In this blog post we will talk about Guzheng Playing Area – where to pluck the strings. The plucking area of the Guzheng is between the Yue Mountain and the moveable bridges.
The right hand plucks closest to the Yue Mountain and plucks an area about 1/8 of the string length from the Yue Mountain to the movable bridges. Since the string is longer on the lower sounding registers you will play further from the Mountain when you play on those strings. The higher pitched strings are plucked closer to the Mountain, since they are shorter.
Beginners can have a general rule of right hand plucking about 1 inch away from the mountain, in order to not make things too complicated. You can refine your plucking distances over time as you hear the difference it makes in tone and dynamics.
The left hand plucks almost in the middle of the picking area. This is except for the lower register stings, which are played a little more to the left. A good rule is lining up your left shoulder to find the area of plucking for the bass strings. Your left hand should never be plucking further than your left shoulder line.
Here is an excerpt from Bei Bei’s Guzheng Tutorial on Guzheng playing area
Speaking of plucking, do you have Guzheng Picks And Tape?