Gayageum

Gayageum, also kayagŭm (Korean 가야금), is a vaulting board zither played in Korean classical music. It is a leading representative of Korea's national musical culture.

According to legend, the gayageum was invented by King Kasil on the model of the Chinese arched-board zither guzheng. The instrument can be traced back to 551 AD, when a refugee from the land of Kaya, fearing annexation, fled to Silla and gave the king Kaya's new instrument, a gayageum, as a gift.

There are two traditional types of gayageum: the jeongak gayageum ("court gayageum", also popkum and pungnyu gayageum) and the sanjo gayageum. Typical of the jeongak gayageum is the larger body, which is about 160 centimeters long and 30 centimeters wide, and the lower end of the instrument, which is reminiscent of ram's horns. The sanjo gayageum is about 142 centimeters long and 23 centimeters wide and was developed in the 19th century for the sanjo style. The closer arrangement of the strings and the shorter length of the instrument facilitate the faster passages of the sanjo. Both instruments have twelve silken strings (today also nylon strings) and twelve movable bridges shaped like the feet of wild geese.

·         Korean arched board zither - Gayageum - 가야금

The tuning of the sanjo gayageum is G - c - d - g - a - c1 - d1 - e1 - g1 - a1 - c2 - d2. Two modes of notation are common. If the treble clef is used for notation, the notation is in F, so the notes sound a fifth lower than notated. If the mezzo-soprano clef is used for notation, the notes sound as notated. Unlike the guzheng or Japanese vaulting zither koto, the strings are plucked with the fingertips or nails of the right hand. The sound is soft and singing. The sound of the left hand is similar to that of the koto.

The gayageum is usually accompanied by the dubious hourglass drum janggu.

It is possible that the gayageum influenced the Japanese wagon. Furthermore, the gayageum is related to the Korean bowed zither ajaeng, the Mongolian yatga and the Vietnamese đàn tranh.