Innovation and Development of Pipa Art in Contemporary Plucked Instrument Performance

Abstract

Abstract This study summarizes the direction of innovation in contemporary pipa performance techniques through theoretical analysis of pipa history, performance techniques, form, and production materials. The independent variable of string vibration during pipa performance is set, and the string vibration equation of pipa performance is deduced based on the actual vibration situation. Afterward, we collected and pre-processed the sound signals of the pipa performance and selected simulation experiments to analyze the string vibration and acoustic signals during the pipa performance. The results show that when the plucking force of 1 string is 0.8N, 1.6N, 2.4N, and 3.2N, the corresponding Y-direction displacements are 2.95mm, 6.37mm, 8.85mm, and 12.48mm, with the ratio of 1:2.16:3:4.23, and the maximum Y-direction displacements are monotonically and linearly positively correlated with the plucking force. In addition, the sound power of the two pipas gradually increased with the increase in frequency, which led to a dynamic range of more than 18.53 Hz when the frequency exceeded 8000 Hz. In this study, through the simulation of string vibration and acoustic signals of the pipa playing innovative techniques, the laws and characteristics of the pipa art can be recognized so as to strengthen the awareness of innovation and development of pipa playing and to make the art of pipa better developed and inherited.