The "Wind of Change" tuning, famously utilized by legendary guitarist Peter Frampton on his iconic song of the same name, offers a truly unique and expansive sound palette. Frampton discovered this gem at George Harrison's home, captivated by its massive and resonant qualities.

Verbal Analysis

This tuning instantly provides an incredibly full and open sound, often described as 'huge' and 'airy.' It's particularly well-suited for rich strumming patterns, slide guitar, and intricate arpeggiated figures, delivering a powerful rock or folk-rock character. The deep, droning low strings create a profound foundation, while the higher strings sing out with clear melodic possibilities. It's a tuning that encourages exploration, making familiar chord shapes sound entirely new and inspiring creative lead lines that naturally fit within its unique harmonic structure. The repeated notes across octaves give it a thick, almost orchestral presence.

Technical Analysis

The open strings are tuned to D2 D2 D3 A3 D4 F5#, presenting a strong D major tonality. The tuning is essentially a D major chord across all six strings, but with a unique voicing and octave distribution:

• The low three strings (6th, 5th, and 4th) are all D notes (D2, D2, D3), providing an incredibly deep and resonant unison root foundation. This creates a powerful drone effect and allows for easy bass lines that always reinforce the D root.
• The 3rd string is tuned to A3, the perfect fifth of D.
• The 2nd string is tuned to D4, an octave above the 4th string, further reinforcing the root.
• The 1st string is tuned to F5#, the major third of D, giving the tuning its major quality.

Collectively, the open strings form a rich D major chord (D-A-D-F#) with multiple octaves of D. This makes the open position incredibly resonant and harmonically stable.

Open Chords & Within Reach

• Open D Major: Strumming all open strings immediately yields a massive D major chord, making it an excellent tuning for songs in the key of D.
• Barre Chords: Due to the open D major foundation and the repeated D notes on the lower strings, simply barring across any fret creates instant major chords in various inversions. For instance, barring the 2nd fret will produce an E major chord (E-E-E-B-E-G#), and the 3rd fret an F major chord (F-F-F-C-F-A). This makes moving through keys via barre chords very intuitive and powerful.
• Power Chords: The unison D notes on the lower strings make for exceptionally thick two or three-string power chords by simply fretting the corresponding notes on the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd strings, while letting the 5th and 6th strings drone.
• Unique Voicings: The intervals between strings (e.g., perfect 5th between 3rd and 2nd strings: A3-D4; major 3rd between 2nd and 1st strings: D4-F5#) allow for unique voicings and melodic patterns that are difficult to achieve in standard tuning.

How to Tune Your Guitar to Wind of Change

To achieve the 'Wind of Change' tuning from standard EADGBe, follow these steps. Please note the semitone movements for each string.

• 6th String (Low E): From standard E2, tune down 2 semitones to D2.
• 5th String (A): From standard A2, tune down 7 semitones to D2. Caution: Tuning down 7 semitones is a significant change. A different gauge string is advised if you plan to keep your guitar in this tuning long-term, to maintain proper tension and tone.
• 4th String (D): From standard D3, keep as is; no change (0 semitones). The string remains at D3.
• 3rd String (G): From standard G3, tune up 2 semitones to A3.
• 2nd String (B): From standard B3, tune up 3 semitones to D4.
• 1st String (High E): From standard E4, tune up 2 semitones to F#4. The final note of this tuning for the 1st string is F5#.

Always tune carefully and check intonation after making significant changes to your guitar's tuning.