In the American film Kung Fu Panda, people can hear the sound made by a Chinese traditional musical instrument Erhu. The smooth sound seems to bring a sad and lonely feeling to the listeners.
Actually（事实上）, Erhu is very popular in West erm movies. Many music directors feel that this instrument can add colors and feelings to their films. When people watch these movies, they also enjoy the special music of Erhu.
Erhu also called nanhu, is known as Chinese violin in the West, but in many ways they are different. Like the violin, Erhu is a stringed（有弦的）instrument made of natural wood and played with a bow（弓）, but the violin has four strings while Erhu has only two. The sounds made by each instrument are different.
Erhu was invented in Tang Dynasty（AD 618-907）. In Chinese characters, "Er"is believed to come from the fact that it has two strings; and "hu" means the Western area of China, which is the Silk Road area.
In Chinese folk music, Erhu is well-known for its sad and blue sounds. The most famous piece is Erguan Yingyue. It was written by a musician who was born blind and lived most of his short life as a homeless person. Erhu can not only express sad and blue feeling, but also can produce happy, exciting and lively melody（旋律）, such as the famous piece Horse-racing.
The music of Erhu is close to our hearts. As an American director said, "I used Erhu in my movie though it had nothing to do with Chinese culture. I just wanted to show that the instrument had the ability（能力）to express deeper feelings than a violin. "
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