erhu

The erhu is the most prominent member of the huqin family of Chinese bowed string instruments, with a history spanning over a thousand years. It consists of a long bamboo neck, two silk or steel strings, and a small hexagonal or octagonal resonator covered with python skin. Unlike Western bowed instruments, the erhu has no fingerboard — the player presses the strings without touching the neck, and the bow hair passes between the two strings rather than across the top. The erhu's tone — warm, reedy, and intensely vocal — can express extraordinary emotional range, from piercing sorrow to exuberant joy. It is central to Chinese traditional orchestras, opera, and folk music, and has increasingly appeared in contemporary classical and film music. Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble has brought the erhu international exposure, and composers like Tan Dun have written concertos for it with Western orchestra. The instrument's ability to mimic the inflections of Mandarin speech gives it an almost linguistic expressiveness.