, it most commonly refers to a type called polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Polyesters include natura ...

. The quality, appearance, and price of these skins varies greatly, ranging from hard, thin-skinned, high-pitched and 'tinny'-sounding polyester skins, to the more 'snake-skin-sounding' nylon skins, which replicate the layered composition of natural snake skin. Artificially skinned are popular due to their generally low cost and their invulnerability to different temperatures and atmospheres. The highest-quality synthetic-skin , which are available for as low as US$300, are the go-to choice for professional Okinawan Folk Musicians who travel and play overseas. These days, with the 's popularity rapidly expanding all over the world, and the desire of players to have the most traditional possible, a hybrid skin known as the style has been developed: a natural python skin is fitted to the and stretched with a strong, synthetic reinforcement fabric underneath. This proves a great compromise for those in dryer/colder/hotter climates. Like with its un-reinforced predecessor, it is still good practice to maintain regular oiling of the reinforced skin to prevent over-drying and cracking. There are also tailor-made products available to avoid skin-breakage, such as naturally oily leather circular pads that are placed on either side of the body during case storage. This prevents over-drying which leads to breaking. The wooden parts of the - the neck (), head/body (), and head ( - can be made with any of a large variety of hardwoods. Traditionally, the neck is crafted with the solid black core of the Okinawan Ebony tree, a species native to Okinawa, and the only ebony in the whole of Japan. This black ebony core is highly sought-after for its strength and its traditional sound quality. Typically, Ebony trees no younger than 100 years old are used in construction - the time necessary for the tree to grow a big enough black core to produce one or more instrument necks. Instruments made with Okinawan Ebony are among the most expensive made and sold today. Even Ebony instruments that forego authentic snakeskin for the cheaper and more durable nylon and polyester skins can be several times more expensive than an instrument made with other hardwoods. The other, more common hardwoods (used mainly for convenience, availability, and cost-effectiveness) include Oak, Apitong, and Rosewoods (any number of species). There are 3 strings, called Gen. They can be made of Nylon or Silk. They are first attached to the base of the Dou (head), at the point where the end of the neck pole sticks out. A silk thread-piece, known as an Itokake or Genkake is fitted onto the wood piece, then the strings are individually attached to the 3 loops of the Itokake, using a simple draw-thru knot. The other end of the string are brought up the body and neck, and are the individually wound onto their respective pegs, called Karakui. Itokake, once only available in Gold color, are now being made in a variety of colors, to match a variety of Doumaki. Karakui, the tuning pegs, are generally made with whatever wood the neck is made from, but Ebony is most common, and desired for its strength. Acting much like the tuning pegs of the violin, cello, and other traditional western wood string instruments- Karakui will require the use of Rosin (made of Pine resin, oils, ash, etc.), after an initial period. The Rosin is applied as a thin and tacky layer, adding grip between the two wood pieces. Karakui are infamous for breaking with the slightest impetus, and are therefore readily available individually or in sets of 3. Karakui also act as another face of expression for the Sanshin- they can be carved in a variety of different styles and designs, and finished in a range of colors, textures, and some can even be 'tipped' with Jade, Coral, or other stones, shells, and natural decorations. Another part of Sanshin's body is susceptible to damage- and that is the head, or 'Ten'. It can be scratched, dented, or even completely broken off, if mishandled. A textile, simply called a Ten cover, is a small, elastic-reinforced slip-cover that is generally padded and quilted, to provide a bit of protection against surface damage. These Ten covers can be used at all times, or can be removed during play. Use during play will not effect sound quality. Ten covers come in as big of a variety as Doumaki, many made to match. The finishing touch, and arguably 'the Soul' of every Sanshin, is the Doumaki- the decorative textile that surrounds the head of the Sanshin. Dou, meaning 'drum' and Maki, meaning 'Wrap'. Most often, Doumaki are made from modern fibers and methods, and display the Royal Crest of the Ryukyu Kingdom (Hidari Gomon), in rich black and gold. These days, a wide variety of both modern-made and traditional hand-woven Doumaki can be found both in Japan and by world citizens via the internet. They can range from US$10 (for traditional design and cheaper materials), all the way to US$175, for the magnificent hand-woven Doumaki, made with hand-spun silk or the famous Basho-fu, 'silk' made from the trunks of Okinawan Banana trees. These high-end Doumaki may also incorporate leather, python skin, Bingata fabric (Okinawan 'stencil & paste' dyeing), Minsaa weavings (traditional Ryukyu '4 & 5' Square patterns_ and other natural/modern materials. In addition to synthetic skins, another modern cost-cutting adaptation is the 'New Wood' Sanshin- an instrument that abandons any type of 'skinning' of the body, and instead utilizes a thin panel of wood composite. This wood face is then finished and decorated in any number of fashions. This 'New Wood' design has pioneered the seemingly popular 'Sanshin Kit'. This 'DIY' kit generally includes pre-fabricated parts- the Sao/Neck, the Dou/drum head base, and the Karakui/tuning pegs- all of which come 'unfinished', awaiting the new owner's creative hands. Wood parts can be further sanded, stained/painted, oiled, lacquered, etc... whatever the heart desires. Kits come with a traditional Doumaki, but the die-hard artisan may choose to create their own unique, personally-designed textile. It seems that in recent times, with the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen not exactly being of equal value, the cost of shipping to countries outside of Asia, is higher than the cost of the Kits themselves. A unique 'evolutionary-tangent' of the Sanshin came about just after the Battle of Okinawa- the deadliest action in the Pacific War. Civilians were corralled into US camps following the Battle, during the US take-over. The Okinawans, allowed to bring nothing with them, insisted upon carrying on musical and dancing arts so important to their culture. With the assistance of their US captors, and their rations, a new type of Sanshin was made- using a tin can, and most likely a broom pole. This changed everything for the downtrodden prisoners, bring a bit of peace and joy to their otherwise bleek situation. This war-born Sanshin is now called Kankara Sanshin, or 'Can-Sanshin, Can-shin, etc.'. It is also the subject of the 'DIY-Kit' approach to Sanshin

Tuning

Traditionally, players wear a

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 har ...

, made of a material such as the

water buffalo The water buffalo (''Bubalus bubalis''), also called the domestic water buffalo or Asian water buffalo, is a large bovid originating in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Today, it is also found in Europe, Australia, North America, So ...

horn, on the index

finger A finger is a limb of the body and a type of digit, an organ of manipulation and sensation found in the hands of most of the Tetrapods, so also with humans and other primates. Most land vertebrates have five fingers ( Pentadactyly). Chamber ...

. Today, some use a

guitar pick A guitar pick (American English) is a plectrum used for guitars. Picks are generally made of one uniform material—such as some kind of plastic (nylon, Delrin, celluloid), rubber, felt, tortoiseshell, wood, metal, glass, tagua, or stone. ...

or the

nail Nail or Nails may refer to: In biology * Nail (anatomy), toughened protective protein-keratin (known as alpha-keratin, also found in hair) at the end of an animal digit, such as fingernail * Nail (beak), a plate of hard horny tissue at the tip ...

of the index finger. In Amami, long, narrow

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

plectra are also used, which allow a higher-pitched tone than that of the Okinawa sanshin. A bamboo

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually someth ...

raises the strings off the skin, which are white, except in

Amami The The name ''Amami-guntō'' was standardized on February 15, 2010. Prior to that, another name, ''Amami shotō'' (奄美諸島), was also used. is an archipelago in the Satsunan Islands, which is part of the Ryukyu Islands, and is southwest o ...

, where they are yellower and thinner. The traditional names for the strings are (from thick to thin) ''uujiru'' (男絃, "male string"), ''nakajiru'' (中絃, "middle string"), and ''miijiru'' (女絃, "female string"). The sanshin has five tunings called : * – "standard tuning" (i.e. C₃, F₃, C₄ expressed in terms of International Pitch Notation) * – "first-string raised tuning" (i.e. E₃, F₃, C₄) * – "second-string raised tuning" (i.e. C₃, G₃, C₄) * – "first- and second-strings raised tuning" (i.e. D₃, G₃, C₄) * – "third-string lowered tuning" (i.e. C₃, F₃, B₃)

Musical notation

Sheet music for the sanshin is written in a unique transcription system called ''kunkunshi'' ( ryu, 工工四, ). It is named for the first three notes of Chinese melody that was widely known during its development. Its creator is believed to be Mongaku Terukina or his student in the early to mid-1700s. A set of

kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are still used, along with the subsequ ...

are used to represent specific finger positions. Unlike European

musical notation Music notation or musical notation is any system used to visually represent aurally perceived music played with instruments or sung by the human voice through the use of written, printed, or otherwise-produced symbols, including notation f ...

, kunkunshi can only be interpreted specifically through the sanshin.

References

External links