Erhu


The is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, that is sometimes known in the Western world as the Chinese violin or a Chinese two-stringed fiddle. It is used as a solo instrument as well as in small ensembles and large orchestras. It is the most popular of the family of traditional bowed string instruments used by various ethnic groups of China. As a very versatile instrument, the is used in both traditional and contemporary music arrangements, such as pop, rock and jazz.

History

The can be traced back to proto-Mongolic instruments which first appeared in China during the Tang dynasty. It is believed to have evolved from the . The is believed to have originated from the Xi people located in current northeast China.
The first Chinese character of the name of the instrument is believed to come from the fact that it has two strings. An alternate explanation states that it comes from the fact that it is the second-highest in pitch to the in the modern Chinese orchestra. The second character indicates that it is a member of the family, with commonly translated to mean 'barbarians'. The name literally means 'instrument of the Hu peoples', suggesting that the instrument may have originated from regions to the north or west of China generally inhabited by nomadic people on the extremities of past Chinese kingdoms.
For most of history, the was mostly a folk instrument used in southern China, whereas the was preferred among northern musicians. However, in the 1920s, Liu Tianhua introduced the to Beijing, and since, it has become the most popular of the.

Historical and bowed string bows

Historic bowed zithers of China, including the,, and, and also the Korean, were originally played by bowing with a rosined stick, which created friction against the strings. As soon as the horsehair bow was invented, it spread very widely.

Construction

The consists of a long vertical stick-like neck, at the top of which are two big tuning pegs, and at the bottom is a small resonator body which is covered with python skin on the front end. Two strings are attached from the pegs to the base, and a small loop of string placed around the neck and strings acting as a nut pulls the strings towards the skin, holding a minute wooden bridge in place.
The has some unusual features:
  • Its characteristic sound is produced through the vibration of the python skin by bowing.
  • There is no fingerboard; the player stops the strings by pressing their fingertips onto the strings without the strings touching the neck.
  • The horse hair bow is never separated from the strings ; it passes between them as opposed to over them.
  • Although there are two strings, they are very close to each other and the player's left hand in effect plays as if on one string. The inside string is generally tuned to D4 and the outside string to A4, a fifth higher. The maximum range of the instrument is three and a half octaves, from D4 up to A7, before a stopping finger reaches the part of the string in contact with the bow hair. The usual playing range is about two and a half octaves.
Various dense and heavy hardwoods are used in making the. According to Chinese references the woods include , , , and . Particularly fine are often made from pieces of old furniture. A typical measures from top to bottom, the length of the bow also being 81 cm.
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The parts of the are:
  • , sound box or resonator body; it is hexagonal, octagonal, or, less commonly, round.
  • , skin, made from python. The python skin gives the its characteristic sound.
  • , neck.
  • , top or tip of neck, usually a simple curve with a piece of bone or plastic on top, but is sometimes elaborately carved with a dragon's head.
  • . tuning pegs, traditional wooden, or metal machine gear pegs
  • , nut, made from string, or, less commonly, a metal hook
  • , inside or inner string, usually tuned to D4, nearest to player
  • , outside or outer string, usually tuned to A4
  • , bridge, made from wood
  • , bow, has screw device to vary bow hair tension
  • , bow stick, made from bamboo
  • , bow hair, usually white horsehair
  • , pad, a piece of sponge, felt, or cloth placed between the strings and skin below the bridge to improve its sound
  • , base, a piece of wood attached to the bottom of the to provide a smooth surface on which to rest on the leg
Most are mass-produced in factories. The three most esteemed centres of making are Beijing, Shanghai, and Suzhou. In the collectivist period after the establishment of the People's Republic of China, these factories were formed by merging what had been previously private workshops. Although most were machine-made in production lines, the highest quality instruments were handmade by specialist craftsmen.
In the 20th century, there have been attempts to standardize and improve the, with the aim of producing a louder and better sounding instrument. One major change was the use of steel strings instead of silk. The move to steel strings was made gradually. By 1950 the thinner A-string had been replaced by a violin E-string with the thicker D-string remaining silk. By 1958 professional players were using purpose made D and A steel strings as standard.

Use of python skin

In 1988 China passed its Law on the Protection of Endangered Species after ratifying the UN Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species, making it illegal to use and trade unlicensed pythons. To regulate the use of python skins, China's State Forestry Administration introduced a certification scheme between python skin sellers in Southeast Asia and musical instrument makers in China. From January 1, 2005, new regulations also require to have a certificate from the State Forestry Administration, which certify that the python skin is not made with wild pythons, but from farm-raised pythons. Individuals are allowed to take up to two out of China when traveling; commercial buyers need additional export certificates.
Outside China, manufacturers of can issue their own CITES licenses with approval by governments of their respective countries. Such exports are legal as they have been made from legal skin sources.
Some are made of recycled products.
The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra began their research for an alternative to python skin in 2005 and has since designed the Eco- series, which substitutes python skin with PET Polyester Membrane. For this innovation the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra received the Ministry of Culture Innovation Award in 2012.

music

A notable composer for the was Liú Tiānhuá, a Chinese musician who also studied Western music. He composed 47 exercises and 10 solo pieces which were central to the development of the as a solo instrument. His works for the instrument include and .
Other solo pieces include by Abing, by Huang Haihuai, by Liu Mingyuan, and by Liu Wenjin. Most solo works are commonly performed with accompaniment, although pieces such as the ten solos by Liú Tiānhuá and originally did not have accompaniment.
In addition to the solo repertoire, the is one of the main instruments in regional music ensembles such as, Chinese opera ensembles, and the modern large Chinese orchestra.
The is used in the music of the Cirque du Soleil show O and in solo performances in select Shen Yun tours. Even fusion progressive rock groups like The Hsu-nami have incorporated the into their music and it is their lead instrument. It is incorporated in the Taiwanese black metal band ChthoniC and played by the Tibetan singer alan, and used in the song "Field Below" by Regina Spektor.
An instrumental album by artist Song Fei expresses the painting Along the River During the Qingming Festival drawn in the Song dynasty by Zhang Zeduan. It was performed with the,,,, etc., to show the livelihood, trade, festival of the Song dynasty; the album contains 18 parts.
More recently, the has appeared in several soundtracks, featuring prominently in the TV series Earth: Final Conflict and the massively multiplayer online role-playing game World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria. An solo is featured in several cues related to Vulcans from 2009's Star Trek soundtrack by Michael Giacchino.
Musical groups for wedding celebrations in Cambodia often use the Tro, a similar instrument to the.
An is listed in the credits for the Doug Anthony All Stars album Icon as being played by Paul McDermott. The erhu can be heard in the character songs of China, a character in Axis Powers Hetalia.
In 2020, the release of Genshin Impact, Players around the globe were treated to a mixture of traditional Chinese music and fusion with Western orchestra, including pieces that featured the Erhu.

Comparisons to Western instruments

Violin

The is often described as a Chinese fiddle. However, when compared to a western fiddle, it has several key differences:
  • While most of both instruments are built largely from wood, the bridge and sound production mechanisms differ greatly. The bridge of an has a flat base, and does not require "fitting" onto an instrument. The reason is that the uses a stretched and flattened python skin as its "top", whereas a violin uses a curved wooden plate.
  • The python skin is the primary tone-producing surface of the instrument with either no back or a decorative one, but the violin has a sound post that couples the top and the back's vibrations.
  • The bow's technique also differs. have the hairs of the bow strung between the two strings, and both sides of the bow hair are used. The violin is played with the bow hair placed on top of the strings.
  • The has only two strings while violin has four.

    Playing technique

Tuning

The is almost always tuned to the interval of a fifth. The inside string is generally tuned to D4 and the outside string to A4. This is the same as the two middle strings of the violin.