His music enhances the performer’s individuality.
The progenitor of this musical instrument is said to have come from Persia, India or Vietnam. It was introduced into Japan during the Nara period via China and the Korean Peninsula and underwent a particular development of its own.
Process to produce biwa
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- Body
- Cut a wood block that has been let to dry for over ten years, then chisel it into the pear-shaped body of a biwa and carve out the inside.
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- Face board
- Cut the wood for the face in the same way as for the body and plane to shape.
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- Assembly
- Glue the body and face board together after inserting a horizontal bar supported by a small vertical pillar across the hollow of the body. Clamp the assembly using a vise and some wedges, and let it dry for about ten days.
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- Parts
- Make smaller parts such as tenjin or the backward-bending top of the neck, tuning pegs, etc. The peg holes in the tenjin are hardened with a heated iron.
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- Polishing
- Polish the body and the face board with a smoothing plane and file.
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- Gluing the parts
- Fix all parts with glue except the fukuju or rest for the ends of strings.
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- Finishing
- Polish the whole surface of the instrument with a very fine file and white wax. Finish by gluing the fukuju near the bottom of the face.
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- Tuning
- String and tune the instrument to the required sound by whittling the frets or adjusting the other parts.
