Before the Sui (581-618) and the Tang Dynasties the pipa was a general term referring to those plucked-string instruments ployed in hand-held positions with the outward fingering technique called "pi" and the inward one called "pa". A scholar surnamed Du Zhi of the period of the Three Kingdoms (220-280) mentioned that the pipa had been invented by the labourers working on the construction of the Great Wall during the Qin Dynasty. The pipa of the current structure has its origin from Persia in the 4th century. Instruments such as the pipa and the konghou (lyre) were introduced into China from the western regions. The ancient model of pipa was equipped with four strings and four ledges.

Nowadays the pipa is equipped with six ledges and twenty-four frets. In the Tang Dynasty the plucking on pipa was done with wooden plectrum; it is now with five fingers. The pipa has rich expressiveness and is played with demanding techniques. Well-known pipa melodies include Moonlight over Spring River, Spring Snow and Ambush from All Sides.

The shape of the liuqin looks like a "liu (willow) leaf", hence its name. It is also commonly called "tu pipa" and "jingang tui" and is a popular instrument in Shandong, Anhui and Jiangsu. The liuqin is the principal accompanying instrument for the liuqin opera common in southern Shandong and northern Jiangsu, Sizhou opera of Anhui and Shaoxing luantan of Zhejiang.

Originally the liuqin was an alto instrument fitted with two strings and seven frets. It was reformed into a soprano plucked instrument with four strings and twenty-nine frets in the 1950's as a need of the Chinese ensemble. Its range is as wide as four octaves comparable to that of a violin. Its tone quality in the low register is solid, tender in the middle register and sonorous in the high register with strong penetrating power. It is a plucked-string instrument for playing high-pitched melodies, has exuberant expressions and is hailed as the "gem" of Chinese orchestras.

The sanxian has a rather long history. It was written in Yang Shen's Shengan waiji of the Ming Dynasty that "the origin of sanxian dated back to the Yuan Dynasty" (1279-1368). Its origin can be traced to an ancient instrument of the Qin Dynasty, called xiantao.

In early days sanxian was mostly used for accompanying singing narratives and operatic music. As time goes by, it has become a necessary complement in Chinese instrumental ensembles of various sizes, particularly the regular establishment of Chinese orchestras.

The ruan, called qinpipa or yueqin in ancient times, was a kind of pipa with a long neck. Of the artifacts unearthed in the Six Dynasties (220-581) Grave at the Xi Shan Bridge, Nanjing, there was an engraved picture showing Ruan Xian, a member of the Seven Wise Men of the Bamboo Grove, playing a musical instrument. It was said that he showed excellent skill in playing this kind of instrument. Hence the name ruanxian, and today it has come to be known as ruan for short. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the ruan was generally used for playing court music and folk dance music. In ancient times the ruan had 8 frets; nowadays it is equipped with 4 strings and 24 frets.

Today the ruan has evolved into small-sized, medium-sized, large-sized and bass ruans. However, only the zhongruan (medium-sized) and daruan (large-sized) are used in Chinese orchestras. With its rich tonal quality the ruan is an essential alto and tenor plucked-string instrument for ensemble playing as well as accompanying instrument for various kind of music.

The yangqin is also called "hudie qin (butterfly-qin)", "shanmian qin (fan-surface-qin)" and "daqin (dulcimer)". At first it was found in Persia and Arabia, then made its inroads into China towards the end of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It was gaining popularity around Guangdong areas. Later, it became a popular instrument nation-wide.

In recent centuries it has became an important accompanying instrument in operatic music, and in ensemble genres in Guangdong, Chaozhou, Kejia and Jiangnan regions. The yangqin is important in instrumental ensembles for its crisp tone quality, wide tonal range as well as chord and quick arpeggio capability. It has a rich solo repertory.

The guzheng, a traditional instrument that had already existed since the Warring States Period (BC403-221), was extremely popular in the State of Qin (around Shaanxi areas); thus it was called qinzheng in history books. Traditionally, it was used as a solo instrument, in ensembles and for accompanying folk songs, and singing narrative genres. The well-known solo pieces are Song of the Homebound Fishermen, Great Harmony, In Celebration of a Bumper Harvest and Battle against Typhoon.

The timbre of guzheng varies from the pristine, elegant to the crisp and sprightly mode according to its different kind of strings (silk or metal) used. Before the Han (BC206-AD220) and the Jin (265-420) Dynasties it was fitted with 13 strings. The recently developed types also fitted with 21 or 25 strings and with mechanism enabling the instrument to re-tune the strings instantly. The guzheng has a unique, rich expressiveness and is played with diverse finesse and outstanding character imparting, strong flavours.