List of Chinese musical instruments

[1] The eight categories are silk, bamboo, wood, stone, metal, clay, gourd and skin; other instruments considered traditional exist that may not fit these groups.

Since ancient times, the Chinese have used twisted silk for strings, though today metal or nylon are more frequently used.

Chinese instruments are either played solo, collectively in large orchestras (as in the former imperial court) or in smaller ensembles (in teahouses or public gatherings).

Music was generally learned aurally and memorized by the musician(s) beforehand, then played without aid.

These watercolour illustrations, made in China in the 1800s, show several types of musical instruments being played:

Re-enactment of an ancient traditional music performance
A mural from the tomb of Xu Xianxiu in Taiyuan , Shanxi province, dated 571 AD during the Northern Qi Dynasty , showing male court musicians playing stringed instruments, either the liuqin or pipa , and a woman playing a konghou (harp)
A half-section of the Song Dynasty (960–1279) version of the Night Revels of Han Xizai , original by Gu Hongzhong ; [ 3 ] the female musicians in the center of the image are playing transverse bamboo flutes and guan , and the male musician is playing a wooden clapper called paiban .
A bawu in the key of F
A set of muyu , or Chinese wooden slit drums. The sound produced is affected by the instrument's size, type of wood, and how hollow it is.
A Chaozhou dagu (large drum)
A Chinese Bolang Gu [ 5 ]