Drop D and open tunings

Standard tuning is a compromise that works for most music, but retuning one or more strings opens up sounds that are hard or impossible otherwise. Drop D gives a low D bass and one-finger power chords. Open G and DADGAD make the open strings ring as a chord, so melodies and drones come easily. Many fingerstyle and slide players, and plenty of rock bands, live in these tunings.

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

• Retune to drop D, open G and DADGAD by ear, and back to standard.
• Play one-finger power chords and a riff in drop D.
• Play I, IV and V in open G with a single barre.

An alternate tuning changes the pitch of one or more open strings. Three are worth knowing first:

• Drop D (D A D G B E). Only the low E changes, down a whole tone to D. You get a deeper bass, and the bottom three strings (D A D) form a power chord, so one finger across them at any fret plays a power chord. Common in rock riffs and in fingerstyle songs in D.
• Open G (D G D G B D). Low E down to D, A down to G, high e down to D. The open strings now sound a G major chord. A barre at fret 5 gives C and at fret 7 gives D: I, IV and V with one finger. Popular for slide and for blues and rock rhythm.
• DADGAD (D A D G A D). Low E, B and high e all lowered. The open strings give an open, suspended sound, neither major nor minor. Much loved in Celtic and modern fingerstyle playing, because open strings ring as a drone under a melody.

When you change tuning, chord shapes change on the strings you have moved. Strings you left alone still behave as before. Tab for alternate tunings states the tuning at the top; the fret numbers refer to that tuning.

Tuning by ear. In drop D, the low string should sound the same as the open D string, an octave lower. The fret-12 harmonic on the 6th string should match the open D string exactly.

Into drop D and back.

1. Play the open D string and let it ring.
2. Turn the low E tuning peg slowly to lower the pitch. Play the 6th string against the D string as you go.
3. Stop when the two sound like the same note, one octave apart; the "wobble" between them disappears.
4. Check: the harmonic at fret 12 on the 6th string should match the open D string exactly. Confirm with a tuner.
5. To return, tune the 6th string up until its fret-5 note matches the open A string.

One-finger chords. In drop D, lay the index finger flat across the bottom three strings at fret 5 and strum them: G5. Slide to fret 3 (F5) and to the open strings (D5).

Open G. Strum all six open strings: a full G major chord, with no fingers. Lay a barre across all strings at fret 5 for C, fret 7 for D.

Do these in order. Each one is small. Tick the ones you have practised.

• 1.Retune by ear

  4 min

  1. Drop D: play the open D string, then lower the low E until it sounds the same note an octave lower. The fret-12 harmonic on the 6th string should match the open D string.
  2. Check with a tuner, then return to standard.
  3. Open G (D G D G B D): lower the low E to D, the A to G and the high e to D. Strum the open strings: you should hear a G major chord.
  4. Check every string with a tuner.

  You have it when

  • You reach drop D and open G and confirm them with a tuner.
  • The open strings in open G sound like a clean G major chord.
  I practised this one

• 2.Drop D power chords

  4 min · 70 → 100 BPM

  1. In drop D, play the bottom three strings open: D5.
  2. Lay one finger across the bottom three strings at fret 3 (F5), then fret 5 (G5).
  3. Play the riff from the tab: D5 chugs with one-finger chords between them.

  You have it when

  • Each one-finger chord sounds all three notes cleanly.
  I practised this one

• 3.Open G with one finger

  4 min · 70 → 90 BPM

  1. In open G, strum the open strings: G (I).
  2. Barre all strings at fret 5: C (IV). Barre at fret 7: D (V).
  3. Play G, C, G, D, one bar each, picking the bass on beat 1 and strumming the rest.
  4. Let open strings ring into each change.

  You have it when

  • The I, IV and V chords ring cleanly with one barre each.
  I practised this one

Retuning is untimed; check every string with a tuner afterwards. For the riff and the open-G progression, use 70 BPM.

• Overshooting when tuning down. Tune down below the note, then come up to it. Strings hold their pitch better when tuned up to a note.
• Playing standard-tuning chord shapes without thinking. Your usual shapes change in a new tuning. Only strings that were not retuned behave as before, so check which ones moved.
• Forgetting to retune before the next song. Write the tuning at the top of any song chart that uses one, and check with a tuner when you finish.

Drop D is common in rock for heavy riffs and in fingerstyle for a deep D bass under songs in D. Open G and DADGAD suit Celtic, folk and slide guitar. Try your arpeggio patterns in DADGAD: the open strings ring under whatever you fret.

Short version (10 minutes)

Tune to drop D, play the riff, and tune back to standard.

Standard version (about 30 minutes)

Do all three exercises. Then tune to DADGAD and improvise for two minutes with open strings ringing under single fretted notes.

• Drop D: low E down to D. One finger across the bottom three strings is a power chord.
• Open G: D G D G B D. Open strings make G; a barre at 5 is C and at 7 is D.
• DADGAD: an open, suspended drone tuning.
• Tune down past the note, then up to it, and check with a tuner.

You are ready to move on when you can honestly say:

• I can tune to drop D, open G and DADGAD and back to standard.
• I can play a riff with one-finger power chords in drop D.
• I can play I, IV and V in open G.