How it began
The arched harp may have reached Burma from southeastern India as early as 500 CE, a view based on temple reliefs that resemble harps depicted in Bengal. The earliest archaeological evidence in Myanmar is a mid-600s relief at the Bawbawgyi Pagoda of the Pyu kingdom of Sri Ksetra, near present-day Pyay, which shows an arched harp with about five strings. A Pyu embassy to China in 801-802 included an arched harp in its orchestra. The instrument was then developed in Burma over more than a thousand years into its present form, so its origin is shared with India while the saung-gauk itself is Burmese.
How it works
The body is a hollowed resonator covered with tightly stretched deer hide, lacquered and pierced with four small sound holes. The long neck is carved from the naturally curved root of the sha tree. A string bar runs along the top of the body under the skin and carries the vibration of the strings to the membrane. Thirteen to sixteen strings of silk, now often nylon, rise at an angle from the bar to the neck, where they are tied with twisted red cotton cords that are adjusted to tune them.
How it spread
Harps appear in reliefs and murals at Bagan, and chronicles describe them in court ensembles. By the Ava period the harp had 11 strings. In the Konbaung era the courtier Myawaddy Mingyi U Sa (1766-1853) increased the strings from seven to thirteen and set specifications for the instrument. In the 18th century it was introduced to Qing China, where it was played at imperial feasts from 1788. Until the 1800s it was used only for chamber music at court.
What lasted
The last court harpist, U Maung Maung Gyi (1855-1933), added a 14th string and trained the players from whom today's harpists descend. After a decline before World War II, Hmat Kyi built seven harps for the State Schools of Fine Arts in 1947, and the harpist Ba Than later created a 16-string version.
Where it stands today
The saung is regarded as the national instrument of Myanmar. Newer harps use machine heads or tuning pegs and nylon strings to make tuning easier, though silk-strung harps are still made. Examples are held in museum collections such as the National Music Museum in the United States.
