Verbal Analysis

The "Dada tuning" creates a remarkably resonant and open sound, living up to its description of being "usually used for drones." The arrangement of notes, essentially a repeating D-A interval, gives it a powerful, almost orchestral quality when strummed open. This makes it a prime choice for crafting ambient soundscapes, fingerstyle pieces that leverage the sustained tones of open strings, and folk or blues where a rich, open bass resonance is desired. The tuning encourages a stable, unmoving harmonic foundation over which melodic lines can float. Its inherent open D5 chord invites creative exploration, making it suitable for both traditional and experimental playing styles. The consistent root-fifth relationship across the strings ensures a full, sympathetic vibration that can be deeply evocative.

Technical Analysis

This tuning configures the guitar strings to form an open D5 chord (D-A-D-A-D-A) across all six strings, from the lowest D2 to the highest A4. The intervals between adjacent strings follow a consistent pattern:

• 6th String (D2) to 5th String (A2): Perfect 5th
• 5th String (A2) to 4th String (D3): Perfect 4th
• 4th String (D3) to 3rd String (A3): Perfect 5th
• 3rd String (A3) to 2nd String (D4): Perfect 4th
• 2nd String (D4) to 1st String (A4): Perfect 5th

This structure ensures that every open string contributes to a strong D5 chord, making open strumming highly harmonically rich. While providing an immediate resonant D5, this arrangement also makes it relatively simple to achieve D major (by fretting the 3rd string at the 2nd fret for F#) and D minor (by fretting the 3rd string at the 1st fret for F) with minimal effort. Open power chords are naturally very accessible and powerful. However, players accustomed to standard tuning will find that traditional barre chord shapes require significant adaptation due to the altered string intervals.

How to Tune

To achieve the Dada tuning from standard E-A-D-G-B-e:

• 6th String (Low E): Tune down 2 semitones to D2. (Standard E → D)
• 5th String (A): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones) to A2. (Standard A → A)
• 4th String (D): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones) to D3. (Standard D → D)
• 3rd String (G): Tune up 2 semitones to A3. (Standard G → A) Caution is advised when tuning strings up.
• 2nd String (B): Tune up 3 semitones to D4. (Standard B → D) Caution is advised when tuning strings up. This amount of tension increase can be risky for lighter gauge strings.
• 1st String (High e): Tune up 5 semitones to A4. (Standard E → A) Extreme caution is advised for this string. Tuning up 5 semitones significantly increases string tension. It is strongly recommended to use a heavier gauge string for the 1st string to prevent breakage and potential neck damage.

String 6: D2

String 5: A2

String 4: D3

String 3: A3

String 2: D4

String 1: A4