An (按音) are stopped-string notes. The left hand presses a string against the soundboard at a chosen point while the right hand plucks it. Because the guqin has no frets, the player can slide continuously between pitches, which is why an notes are the basis of the instrument's characteristic glides and vibrato.
technique
Stopped-string notes (an)
按音
Notes produced when the left hand presses a guqin string down onto the soundboard, shortening the vibrating length and changing the pitch.
- Type
- technique
- Also known as
- stopped string, pressed note, 按音
- Updated
- 2026-10-13
- guqin
- left-hand
- stopped-string
Related knowledge
- Guqin (古琴)
Stopped-string notes let the player change pitch and slide, since the guqin has no frets.
A seven-stringed Chinese zither, plucked with the right hand while the left hand stops the strings or touches them to sound harmonics.
Reading about Stopped-string notes (an)
Longer pieces on this siteSources for Stopped-string notes (an)
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage · cultural heritage
Supports:
- The guqin as a Chinese zither with a tradition of over 3,000 years
- Seven strings and thirteen marked pitch positions
- The three basic playing techniques: san (open string), an (stopped string) and fan (harmonics), and how each is produced
- The guqin's development as an elite art practised by scholars in intimate settings, not for public performance
- Inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (2008, originally proclaimed 2003)