Play the Erhu in GarageBand for iPad
The erhu is a traditional Chinese instrument with a short body and a long neck. The strings are tuned in fifths. The bow is never lifted from the strings, but passes between them, producing a continuous, voice-like sound. Playing styles include glissando, grace notes, trills, vibrato, and a characteristic horse effect, which uses upper glissando harmonics and deep vibrato.
Open the Erhu
Tap the Browser button
, swipe to World, then tap the Erhu button.
Use the chord strips
Tap the Chords/Notes button to switch to Chords view.
To play glissando, swipe a chord strip up and down. You can also tap to play individual notes.
You can add your own custom chords to play.
Play a pattern
Tap the Chords/Notes button to switch to Chords view.
Drag the Autoplay slider to one of the numbered positions.
Tap a chord strip. Tapping a different chord strip plays the same pattern with the notes of that chord.
Tap the chord strip again to stop the pattern playing.
Play individual notes
Tap the Chords/Notes button to switch to Notes view.
Do any of the following:
Play notes: Tap the strings on the fingerboard. Move your finger horizontally to glissando between notes. Move your finger vertically to play notes louder or softer.
Add a grace note: Touch and hold the Grace Note button
as you play.Play trills: Touch and hold the Trill button
as you play. You can control the speed of the trill by moving your finger away from or towards the button.Use the horse effect: Touch and hold the Horse Effect button as you play.
Play notes of a particular scale: Tap the Scale button
, then tap the scale you want to play.
Add vibrato
Drag the Vibrato slider to the right. You can also control the amount of vibrato by tilting your iPad.
Download this guide: PDF