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Chinese Music
Bowed Chinese Musical Instruments
This page covers the most popular Chinese instruments that are (Normally) played using a bow. Specifically: They are either played with a bow, and/or have 2-strings. This family of instruments is known as 'Huqin', although there is no actual 'Huqin' instrument in it's own right. Please consider the 'Erhu' to be the default instrument

Our main information resource remains the very reliable Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_traditional_Chinese_musical_instruments
which is complimented by many others, as referenced below

For ease of reference we have divided Chinese instruments into four main categories:
• Strings
  • Bowed and 2-stringed (This Page)
  • Other Strings, Lutes and Zithers
Wind
Percussion
Other Instruments

Free music samples and downloads Comply with International Copyright criteria, and respect International Property Rights.

Note: Spelling
Most Chinese instruments are written as two Chinese characters (Mandarin). Pinyin is a standard way to write these characters in English. The Chinese would write these as one English word in lower case. Westerners tend to Capitalise the words. Other Western spellings sometimes exist, especially changing 'qin' to 'ching' etc. We use the standard letters as approved by Beijing, and generally Capitalised the first letters of both Chinese words (For correct syntax)

Strings 

Bowed and 2-stringed Instruments (Huqin):

Instrument Brief Description Listen
     
Huqin    
Image: HuQin Bow - Click for  larger image and more details Hu Qin refers to a group of Chinese instruments played with a bow. There is not a specific instrument called a HuQin

Hu means 'Foreign' or 'Barbarian' (Probably referring to an ancient Northern nomadic people called the 'Xi'). Today both Qin and HuQin mean 'Stringed musical instrument'

more...
No Link
HuQin    
     
Banhu    
Image: BanHu - Click for  larger image and more details Banhu (Wood Faced Fiddle)

Its name comes from the wooden soundboard covering the half globular resonating coconut chamber. Of its many other names the most prominent may be banhu, referring to its historical use in the northern bangzi opera in the mid-seventeenth century. From them on it came to accompany many other regional operas and popular narratives, spreading over north, northwest and northeast China. That betrays the origin of its strong local opera styles.

The two strings are generally tuned a fifth, or a fourth, apart. Strident and bight in tone quality and characteristic of glissando, the banhu is used as a solo instrument and one of the bowed strings in the modern Chinese orchestra.

Please visit our new Banhu page wich offers a full description with pictures, and many tracks for free download more...
External Link
   
     
Dahu    
Image: DaHu - Click for  larger image and more details The dahu (大胡, pinyin: dàhú) is a large bowed string instrument from China. It has a large soundbox covered on one end with python skin. Like most other members of the huqin family of instruments, it has two strings and is held vertically. The instrument is generally pitched one octave below the erhu, and is considerably larger than the erhu. Its name derives from the Chinese word for "large" (dà), and the word hú (short for huqin). Its bridge is often placed somewhat above the centre of the snakeskin to avoid stretching the skin

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No Link
DaHu  
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Dihu    
Image: DiHu Bow - Click for  larger image and more details Large Chinese bowed instrument of the HuQin family. This one is a bass version giving a three-quarter bass like sound when played

DiHu pictured along with an ErHu

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No Link
DiHu  
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Erhu    
Image: ErHu Bow - Click for  larger image and more details Erhu (Second Fiddle)

The erhu (Chinese: 二胡; pinyin: èrhú), also called nanhu (南胡, "southern fiddle"), and sometimes known in the West as the "Chinese violin" or "Chinese two-string fiddle," is a two-stringed bowed musical instrument, used as a solo instrument as well as in small ensembles and large orchestras. It is the most popular instrument in the huqin (胡琴) family of Chinese bowed string instruments, together with the zhonghu (中胡), gaohu (高胡), banhu (板胡), jinghu (京胡), sihu (四胡), and numerous others..

A typical erhu measures 81cm from top to bottom, the length of the bow also being 81cm.

Please visit our new Erhu page wich offers a full description with pictures, and many tracks for free download more...
External Link

(Play from linked website)
     
Gaohu    
Image: GaoHu Bow - Click for  larger image and more details The Gaohu and the Zhonghu are common doubles for Erhu players. The Gaohu is higher pitched and the Zhonghu is the alto version. This instrument first appears after 1104 in the Song Dynasty.

The Gaohu is particularly used in Southern China. Because of its mellow tone quality, the Gaohu is chiefly used in Cantonese music, where isis usually called a 'YueHu'. It can be used as a solo instrument normally for lively and merry music pieces.

more...
External Link
GaoHu Download Source:
Video of Mr Yu Qiwei performing the gaohu piece Ping Hu Qiu Yue (平湖秋月, Autumn Moon On Calm Lake). Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3BWTmcrbl0
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Gehu    
Image: GeHu - Click for  larger image and more details The gehu (革胡; pinyin: géhú) is a Chinese instrument developed in the 20th century by the Chinese musician Yang Yusen (杨雨森, 1926-1980). It is a fusion of the Chinese huqin family and the cello. Its four strings are also tuned (from low to high) C-G-D-A, exactly like the cello's. Unlike most other instruments in the huqin family, the bridge does not contact the snakeskin, which faces to the side.

There is also a contrabass gehu that functions as a Chinese double bass, known as the diyingehu, digehu, or beigehu (倍革胡).

more...
External Link
GeHu Link Source:
Video of a piece for gehu and Chinese traditional instrument orchestra, entitled 草原风情 ("Grasslands Character and Style"), performed by Dong Jinchi (董金池), from CCTV:
http://v.blog.sohu.com/u/vw/948118
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Jinghu    
Image: JingHu - Click for  larger image and more details Jinghu (First fiddle)
The jinghu ("Beijing huqin") or the Chinese fiddle has two strings and a bow made of horsehair which is passed between the strings of the instrument. The bow comes in contact with the inside of one string and the outside of the other, alternating from one to the other as it is bowed back and forth. The fiddle has a shrill, piercing sound that is amplified through a snakeskin-covered sound box open at the back. It is held upright on the musician's knee.

more...
External Link
JingHu Link Source:
http://library.thinkquest.org/03oct/01397/mjinghu.htm
Note: Opens a blank page, but plays an embedded sound extract
     
MaTouQin    
Image: MaTouQin - Click for  larger image and more details The matouqin, or horse-head fiddle, is a Mongolian instrument. Unusually the name is made up of three Chinese characters: Ma 馬 'Horse', Tou 頭 'Head, Qin 琴 'Fiddle'. It is called horse-head fiddle because the top of the pole is carved in the shape of a horse head

more...
No Link
MaTouQin    
   
Sanxian    
Image: SanXian - Click for  larger image and more details The instrument's name comes from the words sì (四), meaning "four" in Chinese, referring to the instrument's number of strings, and hú (胡), short for huqin, the family of instruments of which the sihu is a member. Its soundbox and neck are made from hardwood and the playing end of the soundbox is covered with python, cow, or sheep skin.

There are several sizes of sihu; the lowest of these is generally tuned C, C, G, G; the medium size is tuned G, G, D, D; and the smallest size is tuned D, D, A, A.

more...
External Link

SanXian Download Source: (Play from linked website)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VK_7HxUQSxM

Note: China has currently banned all contact with 'YouTube', therefore we trust this link provided by Wikipedia is correct (?)

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Sihu    
Image: SiHu - Click for  larger image and more details The instrument's name comes from the words sì (四), meaning "four" in Chinese, referring to the instrument's number of strings, and hú (胡), short for huqin, the family of instruments of which the sihu is a member. Its soundbox and neck are made from hardwood and the playing end of the soundbox is covered with python, cow, or sheep skin.

There are several sizes of sihu; the lowest of these is generally tuned C, C, G, G; the medium size is tuned G, G, D, D; and the smallest size is tuned D, D, A, A.

more...
Internal Link

SiHu Download Source: (Play from linked website)
http://www.s-o-n.net/sihu01.htm
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Yehu    
Image: YeHu - Click for  larger image and more details The yehu (椰胡; pinyin: yēhú) is a Chinese bowed string instrument in the huqin family of instruments. Ye means coconut and hu is short for huqin. It is used particularly in the southern coastal provinces of China and in Taiwan. The instrument's soundbox is made from a coconut shell, which is cut on the playing end and covered with a piece of coconut wood instead of the snakeskin commonly used on other huqin instruments such as the erhu or gaohu. As with most huqin the bow hair passes in between the two strings

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No Link
YeHu The Vietnamese 'DanGao' is a very closely related instrument
 
Zhonghu    
Image: ZhongHu - Click for  larger image and more details The zhonghu is the same as the erhu but is slightly larger and is lower pitched. Its body is covered on the playing end with snakeskin. The instrument has two strings, which are generally tuned to the interval of a fifth, to A and E or to G and D (this latter tuning equivalent to the violin's lowest two strings).

more...
No Link
ZhongHu  
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Zhuihu    
Image: ZhuiHu - Click for  larger image and more details The zhuihu (坠胡, pinyin: zhùihú; also called zhuiqin or zhuizixian) is a two-stringed bowed string instrument from China. In construction, it resembles the sanxian, and likely evolved as a bowed version of that instrument. Unlike other bowed string instruments in the huqin family (such as the erhu), the zhuihu has a fretless fingerboard against which the strings are pressed while playing.

more...
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ZhuiHu :
 
 
China Expats are very happy to hear from anyone who can provide appropriate Audio and Video, or any music that is more suited for 'Western Ears'. Thank you



This information is as supplied by ourselves, and ably supported by our friends:

Wikipedia   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_traditional_Chinese_musical_instruments

Disclaimer:
As far as we are aware, all information and downloads are either reproduced here with expressed permission, or obtained from reliable free resources, and comply with International Property Rights.

Please contact us 'Now' if you think there is a problem, and we will rectify the situation immediately

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