Erhu Fingering Chart — First Position in All Six Keys

First position is the hand frame closest to the qianjin. On each string the open note is where you start, and fingers 1, 2, 3 and 4 play the next four notes of the major scale you are in. That one rule, applied to the two open strings, D4 and A4, produces every table on this page. Nothing in it is a matter of style; it is arithmetic on the scale.

01 The rule: four scale steps above each open string

Pick the key, write out its major scale, and read upward from the open string. In 1 = D the scale is D E F♯ G A B C♯. Above the open inner D that gives E, F♯, G and A for fingers 1 to 4. Above the open outer A it gives B, C♯, D and E. Every step is either a whole step (two semitones) or a half step (one). Fingers a half step apart sit close together; fingers a whole step apart leave a wider gap.

1 = D, both strings. The gaps are drawn to scale for equal-tempered semitones: a half step (½) is a little over half a whole step, and every step gets shorter as the hand moves away from the qianjin. Your erhu’s real distances depend on its string length.

In all six key systems, finger 4 on the inner string lands on A4, the same pitch as the open outer string. That gives you a free intonation check: play finger 4 on the inner string, then the open outer string, and listen for the same note. If finger 4 is flat, move it a little away from the qianjin; if it is sharp, move it toward the qianjin.

02 The chart, key by key

How to read a cell: the large number is the jianpu degree, with a dot above for the higher octave and a dot below for the lower one. Under it is the note name with its octave number, so A4 is the A above middle C. The last column names the fingers that sit a half step apart on that string.

1 = D (1–5) · inner D is 1, outer A is 5
String	Open	Finger 1	Finger 2	Finger 3	Finger 4	Half steps
Inner D string	1D4	2E4	3F♯4	4G4	5A4	2–3
Outer A string	5A4	6B4	7C♯5	high 1D5	high 2E5	2–3

1 = G (5–2) · inner D is 5, outer A is 2
String	Open	Finger 1	Finger 2	Finger 3	Finger 4	Half steps
Inner D string	low 5D4	low 6E4	low 7F♯4	1G4	2A4	2–3
Outer A string	2A4	3B4	4C5	5D5	6E5	1–2

1 = F (6–3) · inner D is 6, outer A is 3
String	Open	Finger 1	Finger 2	Finger 3	Finger 4	Half steps
Inner D string	low 6D4	low 7E4	1F4	2G4	3A4	1–2
Outer A string	3A4	4B♭4	5C5	6D5	7E5	open–1

1 = C (2–6) · inner D is 2, outer A is 6
String	Open	Finger 1	Finger 2	Finger 3	Finger 4	Half steps
Inner D string	low 2D4	low 3E4	low 4F4	low 5G4	low 6A4	1–2
Outer A string	low 6A4	low 7B4	1C5	2D5	3E5	1–2

1 = A (4–1) · inner D is 4, outer A is 1
String	Open	Finger 1	Finger 2	Finger 3	Finger 4	Half steps
Inner D string	low 4D4	low 5E4	low 6F♯4	low 7G♯4	1A4	3–4
Outer A string	1A4	2B4	3C♯5	4D5	5E5	2–3

1 = B♭ (3–7) · inner D is 3, outer A is 7
String	Open	Finger 1	Finger 2	Finger 3	Finger 4	Half steps
Inner D string	low 3D4	low 4E♭4	low 5F4	low 6G4	low 7A4	open–1
Outer A string	low 7A4	1B♭4	2C5	3D5	4E♭5	open–1, 3–4

03 Where the half steps fall

Half steps in first position · open–1 means open string to finger 1
Key	Inner D string	Outer A string
1 = D	2–3	2–3
1 = G	2–3	1–2
1 = F	1–2	open–1
1 = C	1–2	1–2
1 = A	3–4	2–3
1 = B♭	open–1	open–1, 3–4

Read this column before you start a new key. A close pair is where a hand trained in the last key leaves the wrong gap. In 1 = D, fingers 2 and 3 sit together on both strings. Switch to 1 = F and the inner string’s close pair moves down to fingers 1 and 2, while on the outer string finger 1 now sits right next to the open string, because A to B♭ is a half step. 1 = B♭ is the only key here with a half step straight off both open strings.

04 Octave dots, and why 1 = C starts high

Jianpu marks octaves with dots: none for the home octave, one above a number for the octave higher, one below for the octave lower. These tables put the home octave where the tonic falls between D4 and C♯5, the octave that starts on the open inner string. So 1 = D is D4, 1 = G is G4, 1 = F is F4, 1 = A is A4, 1 = B♭ is B♭4, and 1 = C is C5 rather than C4. That is why the open D in 1 = C is written as a low 2. Printed music can choose a different home octave for the same key; the numbers stay the same and only the dots move.

05 A five-minute first-position routine

Tune first. Open D4 and A4, checked on a tuner (how to tune both strings). A flat open string makes every finger above it sound wrong.
Say, then play. Pick a key and say the five numbers on the inner string out loud, open to finger 4. Then play them slowly, one bow per note.
Check finger 4. After the inner finger 4, play the open outer string. They should be the same A.
Cross to the outer string. Play its open string to finger 4 the same way.
Join them. Inner open to finger 3, then outer open to finger 4, up and back down. That is the first-position scale of the key.
Change key. Move to the next key system and watch which pair of fingers now sits together.

Questions

What are the erhu finger positions in 1 = D?

On the inner D string: open D is 1, finger 1 (E) is 2, finger 2 (F♯) is 3, finger 3 (G) is 4 and finger 4 (A) is 5. On the outer A string: open A is 5, then B (6), C♯ (7), D (high 1) and E (high 2). Fingers 2 and 3 sit a half step apart on both strings.

Which erhu fingers sit close together?

The two fingers a half step apart, and that depends on the key: 2–3 on both strings in 1 = D; 2–3 inner and 1–2 outer in 1 = G; 1–2 inner and open–1 outer in 1 = F; 1–2 on both in 1 = C; 3–4 inner and 2–3 outer in 1 = A; open–1 inner, and open–1 plus 3–4 outer in 1 = B♭.

Why does finger 4 on the inner string match the open outer string?

In all six keys the fourth scale note above D is A, a perfect fifth higher, and the outer string is tuned to that A. Play the two one after the other as an intonation check.

Do I retune the erhu for a different key?

No. The strings stay D4 and A4. The key changes which number each finger plays and where the half steps fall.

Erhu Fingering Chart First Position in All Six Keys