What is erhu in China?
The erhu ( Chinese: 二胡; pinyin: èrhú; [aɻ˥˩xu˧˥] ), is a two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, which may also be called a Southern Fiddle, and is sometimes known in the Western world as the Chinese violin or a Chinese two-stringed fiddle .
How many strings does an erhu have?
Traditionally the two strings are made of silk, but metallic strings are also used. An erhu player usually sits with the instrument on his or her left upper thigh in front of the left hip. The erhu is played by moving the bow horizontally over the two vertical strings.
What is the difference between the erhu and the sihu?
For most of history, the erhu was mostly a folk instrument used in southern China, whereas the sihu was preferred among northern musicians. However, in the 1920s, Liu Tianhua introduced the erhu to Beijing, and since, it has become the most popular of the huqin.
What is an erhu violin?
Shanghai Music Publishing House. ^ "Erhu – Chinese violin / fiddle with two strings – and Erhu music (audio & video demo)". Philmultic.com. ^ Stock, Jonathan.
Is a erhu a Chordophone?
The erhu is a bowed spike-lute chordophone of the Han Chinese ('er' means two; 'hu' originally meant 'barbarian,' but now 'fiddle').
What are Idiophone instruments?
Idiophones are instruments that create sound through vibrating themselves. They differ from chordophones and membranophones because the vibrating is not the result of strings or membranes. Under the Hornbostel-Sachs classifcation system, idiophones are further divided into struck idiophones and plucked idiophones.
What is the classification of dizi?
Most dizi are made of bamboo, which explains why dizi are sometimes known by simple names such as Chinese bamboo flute....Dizi (instrument)Woodwind instrumentHornbostel–Sachs classification421.121.12 (Open side-blown flutes with fingerholes)Related instruments6 more rows
What is aerophone instrument?
Aerophones are instruments that create noise by pushing vibrating columns of air through them. Under the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, aerophones are broken down into free aerophones and non-free aerophones.
What is membranophone and examples?
Membranophones are instruments that make sound from the vibrations of stretched skins or membranes. Drums, tambourines, and some gongs are common examples of membranophones.
Is dizi a Aerophone?
The dizi is a side-blown (transverse) edge aerophone (flute) of the Han Chinese. In various forms it is used today in many regional and national forms of Chinese music for solo, small ensemble, and orchestra performance.
What does erhu mean in English?
(ˈɜːhuː ) a two-stringed Chinese musical instrument.
What kind of instrument is a sheng?
free reed instrumentThe Chinese sheng (Chinese: 笙; Pinyin shēng) is a mouth-blown free reed instrument consisting of vertical pipes. The sheng has been used in the works of a few non-Chinese composers, including Lou Harrison, Tim Risher, Daniel Bjarnason, Brad Catler, and Christopher Adler.
What are examples of aerophones?
Examples include the trumpet, cornet, horn, trombone and the tuba.
Which of the following is an idiophone?
Examples of idiophones include the triangle, wood block, maracas, bell, and gong.
What is chordophone example?
chordophone, any of a class of musical instruments in which a stretched, vibrating string produces the initial sound. The five basic types are bows, harps, lutes, lyres, and zithers.
What is idiophone membranophone chordophone and aerophone?
An idiophone is any musical instrument that creates sound primarily by the vibration of the instrument itself, without the use of air flow (as with aerophones), strings (chordophones), membranes (membranophones) or electricity (electrophones).
What is the erhu in music?
The erhu is played both as a solo instrument and in an orchestral setting. A higher-pitched version with a smaller resonator surface and shorter post is the gaohu, or nanhu. A larger, lower-pitched version of the erhu is called zhonghu. All three sizes are valuable members of the orchestra. See also jinghu, huqin.
What is the performance of Erhu?
Its performance is characterized by subtle contrasts in bowing strength, powerful vibrato, and glissandos. The erhu is played both as a solo instrument and in an orchestral setting.
How is the Erhu held?
In performance the erhu is held upright on the performer’s thigh, and the tautness of the bow strings is determined by the pressure of the performer’s hand. Bowing is done horizontally, with right-hand fingering techniques for altering the bow tension and for crossing strings. Without a fingerboard, the erhu can produce a great range ...
Does the Erhu have a fingerboard?
Like the banhu, the erhu has no fingerboard. The strings are supported by a vertical post that pierces the resonator. “Pinghu qiuyue,” a Cantonese folk song, played on the gaohu. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. In performance the erhu is held upright on the performer’s thigh, and the tautness of the bow strings is determined by the pressure ...
What is an Erhu?
Erhu - Chinese String Instrument (Bowed) The erhu is definitely the leader of the huqins in the Chinese orchestra. Its playing technique is very versatile, capable of playing happy chirpy tunes, as well as producing the most sorrowful sounds. Besides traditional erhu pieces, it is also able to play violin sonantas and concertos.
When did Erhu become popular?
The erhu is part of the huqin family, and it was only during the early part of 1900s that the erhu became developed and standardized. With the emergence of classic erhu solo tunes by Ah Bing and Liu Tian Hua, the erhu gradually became the most iconic and representative of huqins. The erhu was originally an ensemble instrument, but has since developed advanced playing techniques and gained an extensive repertoire.
What instruments can an Erhu play?
The erhu is termed er (second) hu (fiddle) not because it has 2 strings, but because it takes the secondary role to other instruments such as the banhu in Northern music, the jinghu in Peking opera, the gaohu in Cantonese music etc.
What is the soundbox of an Erhu?
The erhu has a soundbox (琴筒), a stem that goes through the soundbox (琴杆), tuning pegs (琴轴), strings (琴弦), qianjin (千斤), a bridge (琴马) and a bow (弓).
Is Erhu an ensemble instrument?
The erhu was originally an ensemble instrument, but has since developed advanced playing techniques and gained an extensive repertoire. Since the time when it was first played, the huqin has developed and expanded into other variations such as the synthetic skin erhu, jing erhu, jinghu, yuehu, sihu, banhu and yehu.
What is the erhu structure?
The erhu structure can be divided in this way: the part of the neck, where there is also a ring to better fix the strings and whose upper part, besides being slightly curved, contains the pegs used to modulate the tuning of the instrument; finally there is a third part, or the sound box in which the bridge of the ropes is also present.
What does Erhu mean?
Analyzing the name of this stringed instrument we note that the first part consists of “二” which in Chinese means 2 (èr); the second character that makes up the name of the erhu is “胡” (hú), which means “barbarians”, meaning people of the “Wu Hu” populations, that is a group of non-Chinese peoples who settled in China at the beginning of the first millennium AD, overturning the balance of China of that time.
How was the erhu played in ancient times?
Before the spread of the bow in horsehair, the erhu was played using small arches with resin-coated sticks using rosin; later, when the use of the bow in horsehair will take hold, the Chinese violin will stop playing with this instrumentation in favor of the latter.
Where to buy the erhu?
The Chinese violin can be purchased in some music stores specializing in exotic instruments, but for reasons of price and practicality it might make more sense to think about buying an online erhu.
How do you play the erhu?
To play the erhu it is necessary to sit and position the instrument above the knee, modulating the notes with the bow and changing the notes themselves by pressing the fingers in the correct points of the strings; however, note that the erhu does not have a keyboard: the strings must be pressed without touching the neck of the instrument.
How many strings does an Erhu have?
The erhu, also called “huqin”, written in Chinese “二胡” (èrhú), is a Chinese string instrument, classifiable as viella, having 2 strings.
What is the arch of the Erhu?
Arch of the erhu, as you can see the filament is a horsehair. (Image source: Wikipedia)
What is an Erhu?
The Erhu is a two-stringed instrument played with a bow that is popular not only in China, but in those areas of East Asia where Chinese culture has had particularly great influence. Due to its resemblance in function to a violin, it is occasionally called a Chinese Violin.
What is the unique thing about the Erhu?
The instrument is particularly unique, especially when compared to other stringed instruments from the West. It lacks a fingerboard, so instead of pressing the strings to the wood to stop their vibration, the player instead simply presses his/her finger against the wood.
What is Erhu music?
He has since founded his own financial advice firm, Newton Analytical. The Erhu is the instrument responsible for much of the characteristic sound of Chinese music. However, the erhu itself was introduced by foreigners.
How long has the Erhu been around?
The erhu has had a prominent place in Chinese music for over 1,000 years, and it shows no signs of giving up that title. The instrument was and is popular across China's 56 ethnic groups, each using the erhu in a unique way to capture their own culture. As recently as the 1920s the government commissioned composers to come up with music ...
What game uses Erhu?
Further, the instrument's unique sound represents China to many others; for instance, the computer game World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria used the sounds of the erhu as part of its audio score. From its introduction to China more than 1,000 years ago, the erhu has become an important piece of the Chinese legacy.
What is the sound of Erhu?
The Erhu is the instrument responsible for much of the characteristic sound of Chinese music. However, the erhu itself was introduced by foreigners. Despite that, it has remained popular in China for over 1,000 years. Create an account.
Where does Erhu skin come from?
As a result of the incredible popularity of the erhu in China, the Chinese government has taken steps to ensure that any python skin used in an erhu comes from farm-grown pythons, and has limited the number of erhus that may be exported. Recently, a group in Hong Kong began pioneering a replacement for the snake skin.
What is the difference between Erhu and Erhu violin?
Although hailed as a Chinese violin, Erhu is quite different from its western counterpart. There is a vertical post with a fingerboard crosses the sides of a resonator at its base. This resonator is covered with a piece of stretched python skin that produces a unique ‘whining' tone.
How to play Erhu?
The erhu is played by moving the bow horizontally over the two vertical strings. The erhu's range spans over three octaves and the tune shares some features with violin, although it produces a more nasal tone, which is gentle but firm. Chinese musical instrument Erhu. Tone. The tone of Erhu resembles a human voice.
How many Erhus are there in an orchestra?
Erhu is usually employed in national orchestras. In smaller orchestras, there are usually two to six Erhus; in larger ones there are ten to twelve. Famous Erhu Works.
Where is the bow on an Erhu?
An erhu player usually sits with the instrument on his or her left upper thigh in front of the left hip.
Is Erhu a violin?
Although hailed as a Chinese violin, Erhu is quite different from its western counterpart.