Music in Chinatown

The other day we had a music session at Sago Lane in Chinatown.  Uncle Chow gave me and my friend Yang Xing some lessons in how to play the Er Hu (二胡- Chinese violin) and the Xiao Ti Qin (小提琴 - western violin).

 

I’ve been practicing the Er Hu for a few months now.  It is a very nice sounding instrument, but a little difficult to play.  It has two strings and is played with a bow.  The bow is fixed permanently in between the small gap between the two strings.  You play one string by pulling the bow toward your body, and the other string by pushing the bow away.  Notes and scales are played by placing your left hand fingers at different positions on the metal strings.

Uncle showed us how to play the major scale up and down and up and down.  We also tried a simple melody from an old Chinese song called,   月亮代表我的心 (yue liang dai biao wo de xin – the moon reflects the feeling in my heart).

 

We also tried playing the violin – which I had never done before.  It is very difficult to play, requiring deft positioning of your fingers, coordination with a delicate bow, and long endurance for holding up your arm.

 

By the end, my collar bone was quite sore from holding the violin up to my throat.  But you can see from the photos that I was a very serious student!