Description: rThe zheng or gu-zung is a long zither and a member of the plucked chordophone family of musical instruments. In the Chinese system of classification the zheng is classified as a “silk instrument”. Its believed the origins of the zheng are from the Qin Dynasty or "Warring States Period" (475 - 221 BC). The word "gu" translates as "antiquity", or "ancient". During the first century BC the zheng had been described as a plucked half tube zither. Upon the arrival of the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD) the amount of the strings for the zheng had increased. Later in the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911 AD) the gu-zheng remained very popular. A zheng with a fifteenth string was developed In the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644). In the 20th century Prof. Cao Zheng was innovative in spearheading music instructional programs which offer the zheng courses in universities which are now common place in mainland China.

The Playing Techniques: The playing techniques include note bending with the three fingers of the left hand, to right hand playing includes the use of tortoise shell plectrums each plectrum is wrapped with tape around the thumb, pointy and middle fingers are used. The tortoise shell picks produce a very beautiful and clean tone. When playing the zheng often the left hand works independently from the right hand. The left side of the zheng where the tunings pins are located. The tape serves as a means so the hinges don't rattle during the performance, a lot of solo notes are utilized along with two or three note "chords". The tape applied to the surface underneath the strings shows the numerical reference of a standardized pentatonic A minor tuning. The numerical notation system used on each of the pieces of tape is called Jian Pu.

Anatomy of the Zheng: The zheng has up to 21 to 25 strings however the 21 string zhengs are the current standard. During ancient times the zheng was originally strung with silk strings. Since the 2nd century some zhengs were equipped with hand carved jade bridges. Nowadays many of the gu-zheng are strung with steel wound nylon strings or sometimes with metal strings. The body of the zheng is made of wutong wood or Paulownia elongata, a species of tree found throughout China, Japan and Vietnam. Throughout the surface and the sides of the zheng, the ornamentation applied is “bas relief” artwork. The theme of the artwork features cranes who are an important sacred and cultural symbol through out far east Asia. The top surface of the zheng is concave, the bottom surface of the zheng is flat. Three sound holes are cut into the bottom of the instrument. Zheng are supplied with two collapsible wooden stands as seen in the photo. The stands allow the player of the zheng to sit on a chair or stool. There is a zheng in that has table like pillar and pedals this is a recent innovation. The zheng has 21 individual wooden movable bridges. Such bridges are common on the long zithers of East Asia and Vietnam. On the right side of the zheng there are metal tuning pins the pins keep the tension of the strings. The zheng employes movable-bridges in which the tuning is determined. The tuning pins are protected in a built in container that opens and closes. This is so the tuning pins can be accessed for releasing the tension of the strings when needing to be replaced.