PRESENTATION OUTLINE
The buk is a traditional Korean drum. While the term buk is a native Korean word used as a generic term meaning "drum" (the Sino-Korean word being go), it is most often used to refer to a shallow barrel-shaped drum, with a round wooden body that is covered on both ends with animal skin.
The gayageum or kayagum is a traditional Korean zither-like string instrument, with 12 strings, though some more recent variants have 21 or other numbers of strings. It is probably the best known traditional Korean musical instrument.
The janggu (or janggo; also spelled changgo) or sometimes called seyogo (slim waist drum) is the most widely used drum used in the traditional music of Korea. It is available in most kinds, and consists of an hourglass-shaped body with two heads made from animal skin. The two heads produce sounds of different pitch and timbre, which when played together are believed to represent the harmony of man and woman.
The tsuzumi (鼓) is a Japanese drum of Chinese/Indian origin. It consists of a wooden body shaped like an hourglass, and it is taut, with two drum heads with cords that can be squeezed or released to increase or decrease the tension of the heads respectively. This mechanism allows the player to raise or lower the pitch of the drum while playing, not unlike the African talking drum.
Care for this instrument is peculiar in that the drum heads must be exposed to moisture to produce a desirable sound. Before playing the tsuzumi, the player will breathe very close to the head that will be struck. Sometimes he will even take some saliva and apply it to the head of the drum. The quality of sound of the drum will depend on it.
The koto (Japanese: 箏) is a traditional Japanese stringed musical instrument, similar to the Chinese zheng, the Mongolian yatga, the Korean gayageum and the Vietnamese đàn tranh. The koto is the national instrument of Japan
Horagai (法螺) (or jinkai (陣貝) ) are large conch shells that have been used as trumpets in Japan for many centuries. The instrument, which has served a number of purposes throughout Japanese history, has been given a number of Japanese names depending on its function. Special schools still teach students to play the traditional music associated with the conch.
The guqin (simplified/traditional: 古琴; pinyin: gǔqín; Wade–Giles ku-ch'in; pronounced [kùtɕʰǐn] ( ); literally "ancient stringed instrument") is a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument of the zither family. It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favored by scholars and literati as an instrument of great subtlety and refinement, as highlighted by the quote "a gentleman does not part with his qin or se without good reason,"[1] as well as being associated with the ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius. It is sometimes referred to by the Chinese as "the father of Chinese music" or "the instrument of the sages".
The dizi (Chinese: 笛子; pinyin: dízi, pronounced [tǐt͡sɨ]), is a Chinese transverse flute. It is also sometimes known as the di (笛) or hengdi (橫笛), and has varieties including the qudi (曲笛) and bangdi (梆笛).
These names are likely to have multiple spellings, too, depending on the transliteration used to convert from Chinese names. Nonetheless, dizi seems to be the most common name (and written form) used in the West.
The pipa (Chinese: 琵琶; pinyin: pípa, [pʰǐpʰǎ]) is a four-stringed Chinese musical instrument, belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the Chinese lute, the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets ranging from 12 to 26. Another Chinese four-string plucked lute is the liuqin, which looks like a smaller version of the pipa.
