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　　Erhu－Queen of Chinese Folk Orchestra(管弦樂隊)

　　Producing one of the most beautiful and haunting(縈繞)sounds in Chinese music, the erhu is one of the most popular Chinese bowed-string instruments．

　　The two-stringed, vertical fiddle(提琴類樂器)－China’s answer to the western violin－h(huán)as a history of more than 1000 years．It became popular in southern China during the Song Dynasty(960-1279)when it was called nanhu．Capable of producing music with a flexibility approaching that of the human voice, the erhu is extremely popular in China today as a medium for both traditional and contemporary music and plays an important role in both solo and orchestral performances．

　　Hailed as a Chinese violin, the erhu is quite different from a western fiddle．There is a vertical post with a fingerboard(指板)crossing the sides of a resonator(共鳴器)at its base．This resonator is covered with a piece of stretched python(蟒)skin that produces a unique “whining” tone．The erhu bow is placed between its two strings called the inner and outer strings．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(水平地)over the two vertical strings．

　　The erhu’s range spans over three octaves(八度音階)and the tune produced shares some qualities with the violin, although it produces a more nasal(鼻音)tone which is gentle but firm．The erhu resembles a human voice and can imitate many natural sounds, such as birds and horses．It is a very expressive instrument, most known for playing melancholy(憂郁)tunes, but also for its joyful melodies．

　　The erhu is featured regularly in “silk and bamboo” ensembles(絲竹合奏曲)－an elaborate but quite accessible form of Chinese folk music, alongside various bamboo wind instruments and plucked strings such as the pipa(lute)and yangqin(dulcimer)．Such music is played at village ceremonies and informal “jam sessions(即席演奏會)” in teahouses．It is also an accompanying instrument in Chinese Opera—an ancient form of highly stylized musical dramas, and classical music．There are around a dozen close relatives of the erhu within China and in other parts of the East．The banhu, for example, has a wooden top rather than a snakeskin membrane(薄膜), and the sihu, from Mongolia, has two pairs of strings with a remarkable double bow with two tiers(排)of hair．The morin khur, also from Mongolia, is a rectangular(長方形)fiddle with a carved horse head and strings made of thick strands(股)of silk; it produces a deep, guttural(喉音的)sound．

　　The erhu is almost always a must in national orchestras．In smaller orchestras, there are usually 2 to 6 erhu; in larger ones there are 10 to 12．In fact, the erhu plays the same role as the violin in Western orchestras．

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