Folk music of China dates back to some 4000 years ago. In those days, Chinese instruments were made out of skin, bamboo, earth, clay, and anything else that could be shaped and fashioned into a playable instrument. Nowadays, there are many Chinese orchestras, consisting of many different instruments, such as erhu, gaohu, zhonghu, guqin, yanqin, and many others. Chinese instruments can be divided into 4 main categories, bowed strings, plucked strings, woodwind, and percussion. Below is a diagram of the arrangement of a Chinese orchestra:
Click below to play a sample of traditional Chinese music called the Four Seasons.
