Đàn tranh & guzheng
The Vietnamese zither, under your fingers.
A full đàn tranh fills the screen: pluck below the bridges, sweep across the strings for a glissando and press above the bridges to bend. Learn from numbered notation, then pick up your own zither and Melody+ listens to every string.
iPhone · iOS 18 or later · Android 9 or later
Played like the real instrument
16, 17 or 21 strings
A 16- or 17-string đàn tranh or a 21-string guzheng, strings running from bass to treble across a diagonal row of bridges, as on the real instrument.
Pluck, glissando and bend
Pluck below the bridges, slide across the strings for a glissando, and press above the bridges to bend a note by up to a whole step, as a player does with nhấn.
Vietnamese modes in cents
The Bắc, Oán, Hò Mai Nhì and Vọng Cổ modes are tuned between the piano's notes, after a master's measured tuning, instead of being rounded to the nearest semitone.
Jianpu lessons
Read numbered notation: 1 to 7, dots for the octave and lines for shorter notes. In Wait for me the string to pluck glows, and Listen plays the tune first.
Play in time
A count-in, a cursor that moves with the tempo and every note graded Perfect, Good or Miss, with up to three stars for your accuracy.
Your own zither
Turn on Real zither and pluck your own đàn tranh or guzheng: Melody+ hears which string you played, lights it up and shows whether it's in tune or how many cents sharp or flat.
From tuning to your first tune
Tune
The tuner has presets for the 16- and 17-string đàn tranh, the 21-string guzheng and the four Vietnamese modes.
Learn the tune
Listen once, then follow the jianpu and pluck the glowing string in Wait for me.
Play it in time
Play along at tempo, on the screen or on your own zither, and earn up to three stars.
4 lessons
- Five notes up and down
- Jasmine Flower (traditional)
- Amazing Grace
- Auld Lang Syne
Strings and modes
- Đàn tranh, 16 strings
- Đàn tranh, 17 strings
- Guzheng, 21 strings
- Bắc mode
- Oán mode
- Hò Mai Nhì mode
- Vọng Cổ mode
Free and Pro
Free
Everything: the zither with every string count and mode, the four lessons in Wait for me and Play in time, the real-zither mode and the zither tuner.
Pro
Nothing to unlock on the zither. Pro covers the courses and songs of the other instruments.
Questions
What's the difference between a đàn tranh and a guzheng?
Both are plucked zithers with movable bridges. The Vietnamese đàn tranh usually has 16 or 17 strings and is tuned to Vietnamese modes; the Chinese guzheng usually has 21 strings tuned to a pentatonic scale. Melody+ has both.
Do I need a real đàn tranh?
No. The zither on screen plays with your fingers. If you have one, turn on Real zither and Melody+ listens to it through the microphone instead.
Are the Vietnamese modes exact?
They are approximate: each mode follows one master's measured tuning, in cents. If your teacher or tradition tunes differently, trust your ear.
What is jianpu?
Numbered notation, or ký âm số: 1 to 7 are the notes of the scale, a dot above or below a number moves it up or down an octave, a line under it halves its length and a dash holds it longer.
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Your first song is a few minutes away.
Pick up your piano, guitar, ukulele or saxophone, open Melody+ and play a note. It will light up.
iPhone · iOS 18 or later · Android 9 or later