Khuchir

(also khuuehir), a Buriat and Mongolian folk instrument with four or two strings, played with a bow. The khuchir, whose body may be circular or have six to eight sides, is made of wood or, occasionally, metal. The long, round neck is fretless, and its lower end passes through the body of the instrument; the upper end terminates in a head with pegs. The silk or metal strings are tuned to a fifth. Some of the hairs of the bow, which resembles an archer’s bow, pass between the first and second strings, the others between the third and fourth strings; the instrument is bowed so as to produce harmonics, or flageolet tones (seeFLAGEOLET). The khuchir is used for solo performance and as an accompaniment to folk singing; the tempered, or soprano, khuchir is used in ensembles and folk orchestras.