We held a small bluegrass performance at “Zhaosi Hall”, a roughly 500?year?old ancient mansion in China. It was once the private residence of a Ming?dynasty jinshi (successful imperial examination candidate) and is now a National Key Cultural Relic Protection Unit. The local children were fascinated by these American instruments they had never seen before.
That looks like it was wonderful and fun. Glad to see bluegrass going strong in China!
This is very cool! Just to clarify, the violin is Italian, the guitar also descends from Italy/Spain, and the mandolin also descends from Italy (although the F-shape mandolin is definitely American). I think the dobro is uniquely American. The banjo originally hails from Africa. So these are Americanized versions of these instruments. Bluegrass is definitely American.
Thanks for sharing this, it means a lot to see this happening.
Edited by - banjoy on 09/18/2026 05:51:27
My apology for being pedantic.
Current research points to the "banjo" being "American", developed by enslaved persons from Africa while in North and South America.
The so called "Dobro" is a brand name version of the Hawaiian Guitar which is, um, from Hawaii. Hawaii did not become part of "America" (United States) until 1959, though the US decided we should control it as early as 1893. The Hawaiian Guitar was developed in the mid 1880s by Joseph Kekuku.
The popularity and influence of Hawaiian music, and the Hawaiian Guitar, on Bluegrass is often overlooked or dismissed for some reason. But one of the fundamental parts of "Bluegrass banjo" is the fingerpicks. These were developed by Kekuku for the Hawaiian Guitar.
The story of the mandolin in the US is amazing and weird. It starts in 1879/1880 with the tour of the Spanish Students, a group playing bandurrias.
Before about 1880 the mandolin was practically unknown in the US.
Joel Hooks Thanks for the info! I had always thought the dobro was developed in California by the Dopyera brothers. I didn't know it descended from a Hawaiian guitar ... which descended from ... Spain? How did a guitar land in Hawaii? Interesting stuff!
I've heard that various forms of the guitar got to Hawaii via the Portuguese in the 19th (?) century.
And the steel-string guitar is largely a product of the guitar's evolution in America.
Chinese bumper/case sticker: More Mon -- Less Mao!
Music builds bridges
And the harmonica? Also "eat, sleep, practice". Excellent, and the answer to 75% of the questions posed on the "playing advice " sections of the BHO!
To answer my own question, according to Wikipedia, from Austria, but influenced or based on, Chinese instruments. There you go.
quote:
Originally posted by JSB88And the harmonica?
In Bluegrass there are 6 instruments: Mandolin, bass, guitar, fiddle, banjo & dobro.
Anything else doesn't qualify.
Ralph Stanley used a harmonica on “Sharecropper’s Son”. (I know, I know, F&S were maybe persuaded to use Charle McCoy on their later albums…)
banjoy , yeah, think of the Dobro like the Gibson Mastertone, which is a model and design of banjo.
There is a good book on the Hawaiian Guitar that I would recommend.
uncpress.org/9781469659091/kika-kila/
I also recommend the rabbit hole of 1920s-30s Hawaiian music recordings found on the Internet Archive and other places. You will start to hear a lot of what influenced Bluegrass in those recordings.
Ira Gitlin , generally the regular Spanish guitar would see wire strings in North America in the 1890s (earlier than banjo). However, on Hawaii, there is strong evidence that wire strings were the norm for Spanish guitar by the mid 1880s when Joseph came up with the concept of lap played guitar with a steel bar.
Steel strings in Hawaii was likely due to the atmosphere. Pretty much all period mentions of wire strings on guitar or banjo (prior to plectrum playing) were combined with either "damp atmosphere" or economic concerns (wire was 1/12 the cost of gut).
I’ve been in China many years ago and I got back with a beautiful er-hu… that seems to me something like a ‘bowed banjo’… I play it from time to time (I’m mainly a bowed instruments player)
Here it’s me playing the er-hu on a composition I wrote for it
Edited by - banjopaolo on 09/18/2026 10:48:17
quote:
Originally posted by RB-1quote:
Originally posted by JSB88And the harmonica?
In Bluegrass there are 6 instruments: Mandolin, bass, guitar, fiddle, banjo & dobro.
Anything else doesn't qualify.
Fair enough, but the dude in the 'practice' t shirt is playing one so lets be inclusive, unless its a 'harp.
I'm sure little children all over the world are fascinated by stringed instrument because they can make a musical sound simply by touching them. I have played by guitar, banjo and fiddle for little children at school for decades (for my sons, and then for my sons' daughters) and they ALL want to touch and strum the stringed instruments. And sing, and dance.
After all, a visiting musician is a break from the ROUTINE of school!
Originally posted by RB-1
In Bluegrass there are 6 instruments: Mandolin, bass, guitar, fiddle, banjo & dobro. Anything else doesn't qualify.
Geez, y'all are lucky I'm not in charge .... I'm still back at: "If it sounds like bluegrass, it is bluegrass." 
@weibangjie517
It's always wonderful to see
how music transcends all boundaries!
Thank you
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