Dongbula

This is a plucked stringed instrument of the Kazak ethnic group. The sound box, which can be either flat or shaped like a gourd, is made of wood. The neck is long and slender, and on it are eight or ten place marks made of inlaid mother-of-pearl. There are two strings, with a four- or five-octave range. The basic method of playing is to use a plucking technique for heavy beats and a twanging technique for light beats. A favorite art form among the Kazak people is the singer accompanying himself on the dongbula. A person who can make up extemporaneous songs while playing the dongbula is called an aken, which means a wandering minstrel. Melodies are divided into singing types and speaking types, and the rhythm is a mixture of beats.

Welcome to China2Go, the talking Chinese phrase book for Windows Mobile Pocket PC and Palm OS. Featuring crystal clear voice recorded by a real person, this product is a great travel companion and an ideal tool to learn Chinese! With our cutting edge voice compression technology, this product includes more than 1000 phrases, their Chinese translation, and the voice in only a few megabytes. Supports all Windows Mobile Pocket PCs. H&H China2Go Talking Phrase Book for Windows Mobile