Transverse flute of the Han Chinese. Historically known by a variety of different names (e.g. hengchui, hengdi), the Chinese transverse flute is now generally known as di or dizi, though regional names exist as well.
The di is constructed from various species of bamboo, such as ‘purple bamboo’ (zizhu) and ‘arrow bamboo’ (jianzhu). The tube is closed at the blowing end with a cork, but open at the bottom (fig.1). Distributed along the upper surface are a blow-hole, membrane hole and six finger-holes, with two end-holes on the underside which define the length of the vibrating air column and may be used to attach a string or tassel. Other decorative holes may appear below these. Finger-holes on traditional flutes are roughly equidistant, producing a temperament of mixed whole-tone and three-quarter-tone intervals. The flute is normally wrapped with a dozen or more windings of silk thread or nylon line, and often tipped on both ends with decorative bone fittings. Covering the membrane hole is a vibrating membrane (dimo), a very thin piece of skin peeled from the inner surface of a section of bamboo or reed, attached with a sticky water-soluble substance such as peach sap. Proper adjustment of the membrane, requiring thin lateral wrinkles, is essential to production of the characteristic buzzing tone. In performance, the flute is held either to the right or the left.
Two basic types of di are usually differentiated, qudi and bangdi. The qudi (‘song flute’) is the prevailing ‘southern’ type, employed in the traditions of central-eastern China, especially in Jiangnan sizhu and kunqu opera (where it is often called kundi). The qudi pitched in A (all holes covered) is externally about 58 cm or more in length, though the vibrating air column (distance between the blow-hole and lower end-holes) is nearly half this (about 34 cm). Its usual range is two octaves and one tone (a' to b'''). A variant known as ‘dragon-head flute’ (longtou di), well documented from the 14th century onwards as an instrument used in Confucian rituals, is distinctive in that it is usually lacquered red, with carved wooden images of a dragon head and tail mounted on each end.
The bangdi, also known as gaodi (‘high flute’) or duandi (‘short flute’), is the prevailing ‘northern’ type, employed in genres such as bangzi opera and chuige, and in a large solo repertory composed during the 20th century. While structurally the same as the qudi, the bangdi is shorter. For flutes pitched in D (all holes covered), the external length is about 45 cm (the vibrating air column is about 25 cm). Bangdi flutes are pitched in other keys as well (especially E and C). Whereas the qudi is normally associated with slow and lyrical melodies of the Jiangnan region, bangdi melodies are generally lively, requiring a more animated performance style. In the far south of China, while the transverse flute is traditionally less important than the Xiao vertical flute, a local bangdi type is often employed in Chaozhou music.
Most Chinese scholars believe that the di was introduced into China from Central Asia (Xiyu) early in the Han dynasty (206 bce–220 ce). In fact, China already had a transverse flute type before the Han, a ritual instrument known as chi, with its larger internal diameter and finger-holes on a surface 90 degrees from the blow-hole. It is very likely that this flute in some way influenced the development of the di. Several bamboo flutes resembling the ancient chi have been uncovered from early sites (Liu, 1987, pp. 67–8, 92, 93).
The Han period di was known as hengchui (‘transverse blow’) and used in outdoor military ensembles. It did not have the membrane hole characteristic of later flutes. Beginning in the 6th century, transverse flutes were more commonly known as hengdi (‘transverse flute’), though other names were used as well. Employed in Tang (618–907) court entertainment ensembles together with bili (reed-pipe) and sheng (mouth-organ), hengdi flutes had six or seven finger-holes, but still no membrane. Of the many instruments sent to Japan during this period, four seven-hole hengdi (Japanese: ōteki) are preserved at the Shōsōin repository. The present-day Japanese ryūteki closely resembles these flutes. The membrane was first mentioned in the early 12th-century treatise Yueshu. During the Ming dynasty (1368–1644) the qudi and bangdi (each with six finger-holes and membrane) became leading instruments in kunqu and bangzi operas, as well as in instrumental ensemble genres.
During the mid-20th century, as musical ideals shifted and new compositions called for equal-tempered scales, makers repositioned finger-holes accordingly (though traditional flutes such as that used in kunqu accompaniment remained unchanged). A fully chromatic ‘new flute’ (xindi) was also invented, with 11 finger-holes but usually without the membrane hole (Gao, 1959, pp.73–6). This instrument is rarely used today. For the performance of 20th-century solo concert-hall repertory, the most important flute variant is the bangdi, with its bright tone colour and virtuosic techniques.
A.C. Moule: ‘A List of the Musical and Other Sound-Producing Instruments of the Chinese’, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, North China Branch, xxxix (1908), 1–160; repr. separately (Buren, 1989)
Gao Ziming: Xiandai guoyue [Present-day national music] (Taibei, 1959)
Chuang Pen-li: ‘Ch'ih: the Ancient Chinese Flute', Bulletin of the Institute of Ethnology, Academia Sinica, xix (1965), 139–203 [with Eng. summary]
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Liu Dongsheng, ed.: Zhongguo yueqi tujian [Pictorial guide to Chinese musical instruments] (Jinan, 1992), 122–7
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ALAN R. THRASHER