midicnGlossary 中文

The Twelve Lü

Twelve pitch standards of ancient China, each a name, a pipe length and a place in the octave

Sanfen Sunyi (Subtract and Add a Third)Xuangong (Rotating the Gong)Gongdiao

The twelve lü are the pitch standards of ancient China: Huangzhong, Dalü, Taicu, Jiazhong, Guxi, Zhonglü, Ruibin, Linzhong, Yize, Nanlü, Wuyi and Yingzhong. The six odd-numbered ones are yang pipes, the six even ones yin pipes; together they make up the twelve lü.

Each name is both the length of a pitch pipe and a position in the octave. Huangzhong is the base, and the rest are generated from it by the sanfen sunyi method. The twelve are not twelve equal semitones: the steps alternate between whole tones and semitones of unequal size, so free modulation in the piano sense is impossible. The twelve lü are a ruler of pitch, not twelve keys.

Read deeper → Sanfen Sunyi (Subtract and Add a Third)

Sources

  • 十二律的律名、六律六吕与黄钟基准，参《中国音乐词典》与 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "China" 相关条目；本文为原创表述

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