DAC#EAB Guitar Tuner

DAC#EAB | DAD♭EAB A9/D Open Tuning - Guitar tuning, chords & scales

Description - A9/D Open Tuning

made it up, it is a little sad and a little slow, and lines up well with open a tunings.

Tuning Analysis: A9/D Open Tuning

This unique tuning, which we've named "A9/D Open Tuning", truly lives up to its creator's description of being "a little sad and a little slow, and lines up well with open A tunings." It presents a fascinating blend of melancholy and rich harmonic potential.

Verbal Analysis

Upon strumming the open strings, you'll immediately notice a complex, resonant chord that evokes a thoughtful, almost introspective mood. While featuring elements of a bright A major, the low D string and the addition of the B note create a suspended, yearning quality that prevents it from sounding overtly cheerful. This makes it ideal for fingerstyle passages, ambient soundscapes, or compositions that lean into a more somber, folk, or bluesy aesthetic.

The tuning's design, with its open A major 9th chord over a D bass, lends itself to drone-like playing and allows for rich, sustained harmonies. It encourages exploration beyond standard chord shapes, often leading to unexpected and beautiful voicings simply by fretting one or two strings. Its affinity with open A tunings means that some familiar melodic and harmonic ideas may translate, but with a distinctly new flavour.

Technical Analysis

The open string notes are D2, A2, C#4, E3, A3, B3 (from low E to high E string position).

Harmonically, these notes form an A Major 9th chord (A-C#-E-B) with a D in the bass, often notated as A9/D. Alternatively, it can be seen as a D major 7th suspended 2nd chord (Dmaj7sus2).

String 6 (D2): The root of the D bass, providing a deep foundation.
String 5 (A2): A perfect fifth above the D, and the root of the A major harmony.
String 4 (C#4): The major third of the A major harmony, and the major seventh above the D bass. Note the octave jump from A2.
String 3 (E3): The perfect fifth of the A major harmony, and the major ninth above the D bass.
String 2 (A3): An octave of the A2 string, reinforcing the A major harmony and the perfect eleventh above the D bass.
String 1 (B3): The major ninth of the A major harmony, and the major thirteenth above the D bass. This higher B note contributes significantly to the 'sad' or 'suspended' quality.

The unusual interval spread across the strings creates unique opportunities:

D-A (Perfect 5th): A strong, fundamental interval.
A-C# (Major 3rd): The core of the A major triad.
C#-E (Minor 3rd): Provides a close, slightly dissonant feel.
E-A (Perfect 4th): A common, stable interval.
A-B (Major 2nd): The characteristic sound of the 9th, adding richness.

Open Chords and Shapes:

Open Strum: Immediately yields an A9/D chord, rich and full.
Barre Chords: A simple barre across any fret will transpose the A9/D voicing, creating a consistent harmonic structure up the neck (e.g., a barre at the 2nd fret would yield B9/E).
Partial Chords: Experimenting with partial barres or two-finger shapes can easily pull out D major 7th, A major, A add9, or various suspended voicings. The presence of the low D and the higher A and B notes makes for interesting pedal tones and drone possibilities.

String 6: D2

String 5: A2

String 4: C#4

String 3: E3

String 2: A3

String 1: B3

How to Tune: A9/D Open Tuning

To achieve the A9/D Open Tuning, you will adjust your standard tuned (E-A-D-G-B-E) guitar strings as follows:

String 6 (Low E): Tune down 2 semitones to D2.
String 5 (A): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones) to A2.
String 4 (D): Tune down 1 semitone to C#4.
String 3 (G): Tune down 3 semitones to E3.
String 2 (B): Tune down 2 semitones to A3.
String 1 (High E): Tune down 5 semitones to B3.
Important Note: Tuning this string down 5 semitones is a significant drop. While generally acceptable, for frequent or long-term use, especially if tuning beyond -4 or +4 semitones, considering a different gauge string (e.g., a slightly heavier string for this particular high E string) is advisable to maintain optimal tension and intonation, and prevent string breakage.