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Shamisen |
Shamisen,
三味線,
しゃみせん - The shamisen or samisen
(Japanese: 三味線, literally "three taste strings"), also
called sangen (literally "three strings") is a
three-stringed musical instrument played with a plectrum
called a bachi. The shamisen is similar in length to a
guitar, but its neck is much slimmer and without frets. Its
drum-like rounded rectangular body, known as the dō, is
covered front and back with skin in the manner of a banjo,
and amplifies the sound of the strings. The skin is usually
from a dog or cat, but in the past a special type of paper
was used and recently various types of plastics are being
tried. On the skin of some of the best shamisen, the
position of the cat's nipples can still be seen. The three
strings are traditionally made of silk, or, more recently,
nylon. The lowest passes over a small hump at the "nut" end
so that it buzzes, creating a characteristic sound known as
sawari (somewhat reminiscent of the "buzzing" of a sitar,
which is called jawari). The upper part of the dō is almost
always protected by a cover known as a dō kake, and players
often wear a little band of cloth on their left hand to
facilitate sliding up and down the neck. This band is known
as a yubikake. There may also be a cover on the head of the
instrument, known as a tenjin.
Information source: “Shamisen.” wikipedia.org. Article date:
24 Jan. 2008. Retrieved: Wikipedia. 2 Feb. 2008 <Shamisen>.
Video - The following is a sample of the Yoshida brothers in concert playing the shamisen. |
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