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Chinese musical instruments

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Bowed strings

Protect endangered species! All Huqins (erhu, gaohu, etc.) from GGAO Inc. use only man made skins

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Tuning Description Buy

tuned in d1-a1

First described in Song Dynasty (A.D. 420-479), the erhu(二胡) is an ancient instrument which is extremely popular in China today as a medium for both traditional and contemporary music. Consisting of a drum-like mahogany sound box covered with a snake skin head, two steel strings stretched from the sound box along a narrow bridge, sound is generated by a horse hair bamboo bow. The erhu’s musical range spans about four octaves, and while the sound is very similar to a Western violin, it differs by being much more nasal in quality. Because there is no fingerboard against which the player can press, finger pressure is a critical part of erhu technique. Assuming this aspect of  Erhu playing is  mastered, the lack of a finger board actually allows for a tremendous flexibility for the erhu player in controlling the sound and expressiveness of this instrument - a flexibility approaching that of the human voice.

Professional Version

$1000 USD + Shipping

Erhu bridge is one of the most important parts on the erhu which directly affects your erhu sound. These special hand made bridges are based on George Gao's design and the wood materail is carefully selected.

$10 USD + Shipping

 
High Quality Strings for erhu, tuned in D and A

$50 USD + Shipping

tuned in g-d1

Zhonghu is a lager sized erhu tuned a fifth below.

Professional Version $800 USD + Shipping

 

tuned in g1-d2

Gaohu is a higher pitched erhu, it’s mostly used in Cantonese opera and Cantonese music. Today, gaohu is also used in Chinese orchestras as high pitched strings.

$ 800 USD + Shipping

hi banhu

d2-a2

mid-banhu

g1-d2

or in fourth

Instead of snake skin and mahogany, banhu's sound box is made from wood and coconut shell. It sounds bright and harsh. It is a typical Chinese operatic instrument indispensable in many northern Chinese music styles.

$400 USD + Shipping

Select a kind
  A baby version of erhu exclusively used for Beijing opera, the sound box is made from bamboo and snake skin and it is the lead instrument in the opera ensemble.

$ 300 USD + Shipping

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