EOP NMN Master---Converting .MIDI to jianpu!! (too lazy to learn staff notation method no1)

http://everyonepiano.com/Software-7-EOP-NMN-Master.html#pinglun

Quick post
link above

k so if u dont know how to read staff notation but u have some epic .midi files you can convert those .midi files to jianpu

i just found this software...its pretty good but when it converts to jianpu, you need to adjust the page a bit to make it all fit

its mainly for piano, but i usually just play the tune on erhu by reading only the left hand part of a piano song, and the highest note of a chord k bye

How not to kill your erhu guide

How not to kill your erhu guide:

1. Always put erhu in case after playing to prevent damage from humidity
2. Avoid storing in very dry or humid conditions
3. Leave packets of silica gel in the case
4. Keep the wood moist to prevent shrinking or cracking if it is made of ebony wood, leave it in case or add wax to the wood
5. Always loosen the bow hair after playing to prevent having a loose bow and bent bamboo
6. Keep instrument clean after use, keep snakeskin and wood in high quality conditions, wipe with fiberless cloth or brush
7. Avoid low humidity, dry environments for ebony wood
8.  Avoid hot humid areas!!!
9. Do not put in direct sunlight
10. Clean rosin powder off wood, strings, and SKIN with a brush or cloth
11. Do not put strange or corrosive substances on strings (alcohol wipe OK), neck, wood (H2O only)
12. Cover strings with paper or cloth to prevent rosin going on from the bow
13. Thicker and tighter snakeskin is louder, but when it is too thick, the vibration is slower. If it is too thin, the sound is thinner and easier to make unwanted noise. If it is too tight, the sound is thin and sharp.
14. Put pencil on top of snakeskin above bridge or on the top of the soundbox to release pressure everyday (Hardworking method)
15. Remove the bridge when you are not playing the Erhu. This is because if the bridge is left in the center of the snakeskin, the center of the snakeskin would be unnaturally seasoned by the pressure the strings exert on the snakeskin. When you are playing the Erhu, the vibrations from your playing would be seasoning the whole snakeskin instead of just the centre. Hence, you remove the bridge when you are not playing even if you're breaking in your new Erhu. (Hardworking method 2)
16. Do not move the bridge; moving the bridge unnecessarily will disrupt the equilibrium the bridge has built up with the snakeskin. Only after 2 years, use a pencil or dongle to release the pressure off the snakeskin on alternate months. (Lazy method)
17. After two or three months, play your new erhu every day. To play, the tension of the piano skin can be moderately tight. At this time, it is necessary to prepare a pencil that is generally longer than the horizontal surface of the soundbox. After playing, the pencil is placed under the string to reduce the pressure on the membrane of the bridge and keep the film. This will make the snakeskin last longer. (Lazy method 2)
18. Every year, use extra virgin olive oil on the snakeskin if it is dry or flaky
19. The width of both 3rd and 4th fingers are the width of the qianjin or the width of thumb
20. Keep erhu in tune (D A)
21. Move dampener closer to the bridge for a more focused/dispersed/less compact tone and closer to the base for a brighter/sharp tone
22. Dampener needs some effort to push under strings, but not too much
23. Material test: Pull the damper apart and see if it stays in shape. If it does not and changes shape, the material is not good enough to be a damper. If you pull it and it stays in shape, it should be fine.
24. Keep strings close to the pegs for a good angle between the bridge and qianjin
25. No oil, sweat, or other substances on bow hair, it will leave a black mark and will not sound
26. Clean rosin off the bow if you not going to play for a long time
27. Rosin the bow every other practice (5-10 slow strokes each side)
28. Rotate qianjin if the quality of the string on the string is worn off
29. Qianjin is positioned where the pinky meets the palm when resting arm on the soundbox
30. Tying the qianjin; 353 or 254 or 161; alternate neck-string when tying with the strings
31. Tilt the bridge in an anti-clockwise direction to keep playing more in tune
32. You can put a sponge folded within the damper
33. If you see signs of the snakeskin on the soundbox softening or sagging, place the instrument in an area with good air circulation on a good weather day to regain the tautness of the snakeskin. Do not place in direct sunlight
34. Change one string at a time to protect the bridge and qianjin
35. Add chalk to pegs’ contact point if they slip
36. Log recordings of your erhu to check if there are changes in tone

Erhu setup checklist: “Why does my erhu sound so sh*tty?”

There are many things concerning the sound quality of your erhu. Most likely, it is your setup and not your instrument. Generally, the only thing that is not due to the setup of your erhu is the fact that you bought a cheap erhu, most likely from eBay or Amazon. Decent erhus should be above $100 USD from a reputable seller. I made this checklist so that whenever you come up with a sound issue with your instrument, you can follow through the list I have here and hopeful fix a few things along the way, while at the same time, solve your problems in the process.

Section 1: The soundbox

1. Is the bridge directly in the center of the erhu?
2. If your erhu is octagonal, then the bridge can be placed slightly higher than the center of the erhu soundbox.
3. Look closely at the notches of the bridge of the erhu. Each notch has a different size depending on if the string is inner (thicker) or outer (thinner). Adjust appropriately.
4. Check how tight your erhu’s snakeskin is. Look at the snakeskin and see if it sags by looking on the side of the erhu. Snakeskin most often sags from the bridge’s pressure on the snakeskin. Looser snakeskin will sound louder and clear, average tightness snakeskin will sound decent, and tight snakeskin will sound thin and sharp. Tighter snakeskin will require some more bowing ability so that the sound will open up as it “breaks in”. If the snakeskin is loose or sagging, then you will need a higher bridge. If you have an erhu with tighter snakeskin, you will need a lower bridge.
5. How the bridge of the erhu is tilted does not matter. Generally, it should be straight, but some players tilt their bridges clockwise slightly, like huqin maestro, Mingyuan Liu, or counterclockwise slightly to stay in tune more by “locking” the A string.
6. Is there enough space in the grooves or notches of the bridge? Make sure there is enough space and the strings aren’t floating above the notches instead of going in them.
7. Is there too much space in the grooves or notches of the bridge? Make sure that the strings are fitted nice and snug, not too loose or tight.
8. Is there a cloth or sponge below the bridge of the erhu? Pull the material used below it and see if it stays in shape. If it does not stay in shape when you pull it, then it does not work and you should dispose of it, or use it as a cloth to clean your instrument. It should be thick enough so that when you push it between the strings and snakeskin, it requires some effort, but not too little effort. The purpose of the cloth to reduce unwanted noise when you are playing open strings and the high registers.
9. Is the snakeskin of the erhu dry? Dry snakeskin has the erhu’s tone crack more, and it looks or feels dry. Dry snakeskin is not shiny and is usually not smooth. If it is dry, moisturize it with extra virgin olive oil, and buffer it lightly, in the direction of the scales, using a cloth with less fibers. Try not to damage the scales of the snakeskin or leave hairs in it. Leave the oil to be absorbed after 18-24 hours and then wipe off the excess.
10. Are you using a mute? Using one will decrease the quality of the sound when you play using it. Try playing the erhu without it as much as you can... now that’s the true sound of your erhu! Also, make sure it fits on the bridge tightly with the hole in the bridge.

Section 2: The qianjin/nut

1. Is the qianjin tied with at least five loops around the strings of the erhu?
2. Is the qianjin tied around the neck at least once before and after it comes in contact with the strings?
3. Is it stable?
4. Did you tie it correctly (see qianjin blog post)
5. Is the space between the neck and strings of the erhu around the width of your thumb? Adjust it if it is too tight or loose.
6. Does it form an angle with the strings? The qianjin should pull the strings towards the neck.
7. Is the part of the qianjin in contact with the strings worn out? If so, you can turn the qianjin loop so that there is a new spot of the qianjin to touch the strings.
8. If you are not using something to tie the strings, and instead using some gadget, still check the criteria above.
9. If you are using some weird qianjin alternative, does it damage the strings? If so, change it. I used the blocky wooden ones with fine tuners in them, and they broke my outer string.

Section 3: Strings

1. Are your strings tuned to D4 on the inside string and to A4 on the outside string?
2. Is the inside string thicker than the outside string, and the outside string thinner than the inside string?
3. Are the metal loops at the end of your erhu strings fitted to the maximum lowest point where the two screws or pins are at the bottom of your erhu?
4. Are the strings looped around the tuning pegs of your erhu closely packed with each other, but not overlapping?
5. Is the inside string looped in a way that you turn the peg away from your body to tune it higher? In other words, is it looped clockwise (in perspective of looking at the peg ends facing you), and is the inside, thicker string facing towards you?
6. Is the outside string looped in a way that you turn the peg towards your body to tune to higher? In other words, is it looped counterclockwise, and is the outer, thinner string facing opposite from your body?
7. If a string touches the another string’s pegs, ignore it.
8. Are the strings fitted into the appropriate notches of the bridge of your erhu?
9. Are the strings at a slightly bent angle, starting from the bridge to the tuning pegs at the qianjin/nut of the erhu? It should be close to 180 degrees, but bent slightly towards the neck.
10. Are your strings looped around the tuning pegs as close to the ends as possible? (To form the slightly bent not 180 angle)
11. If you have small metal fine tuners on your strings above the qianjin, are they screwed in enough so that they do not fall off or vibrate when the erhu is being played?
12. Are the fine tuners of the erhu bending the strings at a dangerously large angle? (>90 degrees=very bad news)
13. Check if the strings in contact where the qianjin is are not crossing, overlapping, or twisted with each other.
14. Play the open strings of each string on your erhu, then suddenly stop playing the string and move the bow hair away from contact with the string. Listen to the sound as it rings and then gradually disappears. If the string makes a constant and unchanging tone, the string is still good. If the string does not have a constant sound and “bends” or changes, then the string is no good and it needs changing. Do this on both strings. You can use a tuner to check the pitch if it changes.
15. Are the strings sticky from rosin? If so, clean it up with an alcohol wipe or water.
16. Are the strings rusty? Is there residue when you rub the strings with a cloth? If so, the strings should be changed soon. See #14 to check the quality of the string.
17. If you are using a qianjin alternative, how much does it bend the strings? If it bends it a lot, then consider switching to a regular one.

Section 4: The bow

1. Are the bow hairs between the two strings?
2. Is the bow able to be nice and tight? When hanging from the outer strings of your erhu, it should be slightly bent or a 180 degree angle.
3. Is the bow hair getting loose by itself? If so, there’s no point in fixing it. You bought or have a crappy bow, change it.
4. Does the bow hair have enough rosin? 5-10 slow strokes on each side daily should be enough.
5. Does the bamboo part of the bow bend outwards? If so, it is too tight.

Section 5: Tuning pegs, neck, and head

1. Are the tuning pegs snug? If they are loose, then use chalk or accumulated rosin powder to help build up friction with the pegs.
2. If the head of your erhu broke off, do not use superglue. Have it fixed by any instrument or furniture repairs person. The head of the erhu does not affect the sound of the erhu.
3. Is the neck clean? Yeah I’m running out of ideas here.

If you still have problems or questions, you can comment them down below. Thanks for reading :D

Common Erhu Playing Issues #1 - Inability to slide/shift positions

lol nobody reads my blog but i write these for fun
*
Problem: Too sticky/too much friction

Try cleaning the instrument first, using a soft cloth and water. Generally, I do not trust anything that is not water for cleaning my erhu, since certain chemicals may damage the wood or its finish (ex: alcohol wipes). If the surface of the neck is still too sticky, using something like baby powder to dry the area from sweat or sticky substances can help. If the strings are sticky from the rosin, then you could try using something slippery, like lip balm or instrument wood wax. Keep in mind that some strings can rust, so you can apply some anti-rust product like TCM. To prevent the strings from becoming sticky, you can put a cloth or a long piece of paper over the strings before you fold the bow with your erhu.

Problem: Bad technique

When you slide or shift positions, you need to move your entire arm in the process, and at the same time, have the wrist follow through as you move your hand up or down. Also remember that the higher the position of the note, the harder you need to press on the strings. If it's still too hard for you to press on the strings, either keep practicing or use one of those finger exercising tools like GripMaster, or try playing the soprano/gaoyin banhu (very tight strings).

Make sure you ace this because erhu players that are pretty darn good can tell that you are an amateur by looking at your form. The wrist movements of the left and right hands are a good indication of whether a player really knows what he/she is doing. Likewise, whether or not the elbow comes first when pulling/pushing the bow is another weak point in amateur erhu players. (yes is gud)

Take a look at the pictures below.

This is the normal hand posture.
Do not forget that the fingers are pointed downwards.

This is the hand when it shifts.
The wrist follows through first going up
when you are sliding up, and vice versa.

Symbols in Erhu Simplified/Numbered Notation (jianpu) 简谱

Warning: translation errors
This was made last year BTW

So some people like to stick with western staff notation when playing music. However, when you play Chinese music, it's best to use jianpu (numbered/simplified notation), because if you can read it, you are able to explore Chinese music heaven! Bonus points for being easier to read too.

I created a bunch of charts so that people are who new to the notation can use them as a tool. I added an annoying water mark so ppl wont steal my hard work.

What kind of snakeskin is used for erhu-making?

There are many types of snakes used for erhus. Most are from the genus Colubridae or Pythonidae.

What size/part of the snake:

The abdomen of the snake is usually weak and prone to break during the skinning process because it is unable to withstand the high tension needed for an erhu. The backside of the snake is the most used part, as it is durable. Some luthiers prefer to use snakeskin near the tail. To reach the width of the soundbox of an erhu, the snake must be of considerable size. 

Convenience:

In mainland China, luthiers want to select snakes in their vicinity that are suitable for the erhu. Some examples include: 

Zaocys dhumnades (Southern China, Taiwan)

Elaphe carinata (China, Taiwan)

Python molurus (introduced in Florida, USA from South/SE Asia)

Python reticulatus (Southeast Asia)

Basic List:

The following snake species are used by erhu luthiers:

Burmese python:

An octagonal erhu

Erhu skinned with the green burmese python

Python molurus:

a standard erhu

Python reticulatus:

an octagonal erhu

Elaphe carinata:

an old gaohu

Zaocys dhumnades：

a jing-erhu

Jinghus (top=erhuang style, bottom=xipi style)

Some of Bach's Violin Concertos, arranged for erhu --- BWV 1041 and BWV 1042（a小调协奏曲／E大调协奏曲）二胡版

I've scanned some more sheet music (terribly), of Bach's violin concerto in A minor and E major. I uploaded the scores for both and included a demonstration for the concerto in A minor by some epic dude.

These pieces are probably in the intermediate/low-advanced category. There's just a lot of shifting and 16th notes for both. This really exercises your fingers if you aren't used to this style.

For erhu, the concerto in A minor is more popular for erhu, and I haven't come across any recording of it being performed yet on the Internet. If I have time, I might upload my recording for educational purposes.

Violin Concerto in A Minor BWV 1041 a小调协奏曲 (Difficulty: ~7/10)

There are many vids on the Internet of 7-9 year olds being able to play this nicely on the erhu. If you can't do it, instead of feeling inferior, try thinking about what you can accomplish in those few years. *cringe*

K here's the vid demo

The erhu used in the performance is an electric erhu manufactured by Shanghai Dunhuang. I think the price of it is around...2000 USD, but cheaper models are around 500 USD. Just buy an Indian small leaf sandalwood erhu instead. Oof, I got sidetracked. Also, idk the dude's name.

Violin Concerto in E major BWV 1042 E大调协奏曲 (Difficulty: ~5.5/10)

Easier than BWV 1041, in my opinion