Nagoya harp
Enable an agent to recognise a Nagoya harp, establish its string and key configuration, assess playability, and choose compatible tuning, performance and maintenance actions.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
6 bundles · 11 layers · 15 findings · 25 questions
Identity and family boundary Establish what the registry name denotes and how a candidate instrument belongs to it.
Names and identification
Connect the registered name to documented instrument terminology.
Nagoya harp name link
Record evidence for using Nagoya harp and taishōgoto for the same instrument kind, while preserving the registry identifier.
- Which authoritative catalogue or maker record explicitly connects Nagoya harp with taishōgoto? provenance
- Which markings and construction observations support that identification for the candidate? definition
Mechanical family boundary
Separate instrument membership from resemblance, regional naming and product branding.
Keyed string membership
Use the pitch-selection mechanism and documented lineage to assess membership; treat ambiguous derivatives as unresolved.
- Do the keys stop vibrating strings, damp selected strings, or trigger electronic tones? definition
- What evidence places this variant within taishōgoto rather than a neighbouring keyed-zither kind? boundary
Strings and pitch selection Describe how strings, supports and key contacts cooperate to produce selectable notes.
String layout
Identify individual strings and their relationship to the key mechanism.
String role map
Record melody, octave reinforcement and any independently sounding bass or drone roles from the actual configuration.
- How many strings are fitted, and what role and construction does each have? measurement
- Which strings are stopped by the keys, and which remain independent? definition
Key contact geometry
Describe the route from a pressed button to a changed speaking length.
Key operation and return
Record key coverage, contact behaviour and release behaviour as evidence for reliable pitch selection.
- Where does each key contact the strings, and which speaking lengths result? measurement
- Does every key engage cleanly and return without leaving a string partially stopped? action
Tuning, register and notation Connect string tuning and key labels to actual sounding pitches.
Tuning targets
Establish evidence-backed open-string pitches for the identified variant.
Variant-specific tuning
Record tuning per string with its source; avoid transferring a soprano or five-string setup to every instrument.
- What pitch and octave does the applicable manual prescribe for each open string? provenance
- How far does each measured open-string pitch deviate from its target in cents? measurement
Notation to sound
Resolve the relationship between numbered notation, key labels and playable register.
Numbered score compatibility
Store the applicable notation convention and verify its pitch mapping before assigning a score.
- What sounding pitch and octave correspond to each numbered key and accidental? definition
- Can this configuration play the requested part without unavailable notes or unintended octave changes? action
Excitation, damping and output Describe how the player starts and stops vibration and how that vibration reaches listeners.
Playing and damping
Record the supported excitation method and selective control of sustained strings.
Articulation and string selection
Relate pick strokes and damping to the strings actually sounded; record specialised techniques only for documented variants.
- Which strings should a normal stroke engage, and how are independent bass strings included or avoided? action
- What damper or playing action stops unwanted sustain, and which strings does it affect? definition
Sound path
Distinguish body resonance from pickup output and powered processing.
Amplification dependencies
Record whether useful output depends on a resonant body, external amplification or onboard power, using the variant's documentation.
- What sound is available acoustically, and what components produce the electrical output? definition
- Which documented cable, input and power arrangement permits operation of this variant? action
Playability and service Evaluate faults and select maintenance appropriate to the string and key mechanism.
Fault localisation
Separate string tuning, stopped-note contact and electrical-output faults.
Open versus keyed note test
Compare open and keyed notes to identify whether a fault follows a string, a key position or the output path.
- Does pitch error, buzzing or weak sound affect an open string, particular keys, or only amplified output? measurement
- Which non-invasive comparison can isolate the fault before adjustment or disassembly? action
Compatible servicing
Establish replacement compatibility and structural readiness before restoring tension or altering the action.
String and action service boundary
Base restringing and action work on model-specific instructions and observations of anchors, bridge, body and key contacts.
- Which replacement string specification and installation procedure apply to each string position? provenance
- Do loose anchors, displaced supports, body damage or bent key parts require specialist assessment before tuning or playing? action
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Check these first
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these check these first hold for the sense of Nagoya harp this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Kinds and varieties
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of Nagoya harp this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Real-world use
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of Nagoya harp this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Failure modes and hazards
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of Nagoya harp this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of Nagoya harp this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Physical world and living systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- PHY
- Domain
- PHY.OBJ
What it is Filled
A Nagoya harp, commonly called a taishōgoto, is a Japanese keyed box zither whose melody strings are stopped by a typewriter-like key mechanism and plucked with a plectrum.
In scope
- Identification through body, strings and mechanically operated pitch keys
- String allocation, tuning, register and playable pitch range
- Key-to-pitch mapping and compatibility with numbered notation
- Plucking, damping and variant-specific sound production
- Acoustic output, onboard amplification interfaces and power requirements
- String, key-action and body condition affecting playability
Out of scope
- Frame harps and their string-per-note playing systems
- Conventional koto construction and movable-bridge technique
- Independent models of manufacturers, product lines and individual inventory assets
- Musical compositions, scores and performance events
- External amplifiers, effects units and loudspeakers beyond connection requirements
- Purely electronic imitations pending a documented registry boundary decision
Why it exists Filled
Enable an agent to recognise a Nagoya harp, establish its string and key configuration, assess playability, and choose compatible tuning, performance and maintenance actions.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Look for strings extending along an elongated body with mechanical keys selecting speaking length; the word harp alone does not establish instrument identity.
- Check whether pitch selection and string excitation are separate actions: Suzuki describes pressing numbered keys with the left hand and plucking with the right. [Suzuki playing guide](https://www.suzuki-music.co.jp/product_category/taisho-harp/)
- Inspect what a pressed key actually does: stopping a string to select pitch distinguishes this mechanism from an autoharp-style bar that damps unwanted strings.
- Require evidence connecting the object to taishōgoto before treating a similar keyed zither as this registered kind; Nagoya harp is an attested alternative name. [Taishōgoto overview](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taish%C5%8Dgoto)
- Do not require a hollow soundbox or five strings: Suzuki's electric Kohaku family includes solid bodies and differing string counts. [Suzuki Kohaku specifications](https://suzukimusic-global.com/products_single.php?parent_cate_cd=3&products_cate_cd=23&products_cd=233)
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Present a modern instrument as a historic one, or attribute it without evidence.
- Misrepresent its origin or the traditions of its players.
- Advise electrical changes to amplified models that bypass safety.
Only with a human decision
- Restoring or selling an old or valuable instrument.
May
- Describe the Nagoya harp, its keyed mechanism and its place in Japanese music.
- Tune, record or teach it for a user who asks.
Moral aspects Filled
- It is part of living musical traditions in Japan and beyond.
- Collectors and players depend on honest description.
Who is affected
- Players and teachers
- Buyers and collectors
Owners Filled
Steward
The person who owns and plays it.
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q105303913 - registry parent class
- Q11086494 - registry parent class
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.nagoya-harp
- Wikidata: Q1166068 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1166068)
Direct properties required Filled
- Instrument-family identification: Registry entry linked to documented taishōgoto identification, with evidence and confidence
- String configuration: Per-string role, material, plain or wound construction, and key-controlled or independently sounding status
- String dimensions: Count; diameter in mm; speaking length in mm
- Open-string tuning: Pitch name with octave and frequency in Hz for each string; reference pitch in Hz
- Key and pitch map: Each key label linked to affected strings and sounding pitches
- Playable register: Lowest and highest sounding pitches with octave numbers; unavailable or unreliable notes
- Key-action condition: Free-returning, sticking, incomplete contact, buzzing, damaged, untested
- Sound-production configuration: Acoustic, electroacoustic, solid-body electric; documented excitation method
- Electrical requirements: Not applicable, passive, or powered; documented connector, supply voltage, polarity and battery type
- Performance readiness: Ready, tuning required, restringing required, action service required, structural assessment required, untested
Recognition required Filled
- A long narrow box zither with a row of typewriter-like keys above the strings.
- Played flat on a table or lap with a plectrum.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- Identify a candidate instrument from its markings and key-to-string mechanism.
- Map numbered keys to sounding pitches and check whether a musical part fits.
- Tune individual strings against a documented configuration and pitch reference.
- Select a compatible pick, string set and damping arrangement.
- Connect an equipped variant to compatible amplification after checking its interface.
- Diagnose tuning, key-contact, string and output faults and determine whether servicing is needed.
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- String tension can snap strings toward the player's face.
Standards and interfaces not applicable Not applicable
Not applicable
No instrument-specific standard, law or official classification is identified here as generally applicable to the acoustic Nagoya harp.
Context of use required Filled
- The Nagoya harp is used in Japanese music education, amateur music groups and solo or ensemble performance.
- Its keys select melody pitches while a plectrum excites the strings, supporting accessible melodic playing with accompaniment that depends on the instrument configuration.
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q1166068: Nagoya harp - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Taishōgoto - general description of the item
Open questions
- Does an authoritative primary source confirm that this registry entry covers the whole taishōgoto family under the English name Nagoya harp?
- Where should registry boundaries fall for regional keyed-zither derivatives, bowed variants and electronic instruments using a taishōgoto-style interface?
- Which historical and contemporary configurations establish the range of string counts, key counts, tunings and registers without treating one manufacturer's products as universal?
- Which notation conventions vary between makers or teaching traditions, especially in octave marking and accidental representation?
- What documented service tolerances, storage limits and applicable electrical requirements exist for particular variants, and which remain unspecified?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q1166068/spec.json