Verbal Analysis

Named "The Wolves" and famously used for Bon Iver's track, this tuning immediately evokes a moody, introspective, and resonant soundscape. The heavy detuning of most strings, particularly the 5th and 1st strings down by four semitones, suggests a deep, almost melancholic character. It's designed to provide a rich harmonic foundation, perfect for atmospheric fingerstyle or arpeggiated patterns, allowing individual notes to ring out with significant sustain. The open strings form a complete D minor 7th chord, which lends itself to a bluesy, introspective, or folk-inspired feel, providing immediate harmonic complexity without requiring fretting.

Technical Analysis

This tuning transforms the standard EADGBe into an open D minor 7th chord: D2 F2 C3 F3 A3 C4. The notes present are D, F, A, and C, which collectively form a D minor 7th chord. The arrangement of these notes across the strings provides a rich, complex voicing:

• The open tuning itself is a full Dm7 chord, meaning strumming all open strings produces a harmonious, complete chord.
• The presence of the minor third (F) and minor seventh (C) provides the characteristic melancholic and bluesy quality of a minor 7th chord.
• The repeated F notes (5th and 3rd strings) and C notes (4th and 1st strings) offer opportunities for droning and creating thick, resonant textures.
• Barring across any fret will yield another minor 7th chord, making it very intuitive for creating progressions based on this harmonic structure (e.g., barring at the 5th fret creates a Gm7).
• The spacing of the notes, particularly the wide interval between the 6th string D2 and 5th string F2, and the interesting inversion with C3 appearing before F3, allows for unique voicings and open string harmonies.

How to Tune

This tuning requires significant detuning from standard EADGBe. Pay close attention to the string movements, especially for strings tuned down by 4 semitones, as this can affect string tension and intonation.

• 6th String (Low E): Tune down 2 semitones to D2.
• 5th String (A): Tune down 4 semitones to F2. Caution: Tuning down 4 semitones can lead to very loose strings or require a heavier gauge for optimal tension.
• 4th String (D): Tune down 2 semitones to C3.
• 3rd String (G): Tune down 2 semitones to F3.
• 2nd String (B): Tune down 2 semitones to A3.
• 1st String (High E): Tune down 4 semitones to C4. Caution: Tuning down 4 semitones can lead to very loose strings or require a heavier gauge for optimal tension.

String 6: D2 (Lowest sounding string)

String 5: F2

String 4: C3

String 3: F3

String 2: A3

String 1: C4 (Highest sounding string)