Verbal Analysis

The Latin Mafia Tuning, specifically crafted for the song "Yo siempre contesto" by Latin Mafia, offers a unique and distinct sound palette. This tuning deviates significantly from standard EADGBe, creating a sound that is likely rich, open, and potentially melancholic or atmospheric. Its highly unconventional string intervals suggest it's designed for specific melodic lines, arpeggios, or textural accompaniment rather than conventional strumming, lending itself well to the modern, often intricate sounds found in Latin Mafia's music. The re-entrant nature, where lower strings are tuned to higher pitches than adjacent strings (e.g., String 3 F#4 being higher than String 4 D3, and String 2 B3 being lower than String 3 F4#), creates a unique harmonic landscape, possibly mimicking a harp-like or piano-like arrangement of notes.

Technical Analysis

The open string notes are as follows, from the lowest (6th) to the highest (1st) string: C#3, F#3, D3, F4#, B3, E4. This configuration presents some highly unusual intervals between adjacent strings:

• 6th String (C#3) to 5th String (F#3): A Perfect Fourth (P4) up.
• 5th String (F#3) to 4th String (D3): A Minor Sixth (m6) down.
• 4th String (D3) to 3rd String (F4#): A substantial leap of an Octave and a Major Third (M3) up. This is a very large jump, indicating a re-entrant tuning.
• 3rd String (F4#) to 2nd String (B3): A Perfect Fifth (P5) down, meaning the 2nd string is tuned significantly lower than the 3rd string.
• 2nd String (B3) to 1st String (E4): A Perfect Fourth (P4) up.

The open notes present, when considered together (C#, D, E, F#, B), offer rich harmonic possibilities. A prominent open chord that naturally emerges is a D major 13 (no 5th). With D as the implied root, we find F# (Major 3rd), B (13th), C# (Major 7th), and E (9th). This creates a sophisticated and open major chord voicing suitable for expansive or jazz-influenced contexts. Alternatively, if C# is considered the root, the notes could imply a C# minor 7 (b9) add 11, suggesting a bluesy, modal, or darker character. The absence of a standard G and A allows for unique voice leading and encourages exploration of non-diatonic relationships.

How to Tune

To achieve the Latin Mafia Tuning, adjust your guitar strings as follows:

• 6th String (normally Low E): Tune down 3 semitones to reach C#3.
• 5th String (normally A): Tune down 3 semitones to reach F#3.
• 4th String (normally D): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones). It remains D3.
• 3rd String (normally G): Tune down 1 semitone to reach F#4.
• 2nd String (normally B): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones). It remains B3.
• 1st String (normally High E): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones). It remains E4.

No individual string movements exceed a 4 semitone adjustment, so a change in string gauge is not strictly necessary based on the tuning movements alone. However, due to the highly re-entrant nature and significant pitch differences between adjacent strings, experienced players may consider custom string gauges for optimal playability and tone.