tùng hương

Người chơi đàn xát tùng hương lên cây vĩ.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • Rosin: A solid, translucent, yellowish substance that remains after distilling pine resin. It is commonly used to rub on the bow hair of stringed instruments (like those of the đàn nhị or đàn cò) to increase friction and produce sound.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Nghệ nhân dùng tùng hương xát lên dây cung. (The artisan uses rosin on the bowstring.)
  • Tùng hương có màu vàng hổ phách. (Rosin has an amber-yellow color.)
  • Không có tùng hương, đàn nhị sẽ không kêu. (Without rosin, the đàn nhị will not sound.)

Advanced Usage

• In traditional Vietnamese instrument making and maintenance, tùng hương is an essential material for musicians playing bowed string instruments.

Variants and Related Words

• Colophane (n): The French-derived technical term for rosin, often used in similar contexts.
• Nhựa thông (n): Pine resin; the raw material from which rosin is distilled.

Synonyms

• Rosin: The standard English term.
• Colophony: An alternative technical name for rosin.

Related Terms

• Mã vĩ / Dây cung (n): The bow (of a string instrument). Tùng hương is applied directly to this.
• Chưng cất (v): To distill; the process used to produce tùng hương from pine resin.