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Chinese Bowed String Instruments
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The Erhu  |
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| The Erhu has a history of 500 years.
It is a string instrument played with a bow. The sound box is
covered with a snake skin which helps to produce its distinctive
tone color which is mellow and bright. The Erhu is one of the
most widely used bowed instruments in China. Played with a variety
of techniques, it is now extremely popular for both solo and
orchestral performances. |
| The Erhu has a small body and a long
neck. There are two strings, with the bow inserted between them.
With a range of around three octaves, it's sound is rather like the
violin, but with a thinner tone due to the smaller resonating
chamber. In the orchestra they are usually divided into 1st and 2nd
parts. |
Last updated 20 September 2000
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