Tiqin

The tiqin is a name applied to several two-stringed Chinese bowed string musical instruments in the family of instruments.

Types

There are several types of :

The used for opera
The used for Cantonese music
The used in Fujian and Taiwan
An antiquated name for the sihu

Overview

The used in Cantonese music, also known as the is a member of the "hard bow" ensemble in Cantonese opera. Its neck is made of hardwood, often or . The 's sound chamber is made of a very large section of bamboo. Instead of snakeskin, the face is made of a piece of wood or palm wood. The back of the sound chamber is made of the natural joint in bamboo, with sound holes cut in it. The used today in Cantonese opera is tuned to 仜-士/Mi-La/E-A
The name also occasionally referred to what is now called the sihu.
Additionally, the term is used in Chinese as a generic term referring to Western bowed string instruments of the violin family: