Erhu came from the Xi people, an ancient wandering tribe in Northern China. During the Tang Dynasty (618AD - 907AD) the name erhu appeared. The word 'er' means 'two', as this instrument has two strings; and the word 'hu' denotes minority tribes in China. While it is called in a variety of names depending on the region of China one comes from, and the shape of the sound box may differ, the name 'erhu' is the most common name used for this instrument.


Erhu belongs to the silk category in the Chinese classification of instruments because silk strings were used originally. The instrument is made up of a long fretless neck with tuning pegs on top and a cylindrical sound box on the bottom with snake skin mounted on one side. A small bamboo bridge is set in the middle of the skin and horse hair bow is inserted between the two strings, which is tuned in a fifth. It is played vertically by placing the sound box on the knee.

Erhu is one of the most popular Chinese musical instruments. It is used as lead instrument in operas, music ensembles, orchestras, as well as for solo. Today steel strings are used in place of silk, making the tone more focus and clear.

This erhu is made with rosewood. It comes with strings, bridge, bow and hard case.

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