Đàn tỳ bà

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The đàn tỳ bà is a Vietnamese traditional plucked string instrument. It is made of wood, with a distinctive pear shape and four strings made of nylon (formerly twisted silk). The instrument is held in a near-vertical position when playing and its playing technique involves frequent bending of the tones with the fingers of the left hand. It was associated with the royal court and is still used in the ensemble that performs at the Imperial Palace at Huế.

The instrument's name is a Vietnamization of the name of the Chinese pear-shaped lute, called pipa, from which the đàn tỳ bà is derived. "Đàn" is the Vietnamese prefix meaning "string," which is part of the name of most traditional stringed instruments of the Viet majority.