Ghaychak: Afghanistan musical instrument
Ghaychak is the name of most bowed musical instruments in Asia. It is an instrument with round body and has three to four metal strings and...
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Ghaychak is the name of most bowed musical instruments in Asia. It is an instrument with round body and has three to four metal strings and a short fretless neck. Ghaychak is well known all through the Central Asia.
It is also well known and used by the Iranians, Afghans, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Turkmens and Qaraqalpaks.
Ghaychak has been the only bowed musical instruments that are found in Pamir. It is carved from the wood of an apricot tree. Leather is stretched inside the drum to serve as a sound table; it also has thin wood that covers the bowl. The bowl has so many holes that make the sound more deep and rich. The instrument is embellished with gracious ornaments. The sound box could be a metal or of a wood and has three or four metal strings and a neck that is produced from a willow, apricot and mulberry wood. This instrument which is tuned at intervals of fourths has a sound box that is carved out of a single piece of wood. The upper orifice is partly covered in the middle by the handle while the lower one is covered by a skin membrane. The bow which is tied to a curved stick made is of horsehair.
Ghaychak is made to be played upright rather than in a horizontal way and that is why it is a spiked fiddle. It can be played by placing the head on your leg, the neck on your left hand and hold the bow with your right hand. This musical instrument can produce a sweet sound and its sound is of a great decoration.
In the early Uyghur Oral histories, Ghaychak appeared in a bow and arrow shape. Its first public appearance was during the Song Dynasty (960-1279CE) in china. There, it was described as having horsetail strings. The musical instrument seemed to be developed with the well-known Persian Ghijek but yet was more unique. Over the time the Ghaychak is standardized on the short neck form with typically 2bowed strings and 10 sympathetic strings as noted by the Qing Dynasty scholars. (1644-1911CE). It was later standardized to 4 strings and its tone aligned with the western scale by the Uyghur masters.
Ghaychak has been the only bowed musical instruments that are found in Pamir. It is carved from the wood of an apricot tree. Leather is stretched inside the drum to serve as a sound table; it also has thin wood that covers the bowl. The bowl has so many holes that make the sound more deep and rich. The instrument is embellished with gracious ornaments. The sound box could be a metal or of a wood and has three or four metal strings and a neck that is produced from a willow, apricot and mulberry wood. This instrument which is tuned at intervals of fourths has a sound box that is carved out of a single piece of wood. The upper orifice is partly covered in the middle by the handle while the lower one is covered by a skin membrane. The bow which is tied to a curved stick made is of horsehair.
Ghaychak is made to be played upright rather than in a horizontal way and that is why it is a spiked fiddle. It can be played by placing the head on your leg, the neck on your left hand and hold the bow with your right hand. This musical instrument can produce a sweet sound and its sound is of a great decoration.
In the early Uyghur Oral histories, Ghaychak appeared in a bow and arrow shape. Its first public appearance was during the Song Dynasty (960-1279CE) in china. There, it was described as having horsetail strings. The musical instrument seemed to be developed with the well-known Persian Ghijek but yet was more unique. Over the time the Ghaychak is standardized on the short neck form with typically 2bowed strings and 10 sympathetic strings as noted by the Qing Dynasty scholars. (1644-1911CE). It was later standardized to 4 strings and its tone aligned with the western scale by the Uyghur masters.
