The Erhu Essay

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The Erhu According to The Oxford Companion to Musical Instruments the erhu is a Chinese fiddle, along with other bowed instruments, collectively called the huqin. The erhu is bowed instrument with two strings and the erhu and its bow are both 75 cm in length. The strings are made of nylon or wire but in the past were silk. The resonator is a small section of wood that is 13 cm long and 8 cm wide and usually has a round or hexagonal shape. One side of the resonator is covered with lizard skin while the opposite side has an “open-work design” (270). The erhu is made from various hardwoods and its long neck is made of bamboo. The erhu sits on the thigh or lap and “The hair of the long, slender bow passes between the two strings: the bow cannot be removed without unhitching the hair from end.” It is unknown when the erhu was created but it was a popular instrument as early as the 18th and 19th centuries. It was normally used in Peking operas and would accompany the “female parts” (107). In the 1900s the erhu became an important instrument throughout China, due to the “personal and acculturative innovations” of Liu T’ien-hua. Liu T’ien-hua was an accomplished musician and had a keen awareness of Western must theory, the violin and Chinese music. His knowledge and understanding of music allowed him to “extend the technical and stylistic possibilities of the erhu through violinistic adaptations” (270). The modern Chinese orchestra uses the erhu the same as Americans uses the viola, cello and double bass to provide lower parts to the strings. References Baines, The Oxford Companion to Musical Instruments, pg 107 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, pg

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