Mongolian Four-String Fiddle Music

Mongolian Four-String Fiddle Music

Mongolian Four-String Fiddle Music is a national intangible cultural heritage.

　　The Mongolian four-string fiddle in Tongliao City, known in Mongolian as “Hule,” “Hu’er,” or “Hu’er,” is referred to as a “fiddle” in the *Postscript to the Comprehensive Treatise on Pitch Pipes and Modes* compiled during the Kangxi era. The Mongolian four-string fiddle is one of the most distinctive instruments of the Mongolian people, categorized into three types: high-pitched, medium-pitched, and low-pitched. The high-pitched four-string fiddle has a bright and crisp tone, and is commonly used for solo performances, duets, and ensemble music. The medium- and low-pitched four-string fiddles have a rich, mellow tone and excel in performing lyrical melodies. They primarily accompany the traditional Mongolian storytelling art forms of Urtiin Duu and Hoomei from Horqin. These instruments play a very important role in the cultural life of the Mongolian people. Representative pieces of Mongolian four-string fiddle music include *On the Road*, *Eight Tones*, and *Asr* (all for the large four-string fiddle), as well as *Modorema*, *Twisting Grapevine*, and *He Ying Hua* (all for the small four-string fiddle). The culture of the Mongolian four-string fiddle is profound, with rich expressiveness and unique performance techniques. Its melodies are melodious and rustic. It represents an outstanding musical creation of the Mongolian people who practice a semi-agricultural and semi-pastoral lifestyle, and holds significant academic research value in fields such as Mongolian history, cultural studies, folklore, and international cultural exchange.

　　After the Yuan Dynasty, the art of the four-string fiddle spread widely and once flourished in Mongolian Autonomous Region, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, and Han-inhabited areas of North China, exerting a profound influence on Han folk storytelling. Tongliao City, located in the heart of the Horqin Grassland, is currently the most vibrant hub of four-string fiddle art.