Shi'er lü

Shi'er lü (Chinese: 十二律; pinyin: shí'èr lǜ; Wade–Giles: shih2-êrh4 lü4; lit. '12 pitches'; Mandarin pronunciation: [ʂɻ̩˧˥ aɚ˥˧ ly˥˩]) is a standardized gamut of twelve notes used in ancient Chinese music.[1] It is also known, rather misleadingly, as the Chinese chromatic scale; it was only one kind of chromatic scale used in ancient Chinese music. The shi'er lü uses the same intervals as the Pythagorean scale, based on 3:2 ratios (8:9, 16:27, 64:81, etc.). The gamut or its subsets were used for tuning and are preserved in bells and pipes.[2]

Unlike the Western chromatic scale, the shi'er lü was not used as a scale in its own right; it is rather a set of fundamental notes on which other scales were constructed.[3]

The first reference to "standardization of bells and pitch" dates back to around 600 BCE, while the first description of the generation of pitches dates back to around 240 CE.[3]

Note names

Traditional Chinese Simplified Chinese Pinyin English Ratio Audio
黃鐘 黄钟 Huáng Zhōng tonic/unison 1 : 1 Playⓘ
大呂 大吕 Dà Lǚ semitone 37 : 211 Playⓘ
太簇 太簇 Tài Cù major second 32 : 23 Playⓘ
夾鐘 夹钟 Jiá Zhōng minor third 39 : 214 Playⓘ
姑洗 姑洗 Gū Xiǎn major third 34 : 26 Playⓘ
仲呂 中吕 Zhòng Lǚ perfect fourth 311 : 217 Playⓘ
蕤賓 蕤宾 Ruí Bīn tritone 36 : 29 Playⓘ
林鐘 林钟 Lín Zhōng perfect fifth 3 : 2 Playⓘ
夷則 夷则 Yí Zé minor sixth 38 : 212 Playⓘ
南呂 南吕 Nán Lǚ major sixth 33 : 24 Playⓘ
無射 无射 Wú Yì minor seventh 310 : 215 Playⓘ
應鐘 应钟 Yìng Zhōng major seventh 35 : 27 Playⓘ

There were 12 notes in total, which fall within the scope of one octave. Note that the shí'èr lǜ-based mathematical method used by the ancient Chinese could never produce a true octave, as the next higher frequency in the series of frequencies produced by the Chinese shí'èr lǜ system would be higher than 880 hertz.

See the article by Chen Ying-shi.[4]

See also

Further reading

  • Reinisch, Richard (?). Chinesische Klassische Musik, p. 30. Books On Demand. ISBN 978-3-8423-4502-7.

Sources

  1. ^ Joseph C.Y. Chen (1996). Early Chinese Work in Natural Science: A Re-examination of the Physics of Motion, Acoustics, Astronomy and Scientific Thoughts, p. 96. ISBN 962-209-385-X.
  2. ^ Chen (1996), p.97.
  3. ^ a b Needham, Joseph (1962/2004). Science and Civilization in China, Vol. IV: Physics and Physical Technology, p.170-171. ISBN 978-0-521-05802-5.
  4. ^ 一种体系 两个系统 by 陈应时 (Yi zhong ti-xi, liang ge xi-tong by Chen Ying-shi of the Shanghai Conservatory), Musicology in China, 2002, Issue 4, 中国音乐学，2002，第四 期
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