|
Post by onegod on Oct 26, 2017 14:46:40 GMT
Hi All,
Was wondering what is the reason when I or saw some people play their erhu got squeaky, airy, and scratchy sounds. Is it the erhu itself? snakeskin? the string? the bridge? the bow? rosin? bow not enough rosin on it? or is the person the way they are bowing?
|
|
|
Post by davidmdahl on Oct 26, 2017 16:57:43 GMT
The answer is yes, those are all reasons for bad sound on an erhu. If the erhu is set up properly, and the bow is appropriately rosined, a scratchy sound is likely due to poor bowing technique. The speed of the bow needs to match the bow pressure, and the angle of the bow to the snake skin should be as close to perpendicular as possible.
If the player's technique is at least adequate, then the setup of the erhu needs to be checked. I check out the qianjin, and its distance from the neck. The strings should loop off as close as possible to the ends of the pegs. The bridge should not be too high, and should be centered on the skin. The pad needs to be in a good place, and put the right amount of pressure on the bridge. I have also found problems when the string grooves in the bridge were not deep enough to hold the strings. Sometimes the bridge was turned around so that the thin string was moving around in a fat groove.
It should be possible to get a good sound on a cheap erhu in the first octave at least. The problems with a cheap instrument usually are more obvious in the higher positions. If you can't get a good sound on a novice instrument even in the first octave, a poor setup is likely the blame.
Everything on the erhu needs to be correct, or it will be hard to get a good sound, even with good technique.
Best wishes,
David
|
|
|
Post by dawei on Oct 27, 2017 9:30:22 GMT
And remember to rosin BOTH sides of the bowhair!
|
|
|
Post by onegod on Oct 28, 2017 16:11:43 GMT
And remember to rosin BOTH sides of the bowhair! If did but for a new bow...how often I need to rosin it. Some time I felt some part of the bow are very scratchy and thought is it not enough rosin or the pressure that I apply too much or too little...
|
|
|
Post by dawei on Oct 29, 2017 14:34:31 GMT
And remember to rosin BOTH sides of the bowhair! If did but for a new bow...how often I need to rosin it. Some time I felt some part of the bow are very scratchy and thought is it not enough rosin or the pressure that I apply too much or too little... A new bow needs a good bit of rosin to work properly, very few new bows come pre-rosined for violin or huqin family members.
|
|