Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Peter T.
Date: 10 Jul 02 - 09:43 AM

open G is nice too. yours, Peter T.

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Lane
Date: 10 Jul 02 - 09:32 AM

I mis-spoke earlier... the tuning I have been playing with is actually CGCGCE - it's a David Wilcox tuning that he calls open C - but now I find that there are multiple "open c" tuings.... jeez.

Well, I'm just looking to experiment - good fun. I love Wilcox stuff, need to learn much more... and I'm still looking to do the song mentioned above, but it sounds like I need to go to a D tuning....

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 09 Jul 02 - 06:47 PM

Looked at one way DGCGCD is just another variation on C modal, and could in fact be regarded as an Open C tuning.

However the absence of both the tonic and the dominant in the bass,and the preponderance of G's and D's would incline me to thinking that a more realistic assessmant of this tuning would be Open G with suspended fourths.

What you have here in fact is a first cousin to DADGAD, except that the root (tonic) note is G instead of D.

Fascinating stuff. I only wish I still had the time to play around with all these tunings ....

Murray

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: alanabit
Date: 09 Jul 02 - 05:40 PM

I'm not too well up on this stuff, but a few years ago Paul Downes showed me a tuning which he called "Open C". In fact it must have been something else, because you had to fret the thirds on the first and sixth string to get a C chord. It was DGCGCD. Who is going to tell me another name for this tuning?

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Peter T.
Date: 09 Jul 02 - 08:50 AM

I should have said it is an ersatz Open C. yours, Peter T.

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 09 Jul 02 - 03:39 AM

Spaw, what I really needed from you was the question, "Nurray, what's Gaelic tuning?".

Lane, when you play the open (unfretted) strings in Open C you certainly don't get a D chord. You get a C Major chord. The tuning you are using is a variation of Open C tuning, known in my neck of the woods as C modal. To get a true Open C you leave the first string tuned to E.

There is nothing wrong with the tuning you are using, many, in fact most Celtic guitar players use CGCGCD rather than CGCGCE. I don't personally, but Tony McManus does, so go figure. For your purposes (singing in D) I would suggest that you capo up on the second fret and play the C chords.

When I have more time I will send you a list of diagrams of the chords you need (using your CGCGCD tuning). Meantime, off to work.

Murray

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Barry T
Date: 09 Jul 02 - 01:07 AM

My local music store recommended The Complete Book of Alternate Tunings by Mark Hanson. $17.95 US. ISBN 0-936799-13-7.

Though I'm usually wary of such recommendations, I ordered it anyway, and was pleasantly surprised. Among my personal discoveries was the beauty of the Double Drop D tuning, which is perfect for the band I play in... lots of tunes in D, G and A, yet other keys still easily playable by emphasizing the middle four strings.

I notice that Mark has published another book titled Alternate Tunings Picture Chords. Does anyone have a quick opinion or review of that one?

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Jeremiah McCaw
Date: 09 Jul 02 - 12:34 AM

Hmm . . . I'll still recommend "Nutchords". Don't know why the address I gave didn't work - I went there to get the address. 'Tis a puzzlement.

No matter; type "nutchords" into your favourite search engine - it'll give you lots of alternatives.

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Lane
Date: 09 Jul 02 - 12:12 AM

I thought it was just me, Spaw.... :)

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: catspaw49
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 11:37 PM

RIght Murray....and to play in the key of C if you're in open D you can just capo down two frets.......just right behind the 5 & 2 machine heads.

Spaw

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Lane
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 11:16 PM

Well.... good info all...thanks. I've looked at the link that Peter listed before... it has several tuining, but not open C... and open D, tuned down, does not open C make, as near as I can tell....

Hmmmmm.... well, I'm just learing about alternate tunings, so I'm pretty dumb on this stuff... but, well... here's what I'm trying to figure out -

I am told that playing the un-fretted strings in open C tuning actually makes a D chord - is that right? I'm tuning it as: CGCGCD (didn't know there was more than one way!) So... I have a particular song that I play in D and want to try in open C because I like the sound of the tuning.... so I've figured out a few of the chords I need... but not all... maybe if I list 'em here someone can dig me out....

D D7 G Gm F#m Bm A7 Em7 D9

Now... I don't know... again, I'm new to these tunings... should I be using a differnt one? I'm just dabbling in DADGAD.... a few others.... heck, I don't know.... Any help appreciated!

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 04:46 PM

Peter, you are jesting, surely ?

Open C refers to a relationship between the six strings in which the open strings sound a major chord with the tonic note is located on the second string.

Open G refers to a relationship between the six strings in which the open strings sound a major chord with the tonic note is located on the third string.

Open D refers to a relationship between the six strings in which the open strings sound a major chord with the tonic note is located on the first string.

Whether you lower the actual pitch of the note is irrelevant as far as the nomenclature of the tuning is concerned. If you play in Open D tuning and decide to detune the guitar by a tone, you are still playing in Open D, detuned by a tone. (It will sound like crap if you do that, due to excessive decrease in string tension, but that is neither here nor there.)

Murray

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: GUEST
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 04:31 PM

"ChordMagic" is an old DOS program (free download here) which allows you to input any tuning and find chords.

Some of the chords it finds for odd tunings are impossible to play, but I've found it pretty useful

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Peter T.
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 04:24 PM

Not that hard to find. First reference on the first search. Try here! for one of many sites. Open D tuned down two frets is one version of Open C. yours, Peter T.

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 01:21 PM

It'd be nice if whoever coded The chord Generator at Guitar.com checked their work...

Their Java appears to be Netscape incompatible...

Dullards...

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 07:19 PM

Anybody who has dabbled in Open C would almost certainly enjoy playing in Gaelic tuning as well, (as used by Archie Fisher)

Murray

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: catspaw49
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 07:06 PM

CH...Did you check the guitar chord generator that the guest linked above? I've been using that one for awhile and it does a decent job.

Spaw

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 07:03 PM

Care to recomend some titles of good ones?

For a few $$, I'd get 'em... and THEN they'd be free on the net!

;-)

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 03:20 PM

Remember that Open C, Open G, and Open D tunings all have the same string-to-string intervals, just shifted one string to the bass side respectively. Say you already know a chord shape that is a D (the V chord) in Open G. In Open C the same basic chord shape shifted one string to the treble will be a G (the V chord for C). In Open D, shift it one string to the bass for an A (the V chord for A). It's easy to find chords for Open G tuning. They're essentially the same as banjo chords. Just get a bluegrass banjo chord chart. I often play banjo tunes on guitar (in both Open G and Open C), especially if my wife has a headache.

Bruce

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 02:31 PM

There are plenty around, Clinton - but you have to pay a few dollars...

Not much free on the 'net

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 02:27 PM

"half the fun of working in Open tunings is figuring out the chords for yourself"

Indeed it is, BUT... when yer first starting out, it can be very helpful to have a leg-up in the form of a chart that shows a few basic, root chords...

I've been searching high and low for just such a beast and thus far, it eludes me...

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 02:21 PM

GUEST, I use CGCGCE. Many Celtic players use C modal in which the first string is tuned down a tone, thus CGCGCD.

I think that your tuning of the fourth string to E, although it is still an open C tuning, would cause the tuning to lose much of its versatility, although, no doubt, there are effects possible with it which couldn't be obtained any other way.

As a general rule, with any open tuning you want to keep the major third out of the bass strings, so I would suggest it is almost mandatory to tune your sixth string down to C. Also, having two thirds sounding in the open chord isn't a good idea.

The unique beauty of the CGCGCE tuning is that it keeps the major third right up on the first string, out of the way.

Murray

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 02:08 PM

Murray,

How would you 'define' Open C?

I guess the most common one is EGCGCE

I use CGEGCE

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 02:04 PM

Lane, half the fun of working in Open tunings is figuring out the chords for yourself. It really isn't difficult to do, and you make lots of interesting discoveries along the way.

If you have any specific questions regarding chords for songs in open C to which you cannot find any answers, feel free to PM me, or post them in this thread.

Open C is my favorite tuning, and IMHO the most versatile of all the open tunings.

Murray

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Peter T.
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 08:58 AM

If you do a Forum search for Open Tuning, you will find a number of threads on the topic -- there you will find reference to a number of sites that give you charts of open tunings, but I don't have any references at the moment. yours, Peter T.

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 06:46 AM

guitar.com Chord Generator

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Lane
Date: 07 Jul 02 - 12:55 AM

Thanks for the lead - but it appears that the link is gone. Bummer, sounds like just what I need... any other ideas?????

Lane

Subject: RE: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: Jeremiah McCaw
Date: 06 Jul 02 - 11:57 PM

Go to:

www.angelfire.com/nc/nutchords

Download it and enjoy. Configures for almost any tuning you can think of. Damn fine little freeware program.

Subject: Need Chord Chart for Open C Tuning and..
From: GUEST,Lane
Date: 06 Jul 02 - 09:17 PM

Hi, I'm trying to work out a song in Open C tuning and need some chords.... can't seem to find a chord reference.... any other open tuning chord helps would be good too!

Thanks! Lane