The sound box is oval-shaped, and the soundboard is
pierced with sound holes. A bridge is fixed on the soundboard. The neck made of
hard wood is fairly long and bears no frets, only three wooden pegs for tuning.
The three strings are traditionally made of twisted silk, but are now more
commonly made of plastic. They are tuned to the notes G, D1, and G1.
The range is fairly wide, nearly three octaves, from
G to F3. The player uses a plastic plectrum, which he uses for plucking
downward or upward in quick intervals. The tones of the dan tam are
bright and cheerful and they carry far.
The techniques for the left hand include tremolos,
trills, picking, stopping and especially sliding, which are played in
combination with the quick plucking of the right hand. Full tones,
three-quarter tones and quarter-tones can be played.
The dan tam is often part of an eight
instrument band or an orchestra accompanying cheo drama. At present, a fourth string may be added. The strings
are then tuned to the notes C, G, D1, and Al.
The Japanese samisen, the Chinese sangen, the
Chinese sanxian, the Mongolian dandze, and the Persian setar fall into the same
category as the dan tam.