Ultimate Guide TOAlternateTunings

One of the reasons we get into music is because it takes us farther then we thought we

could go; as a performer, as a musician, and as a person. The study of music stretches

us and our capabilities.

There are some things that fire our imagination and make us consider possibilities we

had not seen before. Sometimes a new technique, or an alternate approach can open

up new areas of the musical world—increasing the possibilities exponentially.

Whether you’re stuck in a rut, just starting out, or simply looking for something new,

exploring the range of alternate tunings for guitar can create a dramatic shift in your

playing.

Enjoy this free guide we’ve put together for you!

Scott MarquartScott MarquartFOUNDER & PRESIDENT

Standard Guitar TuningAs you probably know, the standard tuning for the

six-string guitar is EADGBE. It’s probably the first tuning

you ever learned, and for some guitarists, it might be

the only tuning you’ve ever learned. The vast majority of

songs played on the guitar use this tuning. If you strum

it unfretted, it creates a Em7+11 chord. But, it’s probably

seldom used that way — if ever.

You’ve probably learned hundreds of patterns and

shapes that apply to standard tuning. If you’ve only

played your guitar in standard, learning to effectively

utilize alternate tunings for guitar may require a shift of

imagination—and considerable practice.

There are dozens of alternate tunings for the six-string

guitar alone (we included a helpful list at the end). In this

guide, we will get into a couple of broad categories (Drop

and Open tunings) and explore one very popular guitar

tuning a little more closely (DADGAD) or “dadgad”.

Let’s go!

Alternate Drop Guitar Tunings

There can be some confusion about the definition of “drop” tunings. One refers

to lowering the pitch of the entire standard guitar tuning by a certain interval.

Another refers to dropping primarily the 6th string of the guitar. So when

talking about these tunings, you may need to clarify what you mean.

If you’re new to alternate tunings for guitar and you want to try out a couple of

them without relearning chord shapes and scale patterns, drop tunings are a

great place to start—especially if you like playing metal.

Drop B TuningThe simplest way to get the feel for alternate guitar

tunings is to uniformly lower the standard tuning.

Dropping an acoustic guitar by a step or so can give

you a taste, but if you want to experience something

significantly different, try Drop B with a set-up

designed for heavy metal. It requires thick, sturdy

guitar strings, though (We’d recommend .012 – .056

at a minimum).

You don’t have to change anything with your left

hand that you’ve already learned. But you get a

completely different sound out of your guitar.

B E A D F# B

Examples of This Tuning

SOUNDGARDEN

S E A R C H I N G W I T H M Y G O O D E Y E C L O S E D

R U S T Y C A G E

AUDIOSLAVE

T H E W O R M

B R I N G E M B A C K A L I V E

D A D G B E

Drop D TuningThis is also a good way to get started. Drop D is very

similar to standard guitar tuning, but the 6th string is

lowered one full step. Again, most left-hand forms

and patterns apply.

This is a classic metal tuning because of the extended

low range and the power chord DAD construction of

the lowest strings. Barring on these three (or just the

6th and 5th) strings is straightforward and makes

creating progressions relatively easy. No third in the

chord gives it raw, open power.

Drop D is also somewhat common in classical guitar

music, to a much different effect.

Examples of This Tuning

FOO FIGHTERS

E V E R L O N G

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE

K I L L I N G I N T H E N A M E

AVENGED SEVENFOLD

U N H O L Y C O N F E S S I O N S

C G C F A D

Drop C TuningDrop C takes all of the strings of Drop D and brings

them down a whole step. It has the benefits of Drop D

with even lower pitch range.

As with Drop B, you may want to alter the setup and

strings of your guitar.

Examples of This Tuning

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE

H O L Y D I V E R

PRETTY RECKLESS

G O I N G T O H E L L

TRIVIUM

S T R I F E

Alternate Open Guitar Tunings

All open tunings create a chord when the guitar is strummed without fretting

any notes, and are named for the root of the chord they create. They can be

major or minor chords, but the major tunings seem to be the most commonly

seen in popular guitar music.

There are some common techniques that apply to all open tunings.

As with Drop D, barring across the neck of the guitar is an easy way to create

chord progressions. Not all chord progressions are desirable, of course. A

series of major chords will be more useful, generally, than an extended series

of minor chords. But, if you’re in an open minor tuning, it’s far easier to create

a major chord than to try to go the other way around. Using a slide is the same

principal, but with the slide’s distinctive characteristics.

Arpeggios are facilitated with open tuning. Adding melody to chords and

arpeggios is a signature technique for open guitar tunings. Strumming the

open chord while one or more strings are fretted and then moving along the

fretboard creates some nice effects and many possibilities. It’s also a good way

for you to get you and your guitar’s feet wet with alternate tunings.

D A D F# A D

Open D TuningMost bluegrass music is in either G or D. This flavor of

open tuning is especially suited for quick picking.

Here are a couple of examples for ways to get

started.

Create the hand shape for an E7 chord.

– O2O1OO

With this tuning, it’s actually a suspended D chord

(DBDGAD).

Take the same hand shape and move it up two frets.

– O4O3OO (DC#DAAD); a wanna-be maj7 chord.

Now, make an “E chord” shape.

– O221OO

This makes a “very suspended” chord (DBEGAD; a

sus2,4,6)

Strike the chord. Then clear you hand when you

strike again. This gives you the resolution.

Those are just a couple of straightforward things to

get your creative juices flowing.

Examples of This Tuning

JONI MITCHELL

B I G Y E L L O W T A X I

BRUCE COCKBURN

S U N W H E E L D A N C E

ALLMAN BROTHERS

I N S T R U M E N T A L F R O M “ L I T T L E M A R T H A ”

D G D G B D

Open G TuningThis tuning is used frequently in blues, folk, and slide

guitar.

The Rolling Stones used it so much that Keith

Richards would remove the 6th string on many of his

guitars, so that he would have the root as the lowest

note. The Black Crowes are also well-known

practitioners.

Examples of This Tuning

ROLLING STONES

S T A R T M E U P

J U M P I N G J A C K F L A S H

BLACK CROWES

T W I C E A S H A R D

JONI MITCHELL

U S E D A N O T H E R P O P U L A R O P E N G T U N I N G ( G G D G B D ) I N . . .

E L E C T R I C I T Y

F O R T H E R O S E S

Open C TuningThis tuning is commonly used on a 12 string guitar, but is frequently used on the six string guitar as well. The

repetition of C and G on the bottom 5 strings makes this tuning incredibly intuitive and very suitable to heavy

riffing, a-la drop tunings.

This is also one of the most flexible open tunings, since only the E on the 1st string renders it a major tuning, and

that note can be easily avoided.

Examples of This Tuning

WILLIAM ACKERMAN

T O W N S E N D S H U F F L E

STEPHEN STILLS

L O V E T H E O N E Y O U ’ R E W I T H

JEFF MARTIN

A N G E L D U S T

C G C G C E C G C G C C

TYPICAL TUNING ALTERNATE TUNING

Dmaj – OO542OO

Gmaj – 55O4OO

Asus – OO22OO

B7 – X2122X

Emin7 – 22OOXX

F#min7 – 4422XX

Cmaj – X34O3O

“Dad-Gad” TuningThis very popular tuning got it’s name from the

pronunciation of string assignments: DADGAD. It’s

similar to open tunings in that it makes a chord: a

suspended four. Therefore, many of the guitar

techniques used for open tunings can be applied with

this one.

This tuning is used a lot for Celtic music. But it is also

used in folk, metal, rock and many other genres.

Jimmy Page used it in “Kashmir”, “Black Mountain

Side”, and “White Summer.” Pierre Bensusan’s

acoustic guitar work makes considerable use of

DADGAD as well (He’s even written books on the

subject).

DADGAD sounds best in the keys of DM/Bm, so it’s

recommended that you limit your repertoire to those

keys. Because of the “suspended” nature of this

tuning, unfretted strings can create sympathetic

vibrations and lush resonance on the guitar. DADGAD

also lends itself to typical Celtic/Irish/Scottish music

featuring melodies over open drones from the lower

strings.

If you want to create even more suspension,

second-fret the 4th string to add a “sus2” to the

Dmaj chord. And because DADGAD doesn’t contain

the 3rd of the chord, it can in theory be used in both

major or minor keys.

Examples of This Tuning

JEFF MARTIN

C R E A T E D A V A R I A T I O N O F T H I S T U N I N G : D A D E A D ( “ B E C A U S E T H E G - S T R I N G W A S N ’ T W O R K I N G F O R M E ” ) .

H E U S E D I T F O R H I S S O N G “ T H E B A D G E R ” F R O M E D G E S O F T W I L I G H T .

D A D G A D

HERE ARE SOME OF THE

BASIC CHORDS

A larger list of common Alternate Tunings

S H O P S T R I N G S

So, that’s our introduction to the world of alternate tunings for guitar. I know it

was quick and we covered a number of topics very briefly, but the internet

holds a dazzling amount of information, including many, many how-to videos

that will help you to dig much deeper into this subject.

Good luck and have fun exploring alternate tunings on your own guitar!

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