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The Jiahu gudi is the oldest known musical instruments from China dating back to around 6000 B.C.E. Gudi literally means bone flute.

986, these bone flutes were excavated from an early neolithic tomb in Jiahu
Jiahu

Jiahu was the site of a Neolithic Yellow River settlement based in the central plains of ancient China, modern Wuyang, Henan Province. Archaeologists consider the site to be one of the earliest examples of the Peiligang culture....
 in the Wuyan County, Henan Province in Central China. They are dated to 6000 BC.

average size of the bone flute is approximately 20 cm long and 1.1 cm in diameter, and the bone flutes are made from the wings of the red-crowned crane.






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The Jiahu gudi is the oldest known musical instruments from China dating back to around 6000 B.C.E. Gudi literally means bone flute.

History

In 1986, these bone flutes were excavated from an early neolithic tomb in Jiahu
Jiahu

Jiahu was the site of a Neolithic Yellow River settlement based in the central plains of ancient China, modern Wuyang, Henan Province. Archaeologists consider the site to be one of the earliest examples of the Peiligang culture....
 in the Wuyan County, Henan Province in Central China. They are dated to 6000 BC.

Description

The average size of the bone flute is approximately 20 cm long and 1.1 cm in diameter, and the bone flutes are made from the wings of the red-crowned crane. These open-ended bone flutes have a variety of number of holes, ranging from one to seven holes; however there are some with eight holes, seven in front and one in back. The bone whistles are much shorter with lengths from 5.7 cm to 10.5 cm long with only a couple of holes. The number of holes and the spacing of the holes depended on what pitch the flute was supposed to make. Lee and Shen believed that the Chinese understood the "resonance of an air column" and were able to create an instrument that contained their "complete interval preference of Chinese music". Blowing into an end-blown bone flutes produces the same effect as blowing into a glass bottle. It was also believed that the eight open holes flute could play "all harmonic intervals and two registers". These harmonic intervals are said to be a "function of culture" and were of a larger set compared to the West. Bone flutes were also used for sacrificial purposes as well as bird hunting. Gudi are not very common now, but there are still people who continue to use these flutes for their music.

External links



Sample Music



See also

  • Jiahu
    Jiahu

    Jiahu was the site of a Neolithic Yellow River settlement based in the central plains of ancient China, modern Wuyang, Henan Province. Archaeologists consider the site to be one of the earliest examples of the Peiligang culture....
    , the archaeological site where they were discovered
  • Chinese flutes
    Chinese flutes

    Chinese flutes come in various types. They include*Dizi *Xiao *Gudi , an ancient vertical flute made from the bones of large birds*Paixiao ...
  • Xiao (flute)
    Xiao (flute)

    The xiao is a Chinese vertical end-blown flute. It is generally made of dark brown bamboo . It is also sometimes called d?ngxiao , d?ng meaning "hole." An ancient name for the xiao is sh?d? but the name xiao in ancient times also included the side-blown bamboo flute, dizi....
  • End-blown flute
    End-blown flute

    The end-blown flute or rim-blown flute is a keyless woodwind instrument played by directing an airstream against the sharp edge of the upper end of a tube....
  • Music of China
    Music of China

    The music of China dates back to the dawn of Chinese civilization with documents and artifacts providing evidence of a well-developed musical culture as early as the Zhou Dynasty ....
  • Traditional Chinese musical instruments
    Traditional Chinese musical instruments

    Traditional Chinese musical instruments comprise a wide range of string, wind, and percussion instruments. Traditionally, they were classified according to the materials used in their construction....