Discover the guitar open d tuning. This is a little easier on your guitar neck than the E tuning and sounds just as good. It’s the E tuning a whole tone lower.
Most guitars are made for the stress of standard tuning or close to it. You may prefer this over the E tuning. If you tune to this you can put a capo on the 2nd fret and have the E tuning too. You just have to move all your chords up two frets.
This tuning was a favorite of Elwood James a slide guitar player from the beginning of slide for Blues. His main hit was Dust My Broom. Johnny Winter plays his licks alot.
You can sound good without knowing a lot of music theory with an open tuning.
How to Tune Open D
- 6th string(heavy) = D
- 5th string = A
- 4th string = D
- 3rd string = F sharp
- 2nd string = A
- 1st string = D
You leave the 4th and 5th string as is and retune the rest.
Here is a diagram
This tuning is the same as E. In other words from the 6th string to the 5th is a 5th interval and so on. They only difference is it’s a whole tone lower.
So anything you read about the E tuning can be applied on two frets lower.
Your main blues keys are D, G and A without using a capo.
The D chord is open or 12th fret
The G chord is on the 5th fret
The A chord is on the 7th fret
D Tuning Capo
If you put a capo on the first fret you have the E♭, A♭ and B♭ blues covered. I’ll explain it like the E capo above.
E♭ Blues
Open position or 13th fret is the I chord = E♭
6th position is the IV chord = A♭
8th position is the V chord = B♭
A♭Blues
6th position is the I chord = A♭
11th position is the IV chord = D♭
Open position or the 13th fret is the V chord = E♭
B♭ Blues
8th position is the I chord = B♭
13th or open position is the IV chord = E♭
3rd or 15th position is the V chord = F
Open Position Chords
D Chords
G Chords
A Chords
C Chords
Note the difference between the C and the C add9 chords is the open 1st string is played in the 9th version.
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