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The
dan bau is a musical instrument that inspires passion in
every Vietnamese. The structure of the dan bau is very
simple. It consists of a long piece of wood on which is
stretched a silk or brass string, fastened at one end by a
peg and tied at the other end by a flexible bamboo plate.
The string is passed repeatedly through an open dried gourd
used as a sound box. Although it only has one string, it can
emit all the sounds in the pentatonic scale. The eight notes
in Vietnamese music give modulations of greater amplitudes
than those obtained by any other single-stringed instrument
in the world.
Today the dan bau is made very carefully to ensure aesthetic
and sound quality. When played in public, it is often used
with an electronic amplifier. |
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