harp, koto
琴 centers on stringed musical instruments, specifically the harp and the Japanese koto, both played by plucking strings.
琴 originally depicted a stringed musical instrument. The top component 玨 likely represents two strings or tuning pegs, while 今 may have contributed a phonetic element. The modern form retains the instrument shape.
The top 玨 looks like two strings stretched over a bridge, and the bottom 今 resembles the body of the instrument. Together they form a harp or koto.
For キン, imagine a king playing a golden koto: king -> キン, and the royal music fills the hall.
koto (13-stringed Japanese zither)
heartstrings
xylophone
Nagoya harp; Taishō koto; Japanese harp with two to five strings
harp; lyre
yueqin (4-stringed Chinese lute)
single-stringed Japanese zither
qin (7-stringed Chinese zither); guqin; seven-stringed koto
trigon (ancient triangular harp); sambuca
two-stringed koto
five-stringed instrument; pentachord
gayageum (12-stringed Korean zither)
mouth harp; Jew's harp
guqin (Chinese seven-string zither)
wagon; yamatogoto; six-stringed native Japanese zither
yamatogoto; wagon; six or seven-stringed native Japanese zither
xiqin (2-stringed Chinese musical instrument)
koto (usu. small)
playing on the koto
heartstrings; innermost soul