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Post by yudingbon on Oct 25, 2006 23:03:03 GMT
I came across an interesting thing the other day. I had relatives come in and one of them acutally knew how to play the erhu really well. The problem was, I found that his posture is completely different from what I am used to. Instead of having it rest on the left lap, he had it between his two legs with half the sound hole in the back covered.
Is this correct? He said that his teacher had always taught him to play that way and that his teacher also played that way. I found that the tonality was much richer but am unsure if I should make the shifter over. Any comments?
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Post by sanmenxia on Oct 26, 2006 1:16:18 GMT
That's the traditional way to play the gaohu. I suppose it is possible to the play the erhu like that, but the sound will be different. I not sure I would say it's richer, it seems to damp down certain frequencies, and seems to make bowing a bit less critical, ie it gives roughly the same sound regardless how you bow, how you hold the gaohu/erhu between your legs seem to have more effect.
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Post by jetz320 on Oct 26, 2006 2:49:41 GMT
The way you're holding it is right. What sanmenxia said is right. My erhu teacher is a pro, graduated from Beijing Central, and performed in one of the best Chinese Orchestras. And if she holds it the way I do, I think that it's right!
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Post by wanggx on Oct 26, 2006 7:44:59 GMT
Hmmm....I think no one plays the erhu between the knees unless the piece required it. So far i have only seen ppl playing erhu like that in the orchestra when they were performing "Fei Tian". Jetz320, may I know what's your teacher's name?
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Post by YouLanFengChune on Oct 26, 2006 15:07:23 GMT
haiz..
for feitian, they wanted to mute the erhu. FDor that, my orchestra emplys the butterfly clips. Sounds better too!
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Post by davidmdahl on Oct 26, 2006 15:20:18 GMT
What are butterfly clips?
Best wishes,
David
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Post by song on Oct 27, 2006 3:00:03 GMT
Butterfly clips are relationships mender between your family, neighbours, your dog and yourself. It works by clipping on the bridge of your erhu and muting the sound of your erhu. Here's a picture of it (bottom left image): www.ybcn.jp/kanrenn.htm#sonota |
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Post by davidmdahl on Oct 27, 2006 3:27:04 GMT
Ooo! That "sounds" like something I should have. Now, just where could I get one? I also noticed the link for an electronic erhu: www.ybcn.jp/seiko.htmNo CITES problems with this huqin.  Best wishes, David |
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Post by calden on Oct 27, 2006 3:48:56 GMT
Oh yeah. $350. I want that.
Carlos
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Post by maaltan on Oct 28, 2006 2:24:54 GMT
I use a wooden dowel as a mute. The problem is it makes the strings much more forgiving. After practicing for a long period of time with the mute i found i couldnt make a steady sound without it.
Does the butterfly clip change the feel of the erhu. if its better than the dowel i need to get one.. The next question is where...
changing the subject again but...
Speaking of the wooden dowel i found if i pull it up to the top of the resonator i get a sound very similar to the indian violin (ie the most complicated stringed instrument on the earth...in my opinion) removing the pad under the strings doubles this effect. I can get some really interesting droning/beating sounds. There are several dead areas (mathmatically predictable btw) on the string so you would have to compose songs around them. Not really useful (yet ) but interesting.
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Post by Charlie Huang on Oct 28, 2006 9:27:34 GMT
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Post by song on Jan 9, 2007 2:55:25 GMT
The butterfly clip clips onto the bridge, reducing the vibrations to the resonator. Change in feel is minimum and there are no dead spots because the strings are untouched.
I've listed the black butterfly mute on my ebay site if you're interested.
Thanks,
Sung Wah
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Post by maaltan on Jan 9, 2007 4:29:46 GMT
yes the sarangi. the picture on wikipedia looks like nothing like whats in my head though (although ive only seen a few pictures). It has 3 playing strings and up to 40 sympathetic strings which all have to be tuned precisely. It makes a mind numbing wail that just mesmerizes me (dont read that wrong, I like the sounds it makes). www.fiddlingaround.co.uk/india/indiaframe.htmlone of the pictures was the one on this page. P.S. do you ever go back and read one of your old posts and wonder who in the heck typed that... then again it might just be me. |
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annk
Intermediate
Previously professional musician, now librarian ;-)
Posts: 38
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Post by annk on Jan 18, 2007 22:05:37 GMT
I've ordered the butterfly clip/mute, it sounded like it muted really well on the sound clip example on the site, and my family is looking forward to it! :-)
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Post by maaltan on Jan 19, 2007 1:09:13 GMT
I've got my butterfly mute. It seems to work pretty well. One problem i saw with it is that it created a wierd resonate wolftone exactly at the octave mark(no matter the tuning or bridge..wierd). It was fixed easily by adding a little extra weight to the mute. I stuck my original mute ... a dowel, in the neck of the mute (the side you pinch). I may try stitching up a little sand bag or maybe just stuffing the felt in there to see if it does the same thing
It also gives the erhu a really low mellow tone on the lower notes. I tuned it to G to test and it felt like it was rattling my teeth. Since the bridge still plays a part in the equation, you still need to use a good one.
Overall Pros:
Doesn't change the tuning of the strings like the dowel.
Mutes the erhu significantly as advertised(especially 2nd hand position and below)
More attractive than the dowel.
Cons:
By basically acting as a low pass filter, it nullifies higher pitched harmonics giving the erhu a duller more mellow tone. This also means that the "squeakies" you might be trying to work out of your bowing technique may be nullified. Basically, dont practice exclusivly muted, you may develop bad habits.
Bottom line:
It is well worth the purchase. it does what it promises (with very few caveats). I would buy again without hesitation.
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