The Satsumabiwa is made from two pieces of Mulberry wood - a thicker piece used for the back, and a thinner board for the front. The back piece is hollowed out. [Fig.1]
There are four frets of heights varying from 2.5 to 4 centimetres. They are made of magnolia. They are positioned such that when the string is sounded at a fret its pitch relative to the pitch of the open string will give a minor second for the first fret, a fourth for the second, a fifth and then a sixth. [Fig.2]
The four strings are each of different gauge (thickness) and are made from silk. The biwa is used in recitation and is tuned to suit the voice of the player. There is no set pitch to which it must be tuned. However, the intervallic relationship between the strings is strictly fixed. Thus, if the first string, the thickest one is tuned to A, the second string will be a fourth lower, i.e. E, the third string will be the same pitch as the first string, and the fourth string will be a second above the first string or B. [Fig.3]
The plectrum is made from boxwood. The Satsumabiwa was played by the samurai of the Satsuma domain. Being warriors, they were constantly aware of the possibility of attack at any time and thus the plectrum also served as a weapon. If thrown at the assailant the warrior could buy valuable time to protect himself. There is also evidence of the biwa being played prior to battles. [Fig.4]
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