Guzheng

Looks like modified gusli or hammered dulcimer without hammers.

Some information from Wikipedia:

The guzheng, is a Chinese plucked zither. The guzheng is a similar instrument to many Asian instruments such as the Japanese koto, the Mongolian yatga, the Korean gayageum, and the Vietnamese đàn tranh.

The guzheng should not to be confused with the guqin (another ancient Chinese zither but a fewer number of strings and without bridges).

The origin of the guzheng can be traced back to two other Chinese plucked zithers, the se. The guzheng has existed since the Warring States Period and became especially popular during the Qin dynasty. The number of strings on the guzheng has always fluctuated, as we have as few as 6 to as many as 23 strings during the Tang dynasty. The earliest record of the guzheng or gu-jirn in Shi Ji is attributed to the historian Sima Qian in 91 BC.

Until 1961, the common guzheng had 16 strings, although by the mid-20th century 18-string guzhengs were also in use. In 1961 Xu Zhengao together with Wang Xunzhi introduced the first 21-string guzheng after two years of research and development. In 1961, they also invented the "S-shaped" left string rest, which was quickly adopted by all guzheng makers and is still used today, whether in the shape of the letter "S", "C", etc. This curve allows for greater ease in tuning the strings and, combined with strings of varied thickness, allows for greater resonance in both the deeper and higher pitch ranges. The 21-string zheng is the most commonly used, but some traditional musicians still use the 16-string, especially along the southeastern coastal provinces of China and in Taiwan.

The guzheng is tuned to a pentatonic scale, the 16-string zheng is tuned to give three complete octaves, while the 21-string zheng has four complete octaves.

How it looks:


Example of playing:

Jaw harp (chomus)

Very popular instrument in neo folk. There are hundreds variants of this instrument.

Some information from Wikipedia:

The jaw harp is thought to be one of the oldest musical instruments in the world. A musician apparently playing it can be seen in a Chinese drawing from the 4th century BC. This instrument is native to Asia and used in all tribes of Turkish people in Asia where it is variously referred to as a temir komuz (literally, iron komuz), agiz komuzu (literally, mouth komuz) or gubuz.

The instrument is known in many different cultures by many different names. The common English name "Jew's harp" may be considered controversial or potentially misleading, and thus avoided by some speakers. Another name used to identify the instrument, especially in scholarly literature, is the older English trump, while guimbarde, derived from the French word for the instrument, can be found in unabridged dictionaries and is featured in recent revival efforts.

The instrument is a lamellophone, which is in the category of plucked idiophones: it consists of a flexible metal or bamboo tongue or reed attached to a frame. The tongue/reed is placed in the performer's mouth and plucked with the finger to produce a note. The frame is held firmly against the performer's parted front teeth, using the jaw (thus "jaw harp") and mouth as a resonator, greatly increasing the volume of the instrument. The teeth must be parted sufficiently for the reed to vibrate freely, and the fleshy parts of the mouth should not come into contact with the reed to prevent damping of the vibrations. The note thus produced is constant in pitch, though by changing the shape of his or her mouth and the amount of air contained in it (and in some traditions closing the glottis) the performer can cause different overtones to sound and thus create melodies. The volume of the note can be varied by breathing in and out.

How it looks:




Example of playing:

Khene

The eastern wind instrument with a very interest system of playing.

Some information from Wikipedia:

The khene is a mouth organ of Lao origin whose pipes, which are usually made of bamboo, are connected with a small, hollowed-out hardwood reservoir into which air is blown. Today associated with the Lao of Laos and Northeast Thailand, similar instruments date back to the Bronze Age of Southeast Asia. It is also played in some parts of Cambodia. The Chinese adopted mouth organs at an early point, and the now-obsolete yu may have been similar in construction to the modern khaen.

The most interesting characteristic of the khene is its free reed, which is made of brass or silver. It is related to Western free-reed instruments such as the harmonium, concertina, accordion, harmonica, and bandoneon, which were developed beginning in the 18th century from the Chinese sheng, a related instrument, a specimen of which had been carried to St. Petersburg, Russia.

The khene uses a pentatonic scale in one of two modes (thang sun and thang yao), each mode having three possible keys. The khaen has five different lai, or modes: Lai Yai, Lai Noi, Lai Soutsanaen, Lai Po Sai, and Lai Soi. Lai Po Sai is considered to be the oldest of the Lai Khaen and Lai Soutsanaen the "Father of the Lai Khaen." Khaen can be played as a solo instrument (Dio Khaen), as part of an ensemble (Ponglang), or as an accompaniment to a Lao or Isan Folk Opera Singer mor lam.

According to Lao legend, the khene was created by a woman who was trying to reproduce the sound of the garawek bird which she heard while on a walk one day. The journey was long and difficult, so she decided to invent an instrument that would bring the sound to her. When she returned to her village, she experimented with many different instruments, including percussion, wind and plucked and bowed strings. Finally she cut a piece of bamboo and inserted a reed into it. Upon playing it, she realized that it sounded much like the garawek bird. She continued to improve the sound until she felt it was worthy for the king's ears. When she was ready, she went to the palace and began playing for the king on her newly invented instrument, which was at this point nameless. At the end of the first song, she asked the king if he liked the piece. He said it was fair, and instructed her to continue playing. After her last song, she again asked the king if he was pleased. His reply was "Tia nee kaen dae," which means "This time it was better." He then instructed her to call the instrument, according to his words, the kaen.

How it looks:


Example of playing: