In this article I want to clarify a little guitar tunings. What are they, why were they formed this way, and how to generally tune your guitar. Firstly, a little educational information. The order is indicated by letters. The letters are the notes that produce the open strings from the sixth (thickest) to the first (thinnest). Let's start with, so to speak, the standard - this standard guitar tuning.
Standard tuning E A D G B E (E)
In this tuning, the guitar is tuned in fourths, i.e. the interval between each string is a fourth. Read what it is. The exception is the second and third strings, the interval between which is a major third. They say in the jargon that the guitar is tuned in "E", i.e. these are the notes on the first and sixth strings. By tuning your guitar in this tuning, you can easily play regular full chords, major and minor. And in general, it seems to me that 90% of all songs can be played in it.
Low tuning Eb Ab Db Gb Bb Eb (E flat)
If all the strings are tuned to standard tuning and lowered each half a step, we get a lower tuning of E flat. The spacing between the strings is the same as in standard E tuning. What is this system used for? Mainly to make it easier for the vocalist to sing or for a lower and heavier sound (for example in heavy metal and other rock music).
Low tuning D G C F A D (D)
If in the standard tuning all the strings are lowered even lower - by 2 semitones, then we will get the D tuning. Here also the intervals are preserved. Essentially everything lowered tunings this type is just a standard one with a lower setting. Used again for a heavier and lower sound, for example in heavy metal. The standard can be lowered further and get, for example, C (to). The meaning will be the same.
Dropped D: D A D G B E
Now this is more interesting. Take the E standard and lower the 6th string to whole tone. Now we have 2 D notes on open strings. Fifths on the sixth string are pressed not with 2 fingers, as in the standard one, but with one. This is probably the most popular tuning in alternative metal. Gives a meatier sound and expands the guitar's range. Well, convenience appears when playing fifths (power chords).
Dropped C: C G C F A D
Everything is the same as in the case of Drop D, only we take the lowered tuning of D as a basis and also lower the sixth string an additional tone. The favorite tuning of all metalcore players.
So, by equivalently lowering the strings, you can tune the guitar even higher or lower. That is, in fact, all these tunings above are variations of 2 tunings: standard and drop. They are probably the most popular among guitarists. Using just them, you can play 99% of all the songs in the world with ease. In addition to them, there are also a lot of non-standard tunings, but they are quite rarely used. And in general, you yourself can even come up with your own guitar tuning and figure out how to play it =)
One of the problems that every guitarist faces while learning is choosing a guitar tuning. Guitar tuning is determined by the sound of open strings; accordingly, the transition to one or another key is carried out by tuning the strings to the corresponding notes. Below is a list of the most widely used tunings:
. "Spanish" or standard. This tuning is considered a classic. This is where mastery of playing technique begins. Many people continue to play it after completing their training, since this system is universal. Designation - EBGDAE, according to strings (1st to 6th).
Drop D. One of the popular tunings, often used in rock music, especially by hard rock performers. Literally translated as "lowered D". The reason for this name lies in the fact that in this tuning the 6th string sounds a tone lower than in the standard tuning, that is, it corresponds to the note D (D). This type of tuning sounds best on an electric guitar.
Drop C. This guitar tuning, like the previous one, is based on the fact that the sixth string sounds a full tone lower than the first. However, in the case of Drop C, strings one through five are first tuned exactly one tone lower from standard tuning. That is, we get DAFCGC. In this tuning the guitar sounds lower and heavier. Used primarily in heavy music.
Open D. This tuning is most often used when playing slide guitar.
High and low tunings. Often musicians lower or raise the guitar tuning by a semitone, a tone, or even more. All strings can be tuned the same or differently. However (especially classic ones) when played in high formation they are at risk of being damaged.
. Instrumental scale. Implies a standard tuning for another instrument. You can tune it like a balalaika, charango, or cithara.
I would also like to mention that the guitar, unlike many musical instruments, is not tuned in fifth scale. Why, despite the fact that the fifth gives the purest and most pleasant sound, is the guitar tuned in such an incomprehensible, at first glance, way? The answer to this question is more than simple: standard guitar tuning provides the greatest simplicity and ease of play.
Where to start? Naturally, with mastering the technique of playing in the classical (Spanish) system. Only after studying musical literacy, especially chords, you can choose in which tuning it is more convenient to play this or that chord, this or that song. It is worth noting that it will be much more difficult for a beginner to play in an alternative formation, especially if he does not know the barre technique.
If you play or plan to play in the future, it's worth special attention on the geometry of the neck, especially the height of the strings. The guitar may need to be re-tuned to avoid loose strings and rattling when played in the new tuning. Electric guitars for beginners are not designed for playing alternative tunings, and their sound, for example, in Drop C, may not please you. Be sure to take this into account when purchasing!
If you have already decided to start playing the guitar, then the first thing you need to do when you pick up the instrument is to tune the guitar. About how it is carried out setting 6 string guitar and this article tells the story. Let's look at how to tune a guitar with and without a tuner. Never play an out of tune guitar - it will completely damage your hearing!
Standard guitar tuning
Tuning a guitar requires each string to sound a specific note. The set of notes of all strings is called the tuning of a guitar. Tuning a 6 string guitar can be done in different tunings, but we will focus on the most common - classical system which is more often called standard formation guitars.
In short, any tuning is written as a sequence of notes of the open strings from the first to the sixth. The standard tuning is written like this:
E B G D A E
What does it mean in Russian:
Mi Si Sol Re La Mi
As you can see, the first and sixth strings sound the note Mi , but in the case of the sixth string it is Mi second octave (thick string), and the first string produces Mi fourth octave (thin). There will be more about this a little later.
Guitar tuner
In the age of technology, it would be strange if there was no gadget for tuning a guitar. But it exists and there are just a lot of options. Not only is this a very convenient thing, it is also very cheap.
This is a small clothespin that attaches to the headstock, i.e. to the place where the pegs are on the guitar. The clothespin contains a sensor that detects sound vibrations going about t strings Thanks to this, the tuner does not pick up external noise.
We will look at what these strange letters on the screen are, but for now I want to please you. The cost of this miracle on AliExpress only 3$. In music stores, such tuners are sold many times more expensive. I recommend buying it if necessary. It will come in handy, I use this myself. It's better to buy in this store .
Tuner for tuning a guitar on your phone
Today there is more than one online service for tuning a guitar. There are also enough programs for PC, for example the same Guitar Pro allows you to do this. But it is much more convenient to install the application on your smartphone and not depend on the Internet and/or computer.
There are tons of guitar tuning apps for smartphones. But the most complete and advanced among them all was and remains to this day the gStrings guitar tuner. I've been using it for 5 years now.
You can download it from Google Play Market ‘ A.
After all the changes made by the developers, the application has become maximally adapted to living conditions. You just need to take your phone out of your pocket, open the app and start plucking strings, not necessarily guitar strings. The application is omnivorous and is great for tuning a guitar, as well as for tuning a bass guitar, violin and any other instrument. Even the drums were once pulled up on it.
At the top of the tuner screen are consecutive notes. In the center is a tuned note, and an arrow indicates what to do with this note. If the arrow is to the left of the center of the screen, it means the note is not played. If it’s to the right, it’s overtightened.
A note is considered tuned if the arrow points to the center, i.e. on the note itself, while its color changes, in this case from gray to white. Today, all tuners have a similar intuitive interface.
As already shown above, notes are indicated by the first letters of the English alphabet. The letters are in order as in the English alphabet, but starting with the note A:
- Do - C
- D - D
- Mi - E
- Fa - F
- Salt G
- A - A
- C - B
When talking about standard tuning, octaves were mentioned. Which octave a note belongs to is indicated in the program by a number next to the note. Under the note, its frequency is indicated in Hertz (Hz). The center of the screen shows the sound frequency in at the moment. For standard tuning this is:
- 1 string — E 4 — 329.63 Hz
- 2nd string — B 3 — 246.94 Hz
- 3rd string — G 3 — 196.00 Hz
- 4th string — D 3 — 146.83 Hz
- 5 string — A 2 —110.00Hz
- 6th string — E 2 — 82.41 Hz
Don't get confused! otherwise in best case scenario You'll break the string, or at worst, you'll damage the guitar.
Tuning a 6 string guitar by notes
Today, given that everyone has a smartphone or two in their pocket, this option for tuning a guitar can be considered outdated, but you shouldn’t write it off. One way or another, everyone who plans to continue playing the guitar should know it. You never know, suddenly the battery on your smartphone runs out)
The method is based on the fact that each subsequent string is tuned to the previous one by ear, by resonance. As we already know, the open first string produces the note Mi. If we hold down the second string at the fifth fret, we will also get the same note Mi and a resonance will arise between them, i.e. they will begin to enhance each other's sound.
This means that in order to tune the second string, it needs to sound the same as the open first string at the fifth fret. Therefore, we clamp the second string at the fifth fret, pluck the first string, and then the second, and try to determine whether the second string sounds higher or lower.
At the same time, to make it easier to determine whether the second string is understretched or overtightened, you can move from the fifth fret to other frets and look for which fret the resonance will occur on. If it occurs on higher frets (6,7,8...) then the second string should be tightened even more. If resonance occurs if you hold the second string at lower frets (1-4), then the second string is overtightened.
Guitar beats and tuning
When you come very close to the desired note and the difference between the notes is very close, so-called beats occur. Beating is the result of a slight difference between two close frequencies that are trying to resonate, but because of the slight difference, the sound is either strengthened or weakened. Graphically it looks like this:
When setting acoustic guitar, the beats are not only perceptible by ear, but also clearly felt by the body when touching the soundboard (body) of the guitar. This is especially noticeable on the upper bass strings, due to their thickness and lower sound frequency.
The closer the sounds of two notes correspond to each other (the second string on the fifth fret and the open first), the faster the beats will occur. And when the notes coincide, the beats will stop altogether. You just have to feel it and then you can adjust it without thinking.
By analogy for the other strings. The third string should sound the same as the second open string when plucked at the fourth fret. To tune the 4th, 5th and 6th strings, you should clamp them at the fifth fret and compare their sound with the sound of the previous string.
It turns out that all strings except the third are tuned according to the resonance between them at the fifth fret and the previous string, and the third string is similar, but is clamped at the fourth fret.
Sheet music for guitar tuning
In this way, you can tune the guitar in reverse order or starting from any string, but there is one thing in this method weak point. Initially, one of the strings must be tuned from outside. The tuning fork was invented for these purposes. A standard tuning fork produces an A note with a frequency of 440 Hz. Those. This is the first string on the fifth fret.
Especially for you, a 20-second file with the note A (440Hz) produced by a standard tuning fork was created in the Audacity audio editor. Well, and at the same time 20 seconds of the sound of the first string.
Download or listen online sheet music for guitar tuning:
You can create the sound of any note yourself in Audacity. How to do this, read the article:
Another instrument, such as a piano or a second guitar, can also serve as a reference. But it’s better to memorize some melody for yourself, preferably using all the strings separately, by playing which you could accurately determine whether the instrument is out of tune and which strings should be tuned.
For me personally, such a melody is the introduction of Viktor Tsoi’s song “Aluminum Cucumbers.” If you develop auditory memory and remember the sound of notes, then you can tune a guitar without a tuning fork, and even more so without tuners, without any problems. It just takes practice and regular play.
And finally, a video showing another guitar tuning option:
The article was written exclusively for the site
In addition to the usual way to tune a guitar, there are alternative tunings.
Guitarists need them to diversify their performance and achieve an unusual or powerful sound, and also to simplify finger placement while playing. If you have problems with the setup process, there is a separate section about this on our website.
In this article, the tuning will be indicated from the sixth string to the first. Some settings are easier to remember this way.
Classical tuning and its variations
EADGBE - classic tuning
The generally accepted system, also called “Spanish”, is most often used to write songs. As an example, consider Ed Sheeran – Shape of you. Ed plays this song in classical tuning.
Variation one - DADGBE
Among guitarists it is called a drop-D, since the sixth string drops a tone to the note D. In it, power chords are pressed with one finger, which is why drop-D is often used in rock music.
Turns into this:
Stockholm Syndrome by Muse is played in this tuning.
Variation two - DADGBD
Also called Double drop-D, similar to the previous one, but the first string goes down a tone. It is convenient to play parts through the repeated note D, both on the sixth and on the first string. Skillet's Circus For A Psycho plays the main riff in this tuning.
Variation three - DADGAD
Among guitarists it is called “deadged”, often used in folk music because of its ease of imitation of bagpipes and sitar. Open strings do not form thirds, so this tuning is neither major nor minor, but modal. The first, second and sixth strings are lowered a tone. White summer by the Yardbirds plays just like that.
Drops and capo
Next, we will consider tunings formed by a uniform change in all strings from the classical tuning and its variations. The downward movement adds “heaviness” to the sound. The vocalist may be more comfortable singing. As the tuning goes down, it is better to switch to thicker strings; their tension will decrease and it will be uncomfortable to play.
Step one - D#G#C#F#A#D#
It’s also half-step-down, “half a step down.” All strings are evenly lowered by a semitone.
Guns`n`roses play their classic Sweet Child O`mine a little lower than it might seem.
Step two - CGCFAD
Popular in metal and heavy rock drop-C. This is the tuning that is almost always used, with all strings down a tone and the sixth string down another tone, i.e. one tone down from drop-D. First two albums System groups of a Down played in drop-C. For example, the song Toxicity from the album of the same name.
Step three - BF#BEG#C#
Another tone lower than the previous one, also known as drop-B. Even harder and more aggressive. Slipknot used this tuning on their first albums. Wait and bleed is no exception.
We will not consider the constructions below here, since in modern music For even greater reduction, guitars with additional strings, 7-, 8-, 9-strings, are used.
Capo
To improve the tuning, the guitar is very rarely retuned; for this, a capo is used, which evenly clamps all the strings.
This creates a movable threshold, and if you need to play a song in a different key, for example, for the convenience of the vocalist, you just need to move the capo to the desired fret.
For example, the Scarborough fair by Simon and Garfunkel is played with a capo at the seventh fret, which creates a BEADF#B tuning 3.5 steps higher than the classic one.
Open formations
Open tuning is the tuning of all strings not by intervals, but by the notes of a chord.
Such tunings are often used in folk music and when playing with a slide - usually a metal or glass cylinder that is placed on the finger of the left hand. It is moved along the strings as a “moving” fret.
Let's look at some commonly used open tunings.
Open D major Open D - DADF#AD
We have already discussed the DADGAD tuning as a variation of the classic tuning. Let's lower the third string another semitone - we get the notes of the D major chord.
For example, let's take the composition of guitarist Alain Johannes – Make God Jealous.
Open D minor Open D Minor - DADFAD
Let's lower the third string another semitone, and we'll end up in D minor, a more “sad” chord. Let's evaluate the changes in sound using the song Wine and Roses by John Fahey.
Open G major Open G - DGDGBD
Let's return the second and third strings to classical tuning, but let's drop the fifth one tone - we move into a G major chord. This tuning was used by Jimmy Page in the composition Bron-Y-Aur Stomp as part of Led Zeppelin.
Modal scale G Modal G - DGCGCD
This system has the same features as discussed above. modal system in D (DADGAD), it is convenient to play both major and minor songs. Jimmy Page also used this system. He generally used many non-standard tunings and was their popularizer. For example, Rain song performed jointly with Robert Plant.
Open G minor Open G Minor - DGDGA#D
By lowering the second string a semitone, we form a G minor chord from the open strings. It is used on guitarist John Renbourn's Mist-Covered Mountains of Home and imitates a lute.
Open A major Open A - EEAAC#E or EAC#EAE
There are two setup options. In the first case, we raise the second, third and fourth strings by a tone, forming an A major chord.
In the second case, lower the second string by a tone, the third by a tone and a half, and the fourth string by a half tone. This variation is often found in delta blues compositions, one of the earliest blues movements.
Robert Johnson uses a slide to play in this tuning on Crossroads Blues.
Open C major Open C - CGCGCE or CGCGGE
The sixth, fifth and fourth strings repeat drop-C, the second string is raised by a semitone (or lowered by two tones), the third and first - as in the classics.
Chris Cornell's song Burden In My Hand, performed by Soundgarden, is written in this tuning.
There are many more rarer customization options. Nothing prevents a musician from tuning the instrument the way he wants or needs.
Come to us and we will teach you how to play the guitar and find innovative solutions to musical problems.
The guitar is one of the most famous and at the same time unpredictable instruments that can touch the most sensual strings of the soul. But the guitar itself also has them.
Few people pay attention to the name of the strings on a guitar, considering it completely unnecessary. But often the performance of any composition depends on the setting. Any dissonance causes associative rejection of the composition as a whole. But in this material The focus will be on instrument tuning and use for beginning musicians.
Guitar string name: classic version
In general, it is considered a classic. However, one can recall quite a lot of examples of great composers who preferred seven strings to six (at least Vysotsky).
However, according to music theory and solfeggio, the names of the strings do not differ at all. Based on the rules established general theory music, the notes on which any instrument is built have their own names and abbreviations in the form of Latin symbols and language interpretations. In our case it is:
- C - to.
- D - re.
- E - mi.
- F - fa.
- G - salt.
- A - la.
- H - B (B - B-flat is indicated separately).
(sharps, flats, bekars or their double versions) are applied accordingly. But there are only 6 strings.
The string on the guitar at the top of the neck has the same sound as the first string at the bottom three octaves apart. Therefore, both the first and sixth are, as it were, dominant, but only in relation to a 6-string instrument (the main tuning is in E minor).
Mi-si-sol-re-la-mi: is the sequence in tuning correct?
Quite often, many beginning guitarists trying to understand the basics of the technique are immediately faced with the problem of tuning, not knowing which string corresponds to which symbol in the designation or sound.
If you go through the search, sequentially from the sixth string to the first, it will look like “e-la-re-sol-si-mi”. And the above sequence is reverse.
Such a sequence is not suitable for a flat sequence, since it should look like “si-mi-la-re-sol-do-fa”. However, we digress from the topic.
Fundamental tone and tuning
The name of the strings, as is already clear, is standard for any instrument. As for the (6-string) this is done quite simply.
There are several ways in which unison is suitable for a beginning musician. open string lower on the neck, with the one clamped at the fifth fret above. All strings, except the third, are built according to this rule. You can use the harmonic effect on different frets (the strings vibrate among themselves) or turn on a distortion effect, which will add drive and increase vibration. That is, the strings will have to be retuned until the sound matches completely. Professional electric guitars have a special micro-tuning device on the soundboard for this purpose).
Basic chords for beginners
Many beginning guitarists tend to associate the note “A” with the chord, which is the second simplest chord in guitar technique.
It consists of only three fingers: two on the second fret (fourth and third string) and one on the second string on the first fret. The note “A” in this case acts as a tonic.
But the simplest chord is still the E minor chord. There are only two strings - the fifth and fourth on the second fret. A major chord played from “E” involves holding the third string on the second fret, and a major chord with the tonic “A” is even simpler - three fingers on the second fret (second, third and fourth string).
Barre technique
Although the name of the strings on a guitar no longer causes misunderstanding, it is especially worth noting a technique called barre (clamping index finger all right).
Any standard chord can be built using this technique. In fact, the same simple applications indicated above can be applied to this case, but only the nut near the tuning mechanism on the headstock acts as a barre.
Varieties of playing techniques
The name of the strings on a guitar is often emphasized with certain symbols, although it is not directly advertised. For example, in the standard version the third, fifth, seventh and twelfth frets are designated (sometimes the ninth). For many famous guitarists you can find all sorts of signs, including skulls or something else. These guitars are made to order.
And playing any instrument is quite difficult, be it fingerpicking, strumming, tapping, sliding, etc. With the advent of “gadgets,” technology has reached new level. That alone is worth it... And modern guitarists generally demonstrate such miracles of technology that it simply boggles the mind.
The same Steve Vai, Marty Friedmann or Kirk Hammett are the only ones of our time. And by the way, even though they know classical school, do not always use it in their improvisations. For example, Friedman tends to play in fifths, or nine notes per pass. And everyone's technique is different. But if you set a goal, nothing is impossible. Maybe the modern reader will become a great guitarist in the future, who knows?