Traditional Instruments: Biwa
The biwa (琵琶) is a Japanese short-necked fretted lute, and a close variant of the Chinese pipa. The biwa is the chosen instrument of Benten, Goddess of music, eloquence, poetry, and education in Japanese Buddhism.
The biwa derives from a Chinese lute called pipa, which itself derives from a Persian/Middle Eastern lute called barbat (whose modern descendant in Arabic regions is called oud). The biwa reached Japan from China during the Nara Period (710-759 AD), and five instruments from that time are kept in the Shōsōin, the national treasure house of Japan. One of them, a rare, five-stringed gogenbiwa (五玄琵琶), is decorated with Central Asian themes, including a camel. This instrument is literally one of its kind in Asia, being the only one preserved from the period, although similar instruments are manufactured in small numbers today. Wandering biwa players, similar to minstrels, were known as biwa hōshi (琵琶法師).
The playing of the biwa nearly became extinct during the Meiji period as Western music and instruments became popular.
Check out this instrument in play:
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