Morin Khuur (Horsehead Fiddle)

The left hand is where the morin khuur parts company with the violin: there is no fingerboard, each of the two strings is a bundle rather than a single strand — traditionally a bundle of horsehair — and a note is made by pressing the side of the fingertip or the back of the nail against that bundle rather than stopping a string against wood. The horse head is carved at the top of the neck, the soundbox is a trapezoid, and the tone comes out broad and slightly grainy, nothing like the focused line of a huqin. A Taipei summer is hard on bow hair and on the instrument, so loosen the bow after you play and keep it away from a window or a stream of air conditioning. This one is a Mongolian instrument, and our Taipei shop is at 1F, No. 138-1, Sec. 1, Xinsheng S. Road if you want to see it before anything else.