Turning a modern style Pipa into an Ancient style

[DavidNguyen]

Hi, is it possible to modify a modern Pipa to be played like the Ancient one? I saw a recreation of an Ancient Pipa played in an ensemble. It was held sideways, used silk strings, a large plectrum, and had moon holes carved into it. But it had modern chromatic fretting, like that of the modern Pipa. I imagine you can use Nylon guitar strings instead of steel, and use a Shamisen plectrum instead of finger picks. But is it possible to carve moon holes in a Pipa? I don't really plan to play any modern Pipa repritoire, but instead improvise melodies used in Yayue reconstructions, and perhaps play Heike Biwa and Gaku Biwa music. But, back to the point, the main question I have is, is it possible to carve moon shaped holes into a Modern Pipa, to give it the Ancient style look?

[davidmdahl]

Hello David,

I suppose the flip answer is that of course you can cut holes in the front of your pipa. It is hard to know though if you will get the results you want. If the holes go in the wrong spot, maybe it will compromise the structure of the pipa. You might contact Sung Wah at Eason Music about this, since they service such instruments as a pipa, and will better know the internals, and how thick the top board is. Unless you are really handy with tools though, I suggest taking the pipa to a luthier for the actual surgery. Someone good with servicing acoustic guitars might be a good choice. Another approach might be to get a biwa, since it would more likely have the look you want without potentially butchering a pipa. I don't know if you can get a biwa with chromatic fretting, but that could be revised by a luthier.

Best wishes,

David

[DavidNguyen]

Thanks for the quick reply. I think I may get one of those cheap child size Pipa sold on Red Music Shop and then take it to a luthier to get the holes carved in. Also, it's actually really hard to obtain Biwa, and the only Biwa that is a direct copy of Ancient Chinese Pipa is the Gagaku Biwa, which is also the most expensive and most limiting, and also the heaviest. Also, both types have really thin necks, but really thick bodies, which makes it impossible to add frets because the body would be too thick. So, in this case, my best option would be bringing a Child Size Pipa to a luthier, and have him carve in moon holes. Then from there, I could just add on nylon or silk strings, and use a Shamisen pick.