PLAYING IN STANDARD tuning will only get you so far along the blues trail. Three primary reasons why acoustic blues players favor open tunings are that they simplify fretboard navigation, make any guitar sound more resonant and facilitate bottleneck slide. A basic grasp on how to play in rootsy open tunings is essential to have in your arsenal for the classic blues canon, and a whole lotta folky blues-rock to boot. Here’s the what-up broken down into a few principles.
ROOT CHORD THEORY
The core concept is tuning to a chord, and E best exemplifies it. To get a handle, start by forming a basic E major chord in standard open position. Notice that the fingers are simply raising the pitch of the fourth and fifth strings by a whole step plus a half step on the third. Take the fingers off and turn the tuning keys to raise the pitches to where the fingers were. Viola, open E tuning. Duane Allmans’s “Little Martha” is a lovely acoustic example of open E’s chimey tone caused by increasing string tension rather than decreasing it, like the majority of open tunings.
VESTAPOL
Esta historia es de la edición Holiday 2021 de Guitar Player.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición Holiday 2021 de Guitar Player.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Steel of a Deal
Jerry Byrd’s Steel Guitar Favorites packs a heap of American styles in one outstanding disc.
The Knockoff That Became a Knockout
Forced to stop copying U.S. guitars, Ibanez launched the all-original Artist line and took America by storm.
UNCOMMON FOLK
He grew up in a folk music haven. As he celebrates his latest album, Wide Open Light, Ben Harper shares sights and memories of his childhood home.
WILD SIDE
After Lou Reed's Berlin concept album bombed, guitarists Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner helped him get his groove back. The result was Rock 'n' Roll Animal, the live classic that redeemed his spirit and saved his career.
'THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF OUR BAND IS TWO GUITARS'
Sleater-Kinney were making bass-less records long before the White Stripes and the Black Keys came along. Says co-leader Carrie Brownstein, \"The power comes from the conversation the guitars are having with each other.\"
YOUR INFLUENCES STICK WITH YOU
Scott Henderson spent lockdown training his ears and building improv skills. As Karnevel! shows, his jazz chops flourished, but his blues-rock roots remain as strong as ever.
EYE ON THE PRIZE
Erstwhile blues-rocker Hannah Wicklund finds her true self with an album of songs she calls the most authentic I’ve ever written.”
'I PLAY LESS NOTES THESE DAYS, BUT THEY ALL MEAN A LOT MORE'
On Broken, Walter Trout packs his licks for maximum impact as he testifies to the hope that can save our divided world.
TIP SHEET
Think effects are a crutch? Reeves Gabrels has a few choice words and good advice) for you.
WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE
As he releases One Deep River, Mark Knopfler reflects on the guitars he's loved, the music that keeps his passion youthful... and how he'd like a do-over on that Dire Straits Rock Hall induction.