Sō no koto

Sō no koto *board zither of Japan, equivalent of the Chin. cheng. A descendant of the hitsu no koto, it was a fashionable court instr. for over 1000 years, reserved exclusively for classical Chin. music. During the Heian period (9–12th c.) it was played with sweeping arpeggio technique. The upper surface of the koto is convex; its 13 strings pass over individual bridges and are played with a plectrum. Ca. 2 m. (6½ ft.) long. See also: gaku sō, tsukushi sō, zoku sō (144, 157). Sort…