Tuning Analysis: Liam Behan (Broken Wings)

This tuning, famously associated with Alter Bridge's powerful song "Broken Wings," delves into a dark, expansive, and heavy sonic territory. It achieves a unique resonance by significantly dropping the lowest string, creating a profound foundation for thick riffs and atmospheric soundscapes. The subsequent consistent tuning adjustments on the higher strings establish a cohesive intervallic structure, making it versatile for specific melodic and harmonic textures rather than conventional open chords.

Technical Breakdown:

• The open tuning notes are: A#2, G#3, C#4, F#4, A#4, D#5 (from the lowest 6th string to the highest 1st string).
• This tuning features a dramatic drop on the 6th string, moving from standard E2 down a tritone (6 semitones) to A#2. This establishes a very low and impactful root, ideal for heavy, detuned riffing.
• From the 5th string upwards (G#3, C#4, F#4, A#4, D#5), the tuning consistently employs perfect fourth intervals. This section essentially forms a 'fourths tuning' subset, which offers a highly consistent fretboard logic for scales and arpeggios, simplifying the navigation of lead lines and movable chord shapes across these strings.
• The interval between the 6th string (A#2) and the 5th string (G#3) is a major seventh (specifically, a major seventh above A#2). This creates a wide and somewhat open-sounding or potentially dissonant relationship, which can be exploited for complex voicings or simply provide a deep, resonant base for the higher fourths.
• While not immediately presenting common open major or minor triads, the collective open notes (A#, G#, C#, F#, A#, D#) strongly hint towards an A# minor pentatonic scale (A#, C#, D#, F#, G#) or related modes. This makes it particularly suitable for heavy rock, metal, and progressive genres where such scales are prevalent.
• The open strings readily facilitate powerful, often dissonant or drone-like, voicings. For example, the 5th and 4th strings open offer a G#-C# perfect fourth, and the 6th and 5th open strings provide an A#-G# interval that can be used for deep, resonant effects and power chords when combined with other strings. The consistent fourths on the upper strings make movable chord shapes and scale patterns very intuitive.
• This tuning is specifically designed for a particular character, emphasizing depth, power, and precise intervallic relationships that benefit from the consistent fourths on the higher strings. It's a powerful tool for crafting intricate riffs, atmospheric arrangements, and heavy, driving rhythms.

How to Tune Your Guitar:

To achieve the Liam Behan tuning, you will adjust your strings from standard EADGBe tuning as follows:

• 6th String (Low E String): Tune down 6 semitones from standard E to A#2. Note: This is a significant drop in pitch (more than 4 semitones). For optimal string tension, intonation, and tone, especially if you regularly switch back to standard tuning, it is highly advisable to use a heavier gauge string for this position.
• 5th String (A String): Tune down 1 semitones from standard A to G#3.
• 4th String (D String): Tune down 1 semitones from standard D to C#4.
• 3rd String (G String): Tune down 1 semitones from standard G to F#4.
• 2nd String (B String): Tune down 1 semitones from standard B to A#4.
• 1st String (High E String): Tune down 1 semitones from standard E to D#5.