Mongolian Horse-Head Fiddle (Morin Khuur) Music

Mongolian horse-head fiddle music was inscribed by the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and is the quintessential expression of Mongolian musical culture. The morin khuur takes its name from the carved horse head on its scroll, said to stem from the herders' deep bond with the horse and an old legend by the Mongolian lakes, spreading with the Mongolian people across the plateau; it entered the first national ICH list in 2006.

The morin khuur is marked by its trapezoid body and horse-head scroll, its playing rich in harmonics and glissandi, the bowing prized for a "chore" style that layers a sustained drone beneath a high melody, its tone vast and plaintive, unrivalled at imitating the neighing of horses and the wind over the steppe, ranked with long-song and khoomei as the "three treasures of grassland music."

The morin khuur is a core vessel of Mongolian identity and steppe aesthetics, carrying the herders' praise of horses, grassland and nature, and holding real value for the study of Mongolian music history and the arts of the northern nomads.

The morin khuur can be encountered at Hohhot's Monishan ICH Town, the Inner Mongolia National Song and Dance Theatre, and the great Nadam gatherings.