Inharmonic sounds of bowed strings in Western music and Beijing opera Chen-Gia Tsai （蔡振家） National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan Graduate Institute of Musicology

Talk outline Chinese fiddle family –phylogeny –bow hair tension The jinghu （京胡） Inharmonic sound –musical uses –experiment on finger-string interaction DiscussionConclusions

The origin of Chinese fiddles The xiqin （奚琴） –mid-8th century Subsequently introduced to both Korea and Japan

Divergent evolution Xiqin 奚琴 Erxian 二弦

Innovation: higher bow hair tension Low bow hair tension –Early instruments –Erxian （二弦） –Very soft, long notes High bow hair tension –Modern instruments –Loud, rapid, staccato notes

Bow hair tension: Western music The Italian bow –slim and light –a high hair tension The German bow –highly arched –a low hair tension

German bow: chord playing The player could tighten or relax the bow hair tension at will –high tension: playing on a single string –low tension: playing on two or more strings simultaneously

Talk outline Chinese fiddle family –phylogeny –bow hair tension The jinghu （京胡） Inharmonic sound –musical uses –experiment on finger-string interaction DiscussionConclusions

History Low bow hair tension （軟弓） High bow hair tension （硬弓） –Since 19th century

Timbre & playing Loud, sharp and piercing Large-amplitude vibration of snakeskin –Mobility of snakeskin –Heavy use of rosin –Forceful bowing Large-amplitude vibration of strings –Production of noise-rich sound

Talk outline Chinese fiddle family –phylogeny –bow hair tension The jinghu （京胡） Inharmonic sound –musical uses –experiment on finger-string interaction DiscussionConclusions

Digitally bowed cello string Muller & Lauterborn. Acustica 82 (4): , 1996.

Inharmonic sound & bow speed D = 2.4, 2.0, 2.0, 1.2 –Torus-like attractor –The bow speed is at the upper limit of bow speeds used for most musical purposes and beyond. High bow speeds –staccato or sforzando

Jinghu’s inharmonic sound Descriptions –blossoming tone, tiger tone, overtone, artificial noise... High-pass noise – f cutoff ～ 1.6 kHz.

Spectrum of a blossoming tone

Finger-string collision Touch technique of the left hand Nonlinear boundary condition with unilateral constraints Sitar, tanpura & biwa

Timbre decoration of a long tone

Experiment on finger-string interaction Aims –How frequently do they contact? Method –Electrical circuit –Sampling rate: 100 kHz

Experiment on finger-string interaction Materials –Finger –Wire Aim –How the finger curvature affects noise production

no touch touch no touch touch

no touch touch no touch touch

Talk outline Chinese fiddle family –phylogeny –bow hair tension The jinghu （京胡） Inharmonic sound –musical uses –experiment on finger-string interaction DiscussionConclusions

Noise control or well-controlled noise? Blossoming tones of the jinhu Electrical guitar (distortion) –Dry & Gabrielsson (1997) Emotional expression in guitar band performance. Growl singing –Rock music –Psychological effect: aggression

Why is a loud, noise-rich sound aggressive? Growl voice as a by-product of spine stabilization –A raise in intra-abdominal pressure enhances spine stability in preparation for suddenly applied loads (weight lifting, attack...) –Because of this association of sound with action, the aggressive meaning of growling voices and loud, noisy sounds is universally recognized (the electrical guitar, the jinghu...) –Cholewicki et al. (1999) Lumbar spine stability can be augmented with an abdominal belt and/or increased intra-abdominal pressure.

Future direction To measure and to model the collision between the string and the curved wall –Jinghu –Indian & Japanese plucked strings