Many people don't understand the standard movements of the erhu's finger-pointing and finger-raising, so let's do an exercise demonstration.

Erhu finger lift exercise

In the changing of the handle, especially in the fast downward fingering, it is very important whether the finger lift is agile and powerful. Raising the fingers and pressing the fingers are two opposite movements, because the muscles that are pulled by the fingers are different from those of the fingers, so the lifting of the fingers should also be strengthened. The main points of the exercise:

1. The lifting and falling of the fingers should be kept independent as much as possible, and the lifted fingers should not be implicated and restricted by other fingers as much as possible. The key is to practice the lifting of the ring finger and the little finger.

2. When practicing, the speed of raising the fingers should be flexible, and the movements of raising and pressing down should not be too violent or weak. A certain exaggeration can be allowed during specific training, and the fingers can be raised appropriately.

3. Pay special attention to relaxation. On the basis of relaxation and coordination, gradually increase the speed and frequency of the strings.

middle finger lift

The lifting ability of the middle finger is stronger than that of other fingers, and it can be strictly trained from it first. Pay attention to the following points when you practice to improve the effect of your practice:

1. Master the action of "drop your fingers slowly and raise your fingers quickly".

2. Lifting is an active action. The shorter the time that the finger is pressed on the hole, the faster the lifting is, the better. When the finger is pressed, it should be lifted quickly, and the finger must exert force from the base of the finger.

3. When the finger is "lifted up", the fingertip should not be upturned, "hooked" or close to other fingers; when the finger is dropped and raised, the finger joints should be kept as consistent as possible (arc state).

4. When practicing at a slow speed, you can raise your fingers as much as possible to enhance the strength of the root joints. On the basis of proficiency, the height of raising the finger should be lowered, and the speed of raising the finger should be accelerated.

Note: The practice of the ring finger can refer to this practice method.

downward finger lift

Press several fingers at the same time and then raise them purposefully, which is beneficial for practicing quick finger pressing. For example, in fast descending fingerings, the clarity and graininess of the scale can be significantly improved.

Note: The little finger, which is the most difficult to lift, should pay more attention and be strictly required. This exercise can also be performed alternately with ascending and descending.

The adjacent 2 and 3 finger lifts

The above picture uses the "221" finger shape to practice the lifting action of the ring finger, which can promote the independence of the "lifting and falling" action of the fingers. When practicing on the phoneme stick, in order to enhance the effect of the practice, the 1st and 4th fingers should always be kept on the hole position, and the fingers should be raised as high and fast as possible.

Compared with the first exercise on this page, the example on the left can feel that the sensitivity and elasticity of the ring finger is poor, and it is also a weak finger like the little finger.

There are two exercises that can be used:

1. Raise your middle and ring fingers at the same time.

2. Raise the middle finger and ring finger respectively, that is, lift the middle finger and press the ring finger at the same time; on the contrary, lift the ring finger and press the middle finger at the same time.

Note: On the basis of proficiency, try to speed up the finger lift.

2, 4 finger lift

The above picture adopts the "122" finger shape, and practice the finger-raising action of the separated fingers (2 and 4 fingers are raised at the same time). As in the first picture, the technique of retaining the fingers is used to improve the effect of the practice. This type of fingering in which 1-2 fingers form a semitone and 2-4 fingers form a major third interval is very difficult fingering for those with short fingers.

Note: On the basis of slow training, gradually increase the speed of raising your fingers.

Erhu finger lift exercise

In the changing of the handle, especially in the fast downward fingering, it is very important whether the finger lift is agile and powerful. Raising the fingers and pressing the fingers are two opposite movements, because the muscles that are pulled by the fingers are different from those of the fingers, so the lifting of the fingers should also be strengthened. The main points of the exercise:

1. The lifting and falling of the fingers should be kept independent as much as possible, and the lifted fingers should not be implicated and restricted by other fingers as much as possible. The key is to practice the lifting of the ring finger and the little finger.

2. When practicing, the speed of raising the fingers should be flexible, and the movements of raising and pressing down should not be too violent or weak. A certain exaggeration can be allowed during specific training, and the fingers can be raised appropriately.

3. Pay special attention to relaxation. On the basis of relaxation and coordination, gradually increase the speed and frequency of the strings.

middle finger lift

The lifting ability of the middle finger is stronger than that of other fingers, and it can be strictly trained from it first. Pay attention to the following points when you practice to improve the effect of your practice:

1. Master the action of "drop your fingers slowly and raise your fingers quickly".

2. Lifting is an active action. The shorter the time that the finger is pressed on the hole, the faster the lifting is, the better. When the finger is pressed, it should be lifted quickly, and the finger must exert force from the base of the finger.

3. When the finger is "lifted up", the fingertip should not be upturned, "hooked" or close to other fingers; when the finger is dropped and raised, the finger joints should be kept as consistent as possible (arc state).

4. When practicing at a slow speed, you can raise your fingers as much as possible to enhance the strength of the root joints. On the basis of proficiency, the height of raising the finger should be lowered, and the speed of raising the finger should be accelerated.

Note: The practice of the ring finger can refer to this practice method.

downward finger lift

Press several fingers at the same time and then raise them purposefully, which is beneficial for practicing quick finger pressing. For example, in fast descending fingerings, the clarity and graininess of the scale can be significantly improved.

Note: The little finger, which is the most difficult to lift, should pay more attention and be strictly required. This exercise can also be performed alternately with ascending and descending.

The adjacent 2 and 3 finger lifts

The above picture uses the "221" finger shape to practice the lifting action of the ring finger, which can promote the independence of the "lifting and falling" action of the fingers. When practicing on the phoneme stick, in order to enhance the effect of the practice, the 1st and 4th fingers should always be kept on the hole position, and the fingers should be raised as high and fast as possible.

Compared with the first exercise on this page, the example on the left can feel that the sensitivity and elasticity of the ring finger is poor, and it is also a weak finger like the little finger.

There are two exercises that can be used:

1. Raise your middle and ring fingers at the same time.

2. Raise the middle finger and ring finger respectively, that is, lift the middle finger and press the ring finger at the same time; on the contrary, lift the ring finger and press the middle finger at the same time.

Note: On the basis of proficiency, try to speed up the finger lift.

2, 4 finger lift

The above picture adopts the "122" finger shape, and practice the finger-raising action of the separated fingers (2 and 4 fingers are raised at the same time). As in the first picture, the technique of retaining the fingers is used to improve the effect of the practice. This type of fingering in which 1-2 fingers form a semitone and 2-4 fingers form a major third interval is very difficult fingering for those with short fingers.

Note: On the basis of slow training, gradually increase the speed of raising your fingers.

Erhu up and down three-degree practice

In the basic finger pattern, 1-2 fingers (or 3-4 fingers) are in semitone or whole tone state. The "up and down 3 degrees" fingering here is to make 1-2 fingers (or 3-4 fingers) into the state of major and minor thirds. The purpose of the exercise is to use the index finger to expand and the little finger to expand to extend the interval without changing the handle.

The following is the fingering exercise of the upper and lower minor thirds with the phoneme stick, which is often encountered when playing the key of F.

The picture above is a common F key with the index finger extending upward to form a 1-2 interdigital major third interval. When practicing, keep the following in mind:

1. The left hand cannot hold the phoneme stick tightly. After extending the index finger to the new finger position, press the finger elastically. When the index finger is stretched upward, it should have the ability to move independently. And keep the center of gravity of the hand stable, the shape of the hand should be relatively stable, it cannot move up and down, and there should be no additional movements or instability in the wrist and tiger's mouth.

2. Try to keep the fingers that are not pressing for the time being on standby. Do not affect other fingers due to the upward extension of the index finger, which affects the accuracy of other fingers pressing.

The picture above shows the common F minor finger downward expansion to form the interval of 3-4 minor thirds. When practicing, keep the following in mind:

1. The left hand cannot hold the phoneme stick tightly. After the little finger is extended to a new finger position, the little finger should press the finger elastically.

2. When the little finger presses the finger, the center of gravity of the left hand should not move down, try to maintain the arc state of each joint of the finger, especially make the joint of the little finger as arc as possible, and should not affect other fingers. When the little finger is extended downwards, the hand shape should remain relatively stable.

3. Try to keep the fingers that are not pressing for the time being on standby. Do not affect other fingers due to the downward extension of the little finger, which will affect the accuracy of the other fingers, especially the stability of the index finger.

Practice on the real piano

The picture above is the practice of extending the index finger upwards on the real piano.