banhu

The banhu (Chinese: 板胡; pinyin: bǎnhú) is a Chinese traditional bowed string instrument in the huqin family of instruments.

The banhu developed about the 16th century, and its popularity has continued to the present day. It is a member of the modern Chinese orchestra. By the 18th century one type, the banghu, had become popular in northern China, especially for bangzi (clapper) opera, from which it takes its name.

Both Erhu and Banhu belong to the Chinese bow string musical instrument group, and they are of the same origin. The most obvious difference in their shape is that the sound and vibration sources are different. Erhu uses skin film as the vibration source, while Banhu uses wood as the vibration source.

The banhu is a bowed string instrument, which is popularly used in Northern Chinese folk music, particularly as an accompaniment in folk operas. The body of the instrument is typically made of coconut shell. A small seashell serves as the bridge.

yīnyuè noun [uncount] 1. ( sound) 音乐 [yīnyuè]

According to current archaeological discoveries, Chinese folk music dates back 7,000 years. Not only in form but also in artistic conception, China has been the home of a colorful culture of folk music.

two-string The Banhu is another two-string Chinese bowed string instrument with a clear and articulate tone. Its sound box is covered with a thin ply of wood.

The music of China consists of many distinct traditions, often specifically originating with one of the country's various ethnic groups. It is produced within and without the country, involving either people of Chinese origin, the use of traditional Chinese instruments, Chinese music theory, or the languages of China.

Chinese music is as varied as the people who create it. Chinese music dates back thousands of years and sounds different from Western music thanks to important differences in tone, musical scale, pitch, instrumentation, and individual instruments.

Scale and tonality Most Chinese music uses a pentatonic scale, with the intervals (in terms of lǜ) almost the same as those of the major pentatonic scale. The notes of this scale are called gōng 宫, shāng 商, jué 角, zhǐ 徵 and yǔ 羽.

By its nature, the Chinese music is characterized by gentle sounds reminiscent of a gurgling brook, or birdsong. Many medieval Chinese musicians specially imitated the sounds of nature, thus creating a harmony of music and nature.

In the early 20th century, guoyue became a popular term used loosely to include all music written for Chinese instruments in response to a particular nationalistic consciousness. Later, after Communist victory in 1949, a new term minyue, short for minzu yinyue (民族音乐) meaning national or people's music, was used in ...