Tancheng Erhu Making Technique

Shandong
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Erhu making technique is a traditional handcraft for making stringed instruments such as erhu and jinghu. The craftsmanship is complex, the materials are strict, and the workmanship is exquisite. It is a comprehensive practice of art, acoustics, mechanics and materials science by craftsmen. It is mainly distributed in Miaoshan Town, Quanyuan Township, Lizhuang Town and other places in Tancheng County. Erhu making technique has a long history in Tancheng County. As early as the Qing Dynasty, it began to hand-make a variety of national musical instruments such as liuqin, erhu, jinghu, banhu, and zhuiqin. It is a well-known "hometown of national musical instruments". Gao Feng'e, a folk artist in Yuezhuang Village, Miaoshan Town, Tancheng County, was born in the late Qing Dynasty. She is good at woodworking and music. She is good at making Tancheng's local musical instrument willow leaf qin. When she was begging and performing in Suzhou, she met a local erhu artist by chance, and communicated with him to understand the making skills and sales of erhu. Later, she bought a batch of erhu and went home to study and sell them. Since then, the erhu making skills in Tancheng have been integrated with the characteristics of Su-style erhu making skills, and the skills have become more mature. Gao Yonggui inherited his father's business and improved his skills under his father's words and deeds. In the 1830s, due to war and famine, Gao Yonggui followed his father Gao Feng'e to sell goods and escape the famine with his own erhu. During this trip, Gao Yonggui worshipped local erhu maker Jin Fengyi as his teacher and systematically learned the Suzhou erhu making skills, laying the foundation for the development of Tancheng erhu making skills. Tancheng erhu making skills have their own characteristics in terms of material selection, shape structure, and process flow. They represent the production characteristics of northern erhu and incorporate the production artists' understanding of erhu art. It is strictly selected for materials, especially the body, the sound box and other parts need to be made of good wood structure, strong stability, consistent color, and excellent acoustic performance. The skills cover basic disciplines such as acoustics, mechanics, and materials science. The process is rigorous, the product is beautiful and generous, and the tone is rich and beautiful, reflecting the artist's superb skills, containing excellent artistic value, and has high economic development value. The erhu making skills are helpful for the masses to get rid of poverty and become rich, develop entrepreneurial opportunities and jobs, and are conducive to meeting the masses' growing cultural life needs. It plays an important role in the implementation of the national art popularization project. It has broad cultural significance and important social functions in contemporary society. It represents the technical level of erhu making in northern my country and is an excellent folk traditional skill. In 2014, the erhu making skills were included in the fourth batch of representative projects of the city and provincial intangible cultural heritage in Linyi City.

Intangible culture related to the heritage

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