When you’re listening to traditional Japanese music or you’re hearing the soundtrack of a samurai movie you will probably recognize one very specific instrument that is featured on nearly every song. Today’s article will be about the Shamisen, the Japanese guitar (三味線).

The shamisen is a three-stringed instrument that derived from China and is played with a plectrum which is called Bachi. The construction of the shamisen varies in shape, depending on the genre in which it is used. The instrument used to accompany kabuki plays has a thin neck, facilitating the requirements of that genre. The instrument used to accompany puppet plays and folk songs has a longer and thicker neck to match the more robust music of those genres. Its construction follows a model similar to that of a western guitar or banjo with a neck and strings stretched across a resonating body. Even though most student shamisen use plastic as a skin on the resonating body, professional players use dog or even the more expensive cat skin on their instruments as it is delicate and carries the sound better than artificial materials.

In most genres the shamisen, the strings are plucked with a bachi, similar to the plectrum of a western guitar. The sound of a shamisen is similar in some respects to that of the American banjo, the sites get plucked as well. 
Even though the shamisen has been around for hundreds of years in Japan, it is still played and not only in the traditional way: many Japanese bands and performers reinvented the shamisen as a rhythm instrument and use it to bring a fresh wind in their songs and albums. The shamisen is featured in jazz, pop and even metal.

If you’re interested in the sound of the Shamisen, there is a giant amount of content on YouTube for you to listen to !