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Post by pqleyr on Oct 26, 2006 10:47:49 GMT
Greetings. I have just purchased an erhu at a low, low price from Ebay, and the only literature it has arrived with is in chinese, which, to my chagrin, I do not speak. This means that I am having to guess where everything goes and how, which is a bit worrying as, uneducated as I am, things may go horribly wrong.
So, I have come to you for help! Firstly, I would appreciate it if you could tell me exactly what all the parts that I have are for.
I've got the things I knew there would be, like bows, strings, tuning pegs etc, but there is also a long bit of string, and two little bridge-type things with grooves (presumably for the strings in them.
I'm assuming that the string is for the qianjin, but it'd be nice to have that confirmed; also, no pictures that I have found of the erhu tell me anything about where a bridge should go, or even if there is one.
Oh, and also, do the strings go on with the highest on the left hand side as you look at it from the front, or is it the other way round?
Sorry if you've had loads of topics asking these questions which i've simply failed to locate, and thank you for your (future) help!
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Post by davidmdahl on Oct 26, 2006 14:38:37 GMT
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Post by calden on Oct 26, 2006 15:11:02 GMT
pqleyr: Welcome to the forum and this great instrument. Hope you're getting the answers you need from David's references. They are both good. As you'll read in responses to beginner players, it is very best and easiest for your learning curve if you can find a teacher somewhere. Even someone's elderly Uncle who sits in his room all day and listens to Jingju who plays a bit can show you some basics with the set-up and technique. As they say, one picture is worth a thousand bloated forum posts. But short of finding an instructor soon or you rapidly learning Chinese, here are a few pointers in response to your post. As you look at the erhu front-on, standing up (erhu, not you,) the low-pitched string, D, is on the left. The bridge is placed more-or-less in the center of the head. Some people put it a little above or below, but this is to control overtones and fine-tune the sound. Be sure and put the folded felt (sometimes it's a bit of high-density foam rubber) under the strings behind the bridge. It gets jammed in there with some pressure. This will soften the tone and control overtones and squeezed-cat sounds. About the qianjin: Although David's web reference gives you the proper way to tie it, don't be put off by the interesting English. If you can't figure out exactly what to do, don't sweat it - just tie a loop of three or four loops of string and knot it on the side so it won't get in the way of playing. It should hold the strings off the neck about the distance of the thickness of your finger (someone correct me if this is wrong - this is what I remember, and my ehru is in the basement studio right now...) and look at the picture of how far up the neck it's tied - straightened forearm, elbow on the head, the qianjin is at about where the bottom of the little finger is. If you play violin this will feel a bit long as a scale length - it's more like a viola scale length. If it feels too long for your finger-stretch, work with it for a few weeks. The fingers ought to feel like they're stretching a bit. The danger in shortening the length for ease of playing is that, besides not learning technique that will make you a better player and eventually world-famous, you are making a scale where the notes are too close together and thus harder to get in pitch. THis will be especially true for the 3-4 interval using your third and fourth fingers. You'll see what I mean. For some basic pictures on left-hand placement, go to: eaglelake1.org/erhu.htmlGood luck and start sawing away. Don't be shy about asking questions. We love to blather on (obvious, isn't it.) Carlos |
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Post by davidmdahl on Oct 26, 2006 15:55:59 GMT
Be sure to check out the stringing page on the second of the links I listed in my previous post. www.omnisterra.com/scgi-bin/view.pl/Main/ErhuStringingThe fat long D string goes on the highest peg. Pay attention to the direction the strings are wrapped around the pegs. I second Carlos's recommendation to find a teacher. Even one lesson will save you a lot of time and trouble. Best wishes, David |
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Post by pqleyr on Oct 26, 2006 16:18:21 GMT
Wow, you're very efficient people here! I wasn't expecting so much useful information after just a few hours. Thank you very much, this will all be very useful. I'll let you know how I get on!
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Post by pqleyr on Oct 26, 2006 16:50:19 GMT
Ah, one other thing: I haven't got any pad to go under the strings at all. What could I use for one?
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Post by davidmdahl on Oct 26, 2006 17:24:27 GMT
Ah, one other thing: I haven't got any pad to go under the strings at all. What could I use for one? Any sort of thick cloth will probably work well enough. My erhus have rolled up pieces of felt, so that is probably best. Best wishes, David |
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