Open tuning ideas? Need that hawaiian sound. - Tiki Music

K Kanekila Member Safety Harbor, FL Joined: Aug 07, 2004 Posts: 185	K Kanekila Posted posted on Mon, Jan 17, 2005 8:33 AM Aloha, kidz! No, not a 5000 word essay(!), but definitely the quickest way to make your guitar sound Hawaiian is to use one of the "6" tunings. Pablus mentioned the G6, which is the easiest one to get using standard guitar strings, although it makes those lower notes a bit flabby. If you like to leave your guitar strung in open tuning for slide playing, then I would recommend getting the correct gauges for that particular tuning. If you're interested in learning the most standard, ubiquitous and basic Hawaiian tuning, I would recommend C6 (low to high, C-E-G-A-C-E). You can buy a pre-made John Pierce set at http://www.juststrings.com. I've used these, and they're nice strings. If you go to http://www.b0b.com/infoedu/gauges.htm you can see what the correct string gauges should be. There are also books available (http://www.elderly.com/books/items/02-95666BCD.htm) that will give you a good overview of the tuning, and how to play in it. But yes -- it's that 6th note of the scale (i.e., the A string in a C6 tuning) that makes it "sound" Hawaiian. Just put your bar at the 5th fret (F6), slide a smooth glissando up an octave, and you're in the islands circa 1959, braddah! Oh yes -- I recommend the Dunlop Jerry Byrd "bullet" tonebar (919 4.5 oz. Professional, 3/4" x 2-3/4"). Light enough to move it around, fits nicely in the hand, and just right for 6-string steel. Aloha, Kanekila

Aloha, kidz!

No, not a 5000 word essay(!), but definitely the quickest way to make your guitar sound Hawaiian is to use one of the "6" tunings. Pablus mentioned the G6, which is the easiest one to get using standard guitar strings, although it makes those lower notes a bit flabby. If you like to leave your guitar strung in open tuning for slide playing, then I would recommend getting the correct gauges for that particular tuning.

If you're interested in learning the most standard, ubiquitous and basic Hawaiian tuning, I would recommend C6 (low to high, C-E-G-A-C-E). You can buy a pre-made John Pierce set at http://www.juststrings.com. I've used these, and they're nice strings.

If you go to http://www.b0b.com/infoedu/gauges.htm you can see what the correct string gauges should be. There are also books available (http://www.elderly.com/books/items/02-95666BCD.htm) that will give you a good overview of the tuning, and how to play in it.

But yes -- it's that 6th note of the scale (i.e., the A string in a C6 tuning) that makes it "sound" Hawaiian. Just put your bar at the 5th fret (F6), slide a smooth glissando up an octave, and you're in the islands circa 1959, braddah!

Oh yes -- I recommend the Dunlop Jerry Byrd "bullet" tonebar (919 4.5 oz. Professional, 3/4" x 2-3/4"). Light enough to move it around, fits nicely in the hand, and just right for 6-string steel.

Aloha,
Kanekila

Post #135931 by Kanekila on Mon, Jan 17, 2005 8:33 AM