In music, standard tuning refers to the typical
tuning
Tuning can refer to:
Common uses
* Tuning, the process of tuning a tuned amplifier or other electronic component
* Musical tuning, musical systems of tuning, and the act of tuning an instrument or voice
** Guitar tunings
** Piano tuning, adjusti ...
of a
string instrument
String instruments, stringed instruments, or chordophones are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer plays or sounds the strings in some manner.
Musicians play some string instruments by plucking the s ...
. This notion is contrary to that of
scordatura
Scordatura (; literally, Italian for "discord", or "mistuning") is a tuning of a string instrument that is different from the normal, standard tuning. It typically attempts to allow special effects or unusual chords or timbre, or to make certain p ...
, i.e. an alternate tuning designated to modify either the
timbre
In music, timbre ( ), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound quality of a musical note, sound or tone. Timbre distinguishes different types of sound production, such as choir voices and musica ...
or technical capabilities of the desired instrument.
Violin family
The most popular bowed strings used nowadays belong to the
violin family
The violin family of musical instruments was developed in Italy in the 16th century. At the time the name of this family of instruments was viole da braccio which was used to distinguish them from the viol family (viole ''da gamba''). The stan ...
; together with their respective standard tunings, they are:
*
Violin
The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
– G
3 D
4 A
4 E
5 (ascending
perfect fifth
In music theory, a perfect fifth is the musical interval corresponding to a pair of pitches with a frequency ratio of 3:2, or very nearly so.
In classical music from Western culture, a fifth is the interval from the first to the last of five ...
s, starting from G below middle C)
*
Viola
; german: Bratsche
, alt=Viola shown from the front and the side
, image=Bratsche.jpg
, caption=
, background=string
, hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow
, range=
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*Violin family ...
– C
3 G
3 D
4 A
4 (a perfect fifth below a violin's standard tuning)
*
Cello
The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, ...
– C
2 G
2 D
3 A
3 (an octave lower than the viola)
*
Double bass
The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...
– E
1 A
1 D
2 G
2 (ascending
perfect fourth
A fourth is a musical interval encompassing four staff positions in the music notation of Western culture, and a perfect fourth () is the fourth spanning five semitones (half steps, or half tones). For example, the ascending interval from C to ...
s, where the highest sounding open string coincides with the G on a cello).
* Double bass with a low C extension – C
1 E
1 A
1 D
2 G
2 (the same, except for low C, which is a
major third
In classical music, a third is a Interval (music), musical interval encompassing three staff positions (see Interval (music)#Number, Interval number for more details), and the major third () is a third spanning four semitones.Allen Forte, ...
below the low E on a standard 4-string double bass)
* 5-stringed double bass – B
0 E
1 A
1 D
2 G
2 (a low B is added, so the tuning remains in perfect fourths)
Viol family
The double bass is properly the contrabass member of the
viol family. Its smaller members are tuned in ascending fourths, with a major third in the middle, as follows:
*
Treble viol – D
3 G
3 C
4 E
4 A
4 D
5 (ascending perfect fourths with the exception of a major third between strings 3 and 4)
*
Tenor viol – G
2 C
3 F
3 A
3 D
4 G
4 (a perfect fifth below the treble viol)
*
Bass viol
The viol (), viola da gamba (), or informally gamba, is any one of a family of bowed, fretted, and stringed instruments with hollow wooden bodies and pegboxes where the tension on the strings can be increased or decreased to adjust the pitch ...
– D
2 G
2 C
3 E
3 A
3 D
4 (an octave lower than the treble viol)
*
7-stringed bass viol – A
1 D
2 G
2 C
3 E
3 A
3 D
4 (an extra low A is added)
A more recent family is the
violin octet, which also features a standardized tuning system (
see page).
Guitar family
Guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...
s and
bass guitar
The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
s have more standard tunings, depending on the number of strings an instrument has.
* six-string guitar (the most common configuration) – E
2 A
2 D
3 G
3 B
3 E
4 (ascending perfect fourths, with an exception between G and B, which is a
major third
In classical music, a third is a Interval (music), musical interval encompassing three staff positions (see Interval (music)#Number, Interval number for more details), and the major third () is a third spanning four semitones.Allen Forte, ...
). Low E falls a major third above the C on a standard-tuned cello.
* Renaissance lute – E
2 A
2 D
3 F♯
3 B
3 E
4 (used by classical guitarists for certain pieces; identical to standard guitar tuning, except for the F♯, lowered one semitone from the standard G string, making a perfect fourth between 2nd and 3rd rather than 3rd and 4th strings)
* seven-string guitar – B
1 E
2 A
2 D
3 G
3 B
3 E
4 (identical, except for the low B, which is a perfect fourth below the low E on a 6-stringed guitar)
* four-string bass guitar (most popular) – E
1 A
1 D
2 G
2 (its standard tuning coincides with that of a 4-stringed double bass)
* five-string bass – B
0 E
1 A
1 D
2 G
2 (identical to 4-stringed bass with the addition of a low B string a perfect fourth below the E).
* six-string bass – B
0 E
1 A
1 D
2 G
2 C
3 (identical to 5-stringed bass with the addition of a high C string a perfect fourth above the G).
* Baritone (older use) / 6 string bass (older use) such as the
Fender Bass VI – E
1 A
1 D
2 G
2 B
2 E
3 (Similar to a standard guitar but an octave lower, and often played like a standard guitar rather than a bass guitar.)
* Baritone guitar (contemporary versions) – B
1 E
2 A
2 D
3 F♯
3 B
3 a fourth below standard tuning, although A
1 to A
3; a fifth lower is also used.
* 12-string guitar E
3 E
2 A
3 A
2 D
4 D
3 G
4 G
3 B
3 B
3 E
4 E
4 in six two-string courses.
Other
Other plucked string instruments and their respective standard tunings include:
*
Banjo (Five-stringed): G
4 D
3 G
3 B
3 D
4 for bluegrass; old time and folk banjoists use this and a wide variety of other tunings
*
Mandola
The mandola (US and Canada) or tenor mandola (Ireland and UK) is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola ...
: C
3 G
3 D
4 A
4 (same as standard viola tuning)
*
Mandolin
A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of ...
: G
3 D
4 A
4 E
5 (same as standard violin tuning)
*
Pipa
The pipa, pípá, or p'i-p'a () is a traditional Chinese musical instrument, belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets ran ...
: A
2 D
3 E
3 A
3 (most common and used in Chinese orchestra; several other tunings exist)
*
Balalaika (Prima): E
4 E
4 A
5 (the two identical Es are on strings of different gauges)
*
Requinto Jarocho
The requinto jarocho or guitarra de son is plucked string instrument, played usually with a special pick. It is a four- or five-stringed instrument that has originated from Veracruz, Mexico. The ''requinto'' is used in conjunto jarocho ensembles ...
: A
3 D
3 G
3 C
4 (G string tuned the same as a guitar's)
*
Ukulele (Soprano): G
4 C
4 E
4 A
4 (C
6) and A
4 D
4 F♯
4 B
4
See also
*
List of guitar tunings
*
Musical tuning
In music, there are two common meanings for tuning:
* Tuning practice, the act of tuning an instrument or voice.
* Tuning systems, the various systems of pitches used to tune an instrument, and their theoretical bases.
Tuning practice
Tun ...
*
Scordatura
Scordatura (; literally, Italian for "discord", or "mistuning") is a tuning of a string instrument that is different from the normal, standard tuning. It typically attempts to allow special effects or unusual chords or timbre, or to make certain p ...
References
*
{{Guitar tunings
Musical tuning