Ulaanbaatar
Mongolian national musical instrument - Morin khuur
视频The Morin khuur registered in the UNESCO List of Cultural Heritage in 2003 has been widespread among Mongol people since early 13th century. The horse-headed instrument consists of a trapezoid wooden-framed sound box to which two strings are attached and their strings are made from hairs from horses' tails.
From ancient times the musicians used to create Morin khuur themselves to play it. The traditional playing method of low bass gives the sound of Morin khuur to perform within a diapason of whole 4 octaves in Mongolian yurt and in the houses.
Master instrument makers of Morin Khuur have evolved the traditional design of the musical instrument to meet the present requirements.
Thanks to such modifications the original diapason of Morin khuur has been expanded. Nowadays, horse tail from which the strings had been made are replaced with nylon. This has allowed the range of sounds and the tone of the sounds of the Morin khuur increase and enabled to play the Morin Khuur both on the stage and open air.
The diapason of the Morin khuur fluctuates from lower octave “Fa” to the 3 octave “Fa”.
Morin khuur makers have created the traditional musical instruments with two sizes called “dund garin – middle-sized” and “ikh garin – big-sized”. The playing methods for these two kinds of Morin khuur is similar to that for European Violoncello and Alpha Violin. Thus, the Mongolian Morin khuur has soprano, alto and baritone sounds and enriches the musical culture of our time.
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