buy left handed Erhu

[erhulefthand]

Hello,

I want to learn Erhu but I am left handed. A bow in my right hand feel unnatural. So where can I buy a left handed Erhu in Europe?

[davidmdahl]

Welcome to the forum, erhulefthand. I have never seen a left-hand erhu listed specifically. I suggest simply getting a standard erhu, and then switch the strings around. It might be worth getting a teacher or experienced erhu player to help you, if possible. The strings will stay on the same pegs, but their positions will be reversed. Take one string off, get the other in position, and then reinstall the string. You might not need to completely remove the string from the other peg if you are careful. It will be necessary to reverse the loop direction on each string though. Be sure to have at least a spare set of strings in case you kink a string in the process. Also get a snake skin protector strip for the other side of the erhu.

If you order from a full-service vendor, like Eason Music in Singapore, they may even do the switch for you, for a small fee if not for free.

Best wishes,

David

[dawei]

Aug 29, 2017 18:51:18 GMT davidmdahl said:

 The strings will stay on the same pegs, but their positions will be reversed. 

This may be the first time I have reason to disagree with Mr. Dahl - something I do with great respect for him, and with some trepidation.

I would advise one of two things:

1. Get used to the bow in your right hand. Ever see a symphony with a lefty violinist? 

You get the advantage of using your "better" hand for fingering.

also see these articles:

www.seeker.com/why-are-there-so-few-lefties-in-china-1767526288.html

mauracunningham.org/2013/08/14/china-a-land-without-left-handers/

"Plenty of Chinese are born left-handed—probably about 10-12 percent of the population, based on statistics from other countries—but they aren’t allowed to stay that way. Vigilant parents and strict schoolteachers work together to turn children who favor their left hands into righties: ...

In China, though, forcing left-handed children to go right is an absolute. As a result, someone will almost always comment when I pick up a pen or pair of chopsticks with my left hand, and they’ll watch me carefully to see if I write or eat in an unusual manner. It is, like my red hair and freckles, just one more mark of my foreignness here, another way that people can catalogue how China differs from the rest of the world."

2. That said, since the erhu and almost all members of the huqin family are pretty much symmetrical - unlike the violin, which has a specific bracing and soundpost setup for right handed playing - it's easy to reverse an erhu. In which case I would reverse the strings on the pegs too, so that everything is mirror image. the outside string is usually on the closer peg.



This includes flipping the bow over, too. Even the bridge should be reversed so that the previous relationships match. 

[davidmdahl]

I am a righty and do not feel entitled to tell a lefty to suck it up and play the "right" way. There are good reasons either way I suppose, so I will bow out of that part of the discussion.

As for the way to switch over an erhu to lefty, I maintain that the D string should remain on the top peg, and the A string on the bottom peg. It would not surprise me if the A string will break if brought up to pitch from the top peg, but I don't know for sure. The only difference in the strings on the pegs is that after the switch, the strings will switch sides of the pegs they loop off of. Dawei's point that the bridge should be reversed is good. Often times one of the grooves in the bridge is a bit thicker and deeper than the other. Adjust the bridge so that the thick string lays in the thick groove.

There are ways to mess this up and break strings for someone inexperienced with changing erhu strings. Make sure that the strings don't wind around each other at the qianjin.

Best wishes,

David

[dawei]

Aug 29, 2017 23:08:12 GMT davidmdahl said:

As for the way to switch over an erhu to lefty, I maintain that the D string should remain on the top peg, and the A string on the bottom peg. 

If I gave the impression that the thin string should be at the top peg, I was not clear - the strings stay on the same pegs but need to be looped the other way, including the loop on the bottom, if the erhu does not have 2 pins to attach the strings.

The tone filter mute should work either direction.

I only offer the suggestion to play right-handed based on the knowledge of Chinese culture and how they deal with lefties.  I take no sides. 

BTW, I once accidently strung an erhu wrong, with the thin string on the top peg, and it worked - but it seems to work better the traditional way, maybe due to string tension due to the different lengths behind the qianjin.

[ed]

This has been covered previously on this forum:

starvoid.proboards.com/thread/413/left-handed-erhu

There you will see that I once converted an ErHu myself for left-handed playing for my daughter.

Ed H

[erhulefthand]

Thank You,

I play guitar for a while. So I'm used to do fingering with my right hand.
there is one person in this thread who wrote

there are left handed erhus, However, it will be very odd, and we have to remake the entire internal dimensions.

What is meant with it?


English isn’t my first language, so please excuse any mistakes.

[davidmdahl]

The member who wrote "there are left-handed erhus..." did so over ten years ago, and is long gone. Your options as I see them for a LH erhu is to order a standard erhu from a dealer who can reconfigure it for you, or make the changes yourself. You are not likely to find a LH erhu off-the-shelf, but the changes should not be difficult.

Best wishes,

David

[erhulefthand]

Thank you very much.
Do you think this Erhu would be enough for the beginning www.easonmusicstore.com/products/Starter-Grade-Shanghai-Rosewood-Erhu/1 ? I'm a student and don't have much money but dont want to buy junk.

[davidmdahl]

In my experience, Eason Music does not sell erhus that are bad or unsuitable instruments. You do get what you pay for though, but I think that even the lower cost erhus on the Eason Music site are at least adequate for starting on.

The Starter Grade erhu (HEH7) in your link is out of stock. You could write to ask Eason Music to let you know when they are back in stock. The next step up, the Popular Grade Dunhuang (HEH8) is in stock for a little more money at $300.

Best wishes,

David