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| Moderated by: Tony Provencher, Richard Hefner | Page:   1 2 3   |
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| Why no love for Zhonghu here? | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Wed May 20th, 2009 12:26 am |
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21st Post |
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davidmdahl Approved
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Shanghai Angels wrote: David...I really wish to hear more Zhonghu recordings. It really is a lovely instrument especially if you tie the Qianjin high up...which will make the Zhonghu less bassy but you get more brilliance and sweeter tone. I suppose this would not be hard to try out. I generally prefer the sound of strings under more tension, as they would have to be with the qianjin closer to the pegs. I don't have the longest fingers, so we will have to see what I can manage. Best wishes, David
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| Posted: Wed May 20th, 2009 02:18 am |
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22nd Post |
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ychent Approved 
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I would, if I had a zhonghu. 
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| Posted: Wed May 20th, 2009 07:23 am |
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23rd Post |
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Shanghai Angels Approved
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ychent wrote: I would, if I had a zhonghu. Go buy one.
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| Posted: Wed May 20th, 2009 12:14 pm |
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24th Post |
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woodstock Approved
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David, Does the erquan strings on a regular erhu sound anywhere near the sound of an erquan erhu? Of course I know it cannot replace the real thing. Will
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| Posted: Wed May 20th, 2009 04:28 pm |
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25th Post |
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davidmdahl Approved
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woodstock wrote:
I have to admit that I have never actually played an erquan erhu, although like you, I have heard recordings plenty of times. My impression from my teacher, and my own experience, is that it is pretty common among Chinese musicians to simply use erquan strings on a standard erhu. I have tried this on three different erhus, and the results varied quite a bit. I suspect that some erhus are better suited for the thicker strings. A cheaper erhu with a substandard skin that does not provide good resonance will not sound the best with the erquan strings. I first tried a Man Ruixin erhu, and that worked quite well. The strings count highly in the equation. I found a difference in the sound and response depending on the string brand. I don't know if the quality of the strings was that much different, or they simply matched the erhu better. Best wishes, David
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| Posted: Wed May 20th, 2009 05:07 pm |
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26th Post |
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ychent Approved
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Shanghai Angels wrote: ychent wrote:I would, if I had a zhonghu. It's in the 5-year plan! I came really close to buying one last year..... Last edited on Wed May 20th, 2009 05:17 pm by ychent |
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| Posted: Wed May 20th, 2009 07:30 pm |
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27th Post |
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woodstock Approved
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Sung Wah, Do you think that Abing silver erquan strings would give me some erquan erhu sound on my HEH23? Also, if I put a set of erhu strings on my traditional gaohu, will it sound like an erhu? Thanks. Will
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| Posted: Thu May 21st, 2009 01:22 pm |
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28th Post |
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huqiner Approved
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I posted these links of "On Grassland" earlier: Played by Tian Zaili: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdCTxI4j3-8 Played by Liu Mingyuan (arranger/composer) excerpt only http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxrMgpSSJfw another one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rjb8jCI3YRI I've seen the videos now. The first two is of zhonghu playing of the highest level, this has to be my favourite zhonghu solo piece. The third has a unusual instrument, it's definitely not the normal zhonghu:  The bow hair is not placed in between the string. There appears to be four pegs, that are in line with the bow, ie not like a normal erhu/zhonghu where they are in line with body. The body is not clear in the video, but it looks quite big.
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| Posted: Thu May 21st, 2009 07:53 pm |
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29th Post |
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may Approved 
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Hi David, Sounds very promising! Do you have a sound or video clip of your erhu with the erquan strings? I'd love to hear it. I will give that a try, using erquan strings on one of my erhu. Do you recommend any particular erquan strings? When I become semi decent at playing someday, I will look for the true erquan then. I feel I can't justify spending so much now since I'm not anywhere near where I want to be. Thanks! : ) May davidmdahl wrote:
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| Posted: Fri May 22nd, 2009 07:03 pm |
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30th Post |
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woodstock Approved
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Last edited on Fri May 22nd, 2009 10:27 pm by woodstock |
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| Posted: Fri May 22nd, 2009 10:41 pm |
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31st Post |
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davidmdahl Approved
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woodstock wrote: Since the erquan strings are to G & D, do you play the score such as Erquan Ying Yue the same as if it were tuned to D & A? Thanks The score for EQYY that I have indicates the key of G where 1 = G, so this well-suits the erquan erhu or zhonghu tuned to G/D. If I were to play EQYY on the erhu, I would play it in the key of D so that it would lay in the same familiar position and sound the best. I would expect everyone to do this. Fortunately it is very easy to transpose with Jianpu notation. To tell the truth, when I am playing in G on the zhonghu, in my mind I am playing in D on the erhu. When playing zhonghu or erquan erhu in my teacher's ensemble, I just have to transpose. When the erhu is playing in G, I must play in D. In the same way: erhu - C and zhonghu - G, erhu - F and zhonghu - C. Does that all make sense? Best wishes, David
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| Posted: Sat May 23rd, 2009 02:22 am |
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32nd Post |
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huqiner Approved
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I find it's easier to think of each "key" as a set of fingering patterns, rather than the actual pitches stopped by the left hand fingers. Each key would be defined by the open string notes (in do re mi etc, not actual pitches). For example: standard erhu tuning of D inner string, A outer string: key of D is 1=D, open strings are (do, sol, or 1,5) key of F is 1=F, open strings are (lower octave 6,3) key of G is 1=G, open strings are (lower octave 5,2) key of A is 1=A, open strings are (lower octave 4,1) and so on. The brackets indicate the open string notes (degrees), like in music scores. If the ensemble is playing in D and the zhonghu is tuned to G,D, then the zhonghu would play in (lower octave 4,1). If the zhonghu player hasn't learnt to play in (lower octave 4,1), then they could tune the zhonghu to eg A,E and play in (lower octave 5,2, or sol, re). The zhonghu is still playing in 1=D whatever the actual pitches of the open strings. Actually the easiest thing to do would be to have a zhonghu tuned to D and A one octave lower than the erhu, then the player would play as if it's a erhu but sounding one octave lower. So for "Moon reflected in second spring": 1=G (1,5) the instrument is tuned to G,D and the open strings are do, sol. If you play it on a erhu with standard tuning of D,A; you would still use open strings (1,5), but of course the actual pitches would be 1=D etc. Last edited on Sat May 23rd, 2009 02:43 am by huqiner |
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| Posted: Sat May 23rd, 2009 03:51 am |
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33rd Post |
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davidmdahl Approved
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huqiner wrote: If the zhonghu player hasn't learnt to play in (lower octave 4,1), then they could tune the zhonghu to eg A,E and play in (lower octave 5,2, or sol, re). The zhonghu is still playing in 1=D whatever the actual pitches of the open strings. Actually the easiest thing to do would be to have a zhonghu tuned to D and A one octave lower than the erhu, then the player would play as if it's a erhu but sounding one octave lower. I am not sure how that would be easier than what I described, but whatever works for you is good. Maybe the difference with my ensemble is that we are all playing off the same score. There is no difference between the erhu, dizi, gaohu, and zhonghu written parts, so I just have to be prepared to play in whatever key matches the actual key of the ensemble for each particular tune. I always tune the zhonghu and erquan erhu to G/D, or at least so far. I have not experimented to see how much higher I can tune to without string breakage. I don't like too low, or the strings don't sound as good. I find that loose strings are really hard to play in tune. Best wishes, David Last edited on Sat May 23rd, 2009 03:52 am by davidmdahl |
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| Posted: Sat May 23rd, 2009 05:48 am |
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34th Post |
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davidmdahl Approved
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This is a scan of the packaging for the erquan strings I like so well. On my erhu by WNZ at least, these sound better than the Abing Silver Erquan strings. My teacher bought several sets of these by accident during his trip last year to China. I don't know where they can be purchased online, unless Sung Wah of Eason can find a source.  Best wishes, David
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| Posted: Sat May 23rd, 2009 06:33 am |
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35th Post |
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Shanghai Angels Approved
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I tried an Erquan Erhu in Sung Wah's shop...yes..it is easier to play than Zhonghu and more responsive...but I still prefer the Zhonghu which has more depth and rounder tone. Last edited on Sat May 23rd, 2009 06:34 am by Shanghai Angels |
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| Posted: Sat May 23rd, 2009 05:16 pm |
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36th Post |
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may Approved
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Thanks David. I am quite excited about trying the erquan strings on the erhu. I hope to find these strings or similar ones. Thanks!!! : ) May davidmdahl wrote: This is a scan of the packaging for the erquan strings I like so well. On my erhu by WNZ at least, these sound better than the Abing Silver Erquan strings.
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| Posted: Sat May 23rd, 2009 07:32 pm |
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37th Post |
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huqiner Approved
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Those strings are Huqiu (θδΈη), apparently it's a brand name of the Suzhou No. 1 National Musical Instruments Factory.
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| Posted: Mon May 25th, 2009 08:07 pm |
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38th Post |
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davidmdahl Approved
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Following are links to audio clips of a section of Jasmine Flower (Mo Li Hua) on members of the huqin family: http://home.comcast.net/~davidmdahl/jasmine_erhu.mp3 http://home.comcast.net/~davidmdahl/jasmine_erquan.mp3 http://home.comcast.net/~davidmdahl/jasmine_zhonghu.mp3 http://home.comcast.net/~davidmdahl/jasmine_gaohu.mp3 I hope that the names of the files are explanation enough. The performances are not as good as I would have preferred. The vibrato does not come out as I had expected, and some of the pitches are not exactly on the money, but this is all I have time for just now. I hope that these examples help to illustrate differences in the sound between the instruments. I chose a simple tune in hopes that it would allow the character of the particular instrument to be more apparent. Best wishes, David Last edited on Mon May 25th, 2009 08:11 pm by davidmdahl |
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| Posted: Tue May 26th, 2009 05:40 am |
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39th Post |
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Den Approved 
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thanks for these samples David, I really appreciate them. It gives me a much better understanding of what it is you guys have been talking about recently concerning these particular instruments. As for myself, at the moment, I believe my favorite is the one labeled erquan. Is the size of it slightly larger than the typical erhu? Den
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| Posted: Tue May 26th, 2009 05:54 am |
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40th Post |
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may Approved
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Thanks David! Thanks for all the audios so we can compare the different huqins side by side. : ) May
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