Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange
Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [alternative-tunings]

Methods of tuning the open strings on a guitar or other chordophone that differ from what is considered to be standard.

129 questions
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15 answers

Why is dropped D tuning used so often?

Many metal/rock songs use dropped D tuning. What reasons are there for it?
gak
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33
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11 answers

Why do some artists tune their guitars half a step or whole step down?

Is there a reason some guitarists tune down half or whole steps, other than preference or style? It bugs me sometimes when I would like to play along with a song only to find that it's played down half or a whole step. I have purchased software that…
Jasarien
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7 answers

Why do E♯ and F♮ not sound the same (according to Wikipedia)?

I was just reading the Wikipedia page on the note F (as I do every evening) and was confused by this part where it says that even though F♮ and E♯ are enharmonic they “do not sound the same”: E♯ is a common enharmonic equivalent of F, but is not…
Aran G
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2 answers

How many notes are in an octave in Indian classical music? Is it 7, 12, or 22?

What is the logic behind dividing an octave into 22 notes?
Sadhana
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18
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9 answers

What are the advantages and disadvantages of an all-fourths guitar tuning?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of an all-fourths guitar tuning being E, A, D, G, C, F (the high E and B strings being raised a half-step from standard tuning). One reason to do this is that the fretboard now follows a symmetry of the…
Randy Zeitman
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18
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2 answers

What is an "open tuning"?

I know that Keith Richards has been known to use open tunings on some songs, but what is an open tuning exactly and when/why would you use it?
JustnBeaver
14
votes
10 answers

What is the true definition of Drop C tuning?

Since I play bass I will tackle this question from a bass guitar perspective. I've had some musicians state that the following tuning is Drop C tuning (E is dropped to D, and then all strings are dropped 1 additional step): C - G - C - F I've also…
5StringRyan
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13
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2 answers

How can I easily manage different tunings?

This is probably appropriate for a range of instruments, and I have seen mentioned in other questions that professional musicians can cope easily with transpositions, different instruments that play in different keys etc., but my specific problem is…
Doktor Mayhem
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13
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5 answers

What guitar tunings allow many chords without fretting between "live" strings

When playing the guitar, I find it difficult to fret a string without touching the string on either side and ruining the sound. Open tunings make it very easy to play one type of chord by barring across a single fret, but make it almost impossible…
supercat
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1 answer

How accurate are 12TET approximations of Japanese scales?

Is it possible on normal European instruments to play Japanese scales like the Hirajōshi, Insen, In, Ryo, etc, without retuning? If I do have to retune, where can I find out which exact intervals are used? You don't have to tell me exactly how many…
Hagel
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6 answers

Is it mathematically possible to create an equal temperament which matches just interval ratios?

I've coded a Python app which lets us have any number of semitones in an octave in order to experiment with microtonal music. I would like to ask if there's a possibility to create such an equal temperament which will match just interval…
ZenBerry
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12
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5 answers

Are there guitar strings for very high tunings?

David Gilmour used a special tuning for the rhythm guitar in the song Comfortably Numb. It was a regular EADGBE, but the lowest two strings were two octaves higher, and the middle two were one octave higher. I now want to adopt this setup on an old…
Lee White
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12
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4 answers

What frequencies should the violin and viola be tuned to?

I'm using this app to tune my violin, it supports many temperament options. What I want to do is tune the A string to 440Hz first, then comparing the other strings sympathetically to the adjacent string, E by A, D by A and G by D. Here are some of…
Shimmy Weitzhandler
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6 answers

Do I risk ruining my guitar by switching the tuning often?

I'm currently learning a song which needs drop-d tuning. Since I found myself switching back and forth from drop-d to standard tuning a couple of times a day, I wonder if I'm risking damage to the guitar by doing so. [It's an acoustic guitar, in…
user36102
11
votes
6 answers

How best to setup an acoustic guitar for multiple tunings?

I like playing compositions in various tunings, and retune the guitar frequently. I only have one guitar, so that leads to two problems: Strings tend to break (much) faster when tuned up, e.g. D to E. Strings tend to buzz when tuned down, e.g. low…
Vladimir Gritsenko
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