Editing Guzheng (section)

=={{anchor|Schools and Styles}}Styles and techniques==
[[File:guzheng_tuning.svg|thumb|upright=0.5|Strings of a typical guzheng tuned to [[C major]] ]]
The guzheng is plucked by the fingers with or without [[Plectrum|plectra]].<ref name="vanGulik" /> Interestingly, among the 21 strings of Guzheng, although no strings are specifically assigned to play F or B, those pitches can be produced by pressing E and A instead, respectively. Most modern players use plectra that are attached to up to four fingers on each hand. Ancient picks were made of mundane materials such as [[bamboo]], bone, and animal teeth or by finer materials such as [[ivory]], [[tortoiseshell]], and jade.<ref name="vanGulik" /><ref name=":02">{{Cite book|last=Wong|first=Samuel Shengmiao|title=Qi: An Instrumental Guide to the Chinese Orchestra|publisher=Teng|year=2005|isbn=9789810540128|location=Singapore|pages=69–83}}</ref>

Traditional playing styles use the right hand to pluck notes and the left hand to add ornamentation such as pitch [[slide (musical ornament)|slides]] and [[vibrato]] by pressing the strings to the left of the movable bridges. Modern styles use both hands to play on the right side of the strings. There are many techniques used to strike notes. One iconic sound is a [[tremolo]] produced by the right thumb rotating rapidly around the same note. Other guzheng techniques include [[harmonics]] (''Fanyin'') where one plucks a string while tapping it at the same time, producing a note in a higher [[octave]].<ref name=":02" />

Many guzheng techniques have been borrowed from other instruments. For example, ''Lun'' is a borrowed technique. In ''Lun'', all five fingers pluck on a string to produce a tremolo sound similar to the [[Pipa]].<ref name=":13">{{Cite thesis|title=Historical and contemporary development of the Chinese zheng|url=https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/831/items/1.0099591|publisher=University of British Columbia|date=2001|first=Mei|last=Han}}</ref>

Techniques can also vary in [[Northern China|Northern]] and [[Southern China]], producing different sounds and styles.{{citation needed|date=April 2022}}<ref>van Gulik, R.H. (1951). "Brief Note on the Cheng, the Chinese Small Cither". ''Toyo Ongaku Kenkyu : The Journal of the Society for the Research of Asiatic Music''. '''1951''' (9): 10–25. doi:10.11446/toyoongakukenkyu1936.1951.en10.</ref>

=== Northern China ===
Northern styles include songs from the [[Shandong]] and [[Henan]] regional schools.{{citation needed|date=April 2022}}

Songs from Shandong include "High Mountain and Flowing Water [Shandong Version]" (''Gao Shan Liu Shui'') and "Autumn Moon Over the Han Palace" (''Han Gong Qiu Yue''). Songs from Henan include "High Mountain and Flowing Water [Henan Version]" and "Going Upstairs" (''Shang Lou'').<ref name=":02" />

According to [[Samuel Wong]], songs from Henan are fiery.<ref name=":02" /> Left hand slides and vibrato are used frequently and tremolo is done with the thumb.<ref name=":22">{{Cite thesis|title=The Development of the Modern Zheng in Taiwan and Singapore.|url=http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/11860/|publisher=Durham University|date=2003|degree=Doctoral|first=Shu Hui Daphne|last=Kao}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite book|last=Han|first=Mei|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1033223795|title=The emergence of the Chinese zheng: traditional context, contemporary evolution, and cultural identity.|date=2013|publisher=University of British Columbia|oclc=1033223795}}</ref> Meanwhile, Shandong songs are "glamorous&nbsp;... melodic lines often rise and fall dramatically&nbsp;... Its music is characteristically light and refreshing.''”''<ref name=":02" /> Slide descending notes are not used as often as Henan.<ref name=":22"/> Glissandos are always on beat.<ref name=":02" />

=== Southern China ===
Southern styles include [[Chaozhou]] and [[Kejia|Kejia (Hakka)]] regional styles. Another prominent school is the [[Zhejiang]] regional school in the southeast.{{citation needed|date=April 2022}}

Southern songs include ''"''Jackdaw Plays with Water" (''Han Ya Xi Shui)'' from Chaozhou and "Lotus Emerging from Water" (''Chu Shui Lian'') from the Hakka School. Famous songs from Zhejiang include "The General's Command" (''Jiang Jun Ling'').<ref name=":02" />

[[Chaozhou]] and [[Hakka]] songs are similar but according to [[Han Mei|Mei Han]], “Hakka melodies are similar to but less highly embellished than those of the neighboring Chaozhou school.”<ref name=":13"/> Songs from Chaozhou use even less descending notes and [[glissando]] are [[free rhythm]]. Chaozhou songs have "irregular beats, and alternate between hard and soft taps on the strings."<ref name=":02" /> [[Zhejiang]] songs use technique similar to the Pipa. Frequent tremolo is used with left-hand glissando. Other techniques include ''sidian'', where 16th notes are played used thumb, index finger and middle finger in quick [[tempo]].<ref name=":32">{{Cite book|first=Mei|last=Han|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1033223795|title=The emergence of the Chinese zheng: traditional context, contemporary evolution, and cultural identity|date=2013|publisher=University of British Columbia|oclc=1033223795}}</ref>

The guzheng is played on a [[pentatonic scale]], with notes "[[Fa (musical note)|fa]]" and "[[Ti (musical note)|ti]]" being produced by bending the strings. The [[Scale (music)|scale]] can change with using [[Semitone|"flat", "natural" and "sharp"]] notes. Chaozhou songs use multiple scales, using both "flat" notes or both "natural" notes. The tone of the song can change based on the scale.<ref name=":13"/>

=== Modern music ===
{{stack|[[File:Woman playing guzheng in Taipei. 2010.jpg|thumb|Woman playing guzheng in Taipei (2010).]]}}
Many pieces composed since the 1950s have used newer techniques and also mix elements from both northern and southern styles, ultimately creating a new modern school.<ref name=":02"/> Examples of modern songs include "Spring on Snowy Mountain" (''Xue Shan Chun Xiao'') by Fan Shang E, and "Fighting the Typhoon" (''Zhan Tai Feng'') by [[Wang Changyuan]].<ref name=":02"/>

Newer techniques (especially since the 1950s) have included playing [[harmony]] and [[counterpoint]] with the left hand.<ref name=":13"/>

Experimental, [[atonal]] pieces have been composed since the 1980s. For example, "Ming Mountain" (''Ming Shan'') and "Gloomy Fragrance" (''An Xiang'') are contemporary songs that do not use the traditional pentatonic scale.<ref name=":02"/><ref name=":22"/>

In 2021, Chinese/Australian guzheng composer and player [[Mindy Meng Wang]] collaborated with Australian [[electronic music]]ian [[Tim Shiel]], releasing a single, "Hidden Qi 隐.气", in February,<ref name=hiddenqi/> followed by an EP, ''Nervous Energy 一 触即发'', in March of that year.<ref>{{cite web | title=Tim Shiel & Mindy Meng Wang's new EP happens to be some of the best Australian electronic music released this year -| website=[[MTV]]|first= Josh| last=Martin | date=25 March 2021 | url=https://www.mtv.com.au/news/miw4sd/tim-shiel-mindy-meng-wang-nervous-energy-ep | access-date=2022-04-24 }}</ref><ref name=hiddenqi>{{cite web | last=Gallagher | first=Alex | title=Mindy Meng Wang and Tim Shiel share new single 'Hidden Qi 隐.气' | website=[[NME]] | date=26 February 2021 | url=https://www.nme.com/en_au/news/music/mindy-meng-wang-tim-shiel-share-new-single-hidden-qi-2889555 | access-date=2022-04-24 }}</ref> She has previously collaborated with British band [[Gorillaz]] and Australian band [[Regurgitator]], and intends to stay in Australia and continue to produce modern music.<ref name=ep>{{cite interview| interviewer-first= Zan| interviewer-last= Rowe| interviewer-link= Zan Rowe|first1 = Mindy Meng |last1=Wang |first2= Tim|last2= Shiel| title=Mindy Meng Wang 王萌 and Tim Shiel have released a collaborative EP | website=[[Double J (radio station)|Double J]]| format= Audio + text | date=18 Mar 2021 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/doublej/programs/mornings/double-j-mornings-zan-rowe-mindy-meng-wang-interview/13256858 | access-date=2022-04-24 | quote= I have been settled here for about five years. [Mindy Weng Wang]}}</ref>