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Krachappi (Thai: กระจับปี่, pronounced [kra.tɕàp.pìː]), also spelled Grajabpi, is plucked, fretted lute of Thailand, used in central Thai classical music. The Department of Cultural Promotion listed Krachappi as a cultural heritage in 2011. Krachappi is an ancient Thai instrument and has been with the Thai people for over a century. The appearance, playing method, and song of Krachappi are all associated with Thai history. Thai music instruments are divided into 4 groups, namely, strum, string, percussion, and brass. It has four strings in two courses that are plucked with a plectrum and is constructed of teak or jackfruit wood. It can be played by holding the wand, which is composed of thin wooden planks, in your right hand and flicking the wires in and out while pressing the string with your left finger. Krachappi usually plays in a band called Mahori with four to eight instruments.

Krachappi

History

Krachappi is a Thai string instrument with a flat body and curved fretboard which is not well known but has a long history with Thai people. The Royal Institute Dictionary of 1982 defined Krachappi as a four-string Phin and its name originated from Kacchapa which means turtle in Sanskrit. The definition of Kacchapa is the reason it was called Kacchapa because its body resembles a turtle’s shell. Moreover, Prince Damrong Rajanubhab also mentioned in the chronicle about Krachappi that it was called Khsajapi or Cachejapei in Cambodia.

There is plenty of evidence that indicates the popularity of Krachappi through Thai culture and history from Ayutthaya to the beginning of Rattanakosin. The evidence is separated into two forms which are written and unwritten evidence.

The most important written evidence is the Siamese Musical Instruments book, written by Prince Damrong Rajanubhab, which is about the changing of Mahori. The book has great details of instruments that were added and eliminated to Mahori. It indicates the importance of Krachappi and the period of time that Krachappi was eliminated from the Mahori. The book mentioned that the Mahori in the Ayutthaya era originally had four instruments including Saw, Krachappi, Thone, and Krap. Afterward, the number of instruments was added to the Mahori until the beginning of Rattanakosin. In the era of King Rama V of Siam, Krachappi was eliminated from the Mahori. The concrete written evidence that indicates that Krachappi existed in the Ayutthaya era is from the first Thai textbook named Jindamanee. Moreover, there is a record of the royal rule in Borommatrailokkanat that did not allow Krachappi as well as other Thai instruments to be played in the palace.

There is plenty of unwritten evidence of Krachappi which are paintings, murals, and sculptures. The first one is the mural in the Ayutthaya era of the Lord Buddha life that appears Krachappi in it; the mural is currently located at The Suan Pakkad Palace. The second one is the painting in Phra Phutthayotfa Chulalok Maharaj era located in the west of Phutthaisawan Hall. It is a picture of six instruments in the Mahori. The third one is a carved wooden door of the Mahori which includes four instruments, namely, Saw, Krachappi, Thone, and Krap.

Considering all of the evidence, it indicates that the number of instruments has been adjusting due to the development of technology. At the beginning of Rattanakosin, there are many instruments that have been created which make Krachappi, a heavy instrument that has a light sound, replaced by a Zither. Although zither is more convenient and has a louder sound, Krachappi is not completely gone from Thai culture.

Construction

Body

The body of Krachappi is made of hardwood, for instance, teak, jackfruit, Sandalwood, and Siamese rosewood. The front is flat, but the  back of the body is curved.

Neck

The neck is curved and there are four holes for the tuning keys—two holes for each side. The four strings are tied to the tuning keys.

Tuning key

There are four tuning keys in one Krachappi and it is made of bone or ivory.

Head

It is made of hardwood, bone, or ivory. There is a hole in the middle to let the string pass across it.

Fret

The fret is made of small wood for about 11-12 pieces. It is located at the fretboard and its function is to make the sound lower or higher.

Nut

A flat wood at the neck of Krachappi. The functionality of the nut is to prevent the string attaching to the fret.

String

Nylon string or wire

Pick

There are two types of pick but both were used to play Krachappi. First is a thin wood or animal bone in leaf shape. Second one is a short and fat wood in pen shape. 

Tuning and Technique

Technique

The posture while playing Krachappi is cross-legged and placing Krachappi on the lap to make it more convenient to play. Then grab the head of Krachappi in the left hand at an angle of 45 degrees. The right hand holds a pick to create a sound by switching up and down according to the melody of the song. The method of using a zigzag style pick is to place a pick between your index finger and middle finger then pull all your fingers down. The direction of a pick will be controlled by the thumb. 

There are eight strumming method which is the same method as the zither, as follows:

• Keep strum is a method of using pick to strum out and in according to the melody of a song.

• Rubbing is a style of strumming in-out-in, alternating as often as possible, with the longest length of the sound or melody continually.

• Flicking is to strum one more rhythm, the normal strum, 2 rhythms, totaling 3 rhythms, using the strum in-out-in style, which can be divided into 3 types: flick up, flick down and flick.

• Confinement is similar to flicking, but the beginning and ending sound will be the same.

• Crushing is the act of adding a note or melody to a normal keep strum method.

• Synchronization is to strum both lines simultaneously resulting in a harmonious sound.

• Slap is a type of strum that produces two tones by flicking with a bare string or by pressing your finger on the string once and pressing your finger on the string with a higher sound.

• Scattering is the strum of three sounds in succession in a manner similar to the sobbing of a chorus.

The left hand side will hold the Krachappi neck and play the chord. The technique of playing chords is to use the thumb and index finger of the left hand to loosely support the neck. The use of the finger of the Krachappi is depending on the ease of the player, in other words, the player could use the index finger, middle finger, ring finger or little finger to press the string.

Tuning

There is no specific pattern in the sound setting of the Krachappi. It usually depends on the aptitude and preference of the player.  However, there are 3 popular ways to set the tone of the Krachappi, which are:

1. The inner pair sets the sound of the Do, and the outer line pairs the sound of the Sal.
2. The inner pair sets the sound of the Re, and the outer line pairs the sound of the Sal.
3. The inner pair sets the sound of the Sal, and the outer line pairs the sound of the Do.

The Mahori

Krachappi is a musical instrument used to play in the ancient Mahori. This type of Mahori has a melodious sound due to its volume. It is usually played in various royal ceremonies. Krachappi is heavy and has a light sound; therefore, it will be covered up by the sound of other instruments. The ancient Mahori has three types are:

1. The Mahori quartet consisted of four instruments included; Krap-puang, Saw-sam-sai, Krachappi and Thon.
2. The Mahori sextet consisted of six instruments included; Saw-sam-sai, Krachappi, Thaband, krap-phuang, Khlui, and Pi-chennai. During the early Ayutthaya period, this ensemble first appeared.
3. The Mahori septet consisted of eight instruments included; Saw-sam-sai, Krachappi, Thon, Krab-phuang, Khlui, Ranat, Ranat-kaeo and Ramana.

21st Century

Krachappi began to disappear from the Thai music society after the beginning of Rattanakosin. Nowadays, you can hardly find a Krachappi player. Although Krachappi is not very popular nowadays, there is still a group of people who are interested in playing Krachappi. There are some groups of people who want to preserve Krachappi on the internet and it is considered as a good sign that Krachappi has not completely disappeared from the Thai people's attention. Thai youth and people who love and are interested in Krachappi and details can be found at  www.pantown.com.

Thai people should collaborate to preserve Krachappi and try to keep Krachappi in Thai society. Even though playing the Krachappi is not very common nowadays, it is still an important instrument and a part of the Thai musical legacy that must be maintained. Kracahppi must not totally disappear from Thai society and should continue existing as a part of Thailand's cultural history.