A Deep-Learning Framework with Multi-Feature Fusion and Attention Mechanism for Classification of Chinese Traditional Instruments

Chinese traditional instruments are diverse and encompass a rich variety of timbres and rhythms, presenting considerable research potential. This work proposed a deep-learning framework for the automated classification of Chinese traditional instruments, addressing the challenges of acoustic diversity and cultural preservation. By integrating two datasets, CTIS and ChMusic, we constructed a combined dataset comprising four instrument families: wind, percussion, plucked string, and bowed string. Three time-frequency features, namely MFCC, CQT, and Chroma, were extracted to capture diverse sound information. A convolutional neural network architecture was designed, incorporating 3-channel spectrogram feature stacking and a hybrid channel–spatial attention mechanism to enhance the extraction of critical frequency bands and feature weights. Experimental results demonstrated that the feature-fusion method improved classification performance compared to a single feature as input. Meanwhile, the attention mechanism further boosted test accuracy to 98.79%, outperforming baseline models by 2.8% and achieving superior F1 scores and recall compared to classical architectures. Ablation study confirmed the contribution of attention mechanisms. This work validates the efficacy of deep learning in preserving intangible cultural heritage through precise analysis, offering a feasible methodology for the classification of Chinese traditional instruments.