Music: Dizi - Spring in River South 江南春

Dizi flutes. Falutas Dizi

The dizi (clic here Wiki) (Chinese: 笛子; pinyin: dízi), is a Chinese transverse flute. It is also sometimes known as the di (笛) or hengdi (橫笛), and has varieties including the qudi (曲笛) and bangdi (梆笛).

These names are likely to have multiple spellings, too, depending on the transliteration used to convert from Chinese names. Nonetheless, dizi seems to be the most common name (and written form) used in the West.

The dizi is a major Chinese musical instrument, and is widely used in many genres of Chinese folk music, as well as Chinese opera, and the modern Chinese orchestra. Traditionally, the dizi has also been popular among the Chinese common people, and it is simple to make and easy to carry.^[1]

Most dizi are made of bamboo, which explains why dizi are sometimes known by simple names such as "Chinese bamboo flute." However, "bamboo" is perhaps more of a Chinese instrument classification like "woodwind" in the West. Northern Chinese dizi are made from purple or violet bamboo, while dizi made in Suzhou and Hangzhou are made from white bamboo. Dizi produced in southern Chinese regions such as Chaozhou are often made of very slender, lightweight, light-colored bamboo and are much quieter in tone.

Although bamboo is the common material for the dizi, it is also possible to find dizi made from other kinds of kinds of wood, or even from stone. Jade dizi (or yudi, 玉笛) are popular among both collectors interested in their beauty, and among professional players who seek an instrument with looks to match the quality of their renditions; however, jade may not be the best material for dizi since, as with metal, jade may not be as tonally responsive as bamboo, which is more resonant.

The dizi is not the only bamboo flute of China, although it is certainly distinctive. Other Chinese bamboo wind instruments include the vertical end-blown xiao, the guanzi (double reed), the koudi, and the bawu (free reed).

El dizi (clic aqui Wiki) (chino: 笛子; pinyin: dízi) es una flauta transversal china construida con caña de bambú. En ocasiones se la conoce también con los nombres de di (笛) o de hengdi (橫笛) y tiene algunas variantes, como el qudi (曲笛) y el bangdi (梆笛).

Todos estos nombres tienen múltiples representaciones ortográficas, dependiendo del sistema de transliteración utilizado para traducir los nombres chinos, si bien dizi es el nombre (y la forma escrita) más común con el que se conoce esta flauta en Occidente.

Aunque la caña de la planta del bambú es el material más común para la fabricación de dizis, es posible encontrar ejemplos de este instrumento confeccionados con otros tipos de madera e incluso con piedras. Los dizi fabricados con jade (o yudi, 玉笛) son muy apreciados por los coleccionistas interesados en la belleza casi mágica de este material y por los intérpretes profesionales que buscan un instrumento con un aspecto que realce la calidad de sus interpretaciones. Sin embargo, el jade, como el metal, no es el material más adecuado para la fabricación de un dizi dado que no posee una tonalidad tan resonante como la del bambú.

El dizi es un instrumento musical de gran importancia, utilizado no solamente en la música folclórica y en las óperas y orquestas chinas, sino también en la música popular exportada a Occidente. Tradicionalmente ha sido también un instrumento popular entre las clases chinas menos pudientes debido a la facilidad de su confección y de su transporte, y a su bello sonido.^[1]

El dizi no es la única flauta de bambú de China, si bien es, ciertamente, la más distintiva de este país. Otros instrumentos chinos de viento fabricados con bambú son la flauta xiao, el guanzi, el koudi y el bawu.