Structural Interculturalism and Organological Reform：The Seven-Tone String Zheng “Zheng Xiaomeng” in Dialogic Practice with the Polish Suka

Abstract

This study proposes the concept of structural interculturalism to examine how organological reform can function as a strategic foundation for sustainable cross-cultural musical dialogue. Focusing on the seven-tone reform of the Chinese guzheng—realized in the 18-string fixed configuration known as “Zheng Xiaomeng”—and its sustained collaboration with the Polish suka between 2021 and 2024, the article argues that intercultural performance requires structural compatibility at the level of instrument design rather than merely stylistic hybridity at the level of repertoire.

Drawing on organological analysis, performance ethnography, and repertoire-based musical examination, the study demonstrates how modal duality, harmonic redistribution, and timbre complementarity enable equitable tonal negotiation between pentatonic and diatonic systems. Through analyses of Chinese works, Chopin adaptations, Polish dance forms, and original compositions, the article illustrates how the seven-tone reform embeds dialogic capacity within the material architecture of the instrument itself.

By shifting analytical attention from hybrid outcomes to structural preconditions, the article contributes to emerging discussions on the role of organology in intercultural ethnomusicology and proposes structural interculturalism as a theoretical framework for national instrument reform in global contexts. It proposes structural interculturalism as a replicable theoretical framework for national instrument reform in global contexts.