Wu Yin and
Si Hu, or Five Yin and Four Hu, are terms for Chinese
opera. They are about the proper pronouncing skills.
Yin means
note in pronunciation. Five Yin, the five notes of the ancient
pentatonic scale, refers to the five places where airstreams pass through to
make different sound. It includes Hou (throat) Yin, Chi
(through teeth) Yin, Ya (teeth) Yin, She
(tongue) Yin and Chun (lip) Yin.
Four Hu, referring to the proper
shapes of the performer's mouth when pronouncing, falls in four categories --
Kai Hu, Qichi Hu, Hekou Hu and Cuokou Hu.
Only when the performer gets full
understanding and control of Wu Yin and Si Hu, can he make
the proper and articulate pronunciation when performing.
Nowadays, when we say someone is Wu Yin
Bu Quan (an idiom), we mean that this person is not good at singing
at all.