Verbal Analysis

This distinctive tuning, famously used by Mike Kinsella in his live rendition of American Football's "Never Meant," provides a vibrant and resonant sound. It's an excellent choice for players seeking a full, open tonality that lends itself beautifully to intricate fingerstyle passages, arpeggios, and shimmering chord work. The tuning creates a bright, expansive soundscape, making it ideal for creating atmospheric textures and melodic lines that truly sing, evoking a sense of openness and introspection.

Technical Analysis

This tuning configuration results in an Open D Major chord when all strings are strummed. The open strings — D2, F#3, A2, F#4, A3, D4 — collectively form a D Major triad (D, F#, A) voiced across multiple octaves. The strategic repetition of the major third (F#) and perfect fifth (A) on different strings contributes to a rich, dense, and harmonically satisfying resonance, making it an excellent canvas for both melodic and rhythmic playing.

Open Chords and Reachable Shapes:

• Strumming all open strings yields a powerful and complete D Major chord, serving as the harmonic anchor for the tuning.
• By simply barring across any single fret, you can effortlessly achieve other Major chords up the neck. For example, barring all strings at the 2nd fret will produce an E Major chord, while the 3rd fret yields an F Major.
• The unique spacing and repetition of F# and A notes make it easier to create nuanced voicings such as Dsus2 or Dsus4 by simply adjusting a single finger on an adjacent string.
• This open tuning is highly conducive to drone notes and pedal tones, allowing for intricate melodic lines to be played on the higher strings against sustained, harmonious lower notes. This technique is often used to build atmosphere and sonic depth.

How to Tune

To achieve Kinsella's Live Open D Major tuning from standard EADGBe, carefully follow these string movement instructions:

• 6th String (Low E - E2): Tune down 2 semitones. This will bring your string to D2.
• 5th String (A - A2): Tune down 3 semitones. This will bring your string to F#2. (Note: The specified target note for this string in the tuning details is F#3. For the purposes of this "How to Tune" guide, we follow the explicit string movement instruction from standard A2.)
• 4th String (D - D3): Tune down 5 semitones. This will bring your string to A2. Caution: Tuning down 5 semitones is a significant drop in pitch. It is highly recommended to consider using a heavier gauge string for this position to maintain optimal string tension and avoid a floppy feel, while also preserving intonation and tone.
• 3rd String (G - G3): Tune down 1 semitone. This will bring your string to F#3. (Note: The specified target note for this string in the tuning details is F#4. For the purposes of this "How to Tune" guide, we follow the explicit string movement instruction from standard G3.)
• 2nd String (B - B3): Tune down 2 semitones. This will bring your string to A3.
• 1st String (High E - E4): Tune down 2 semitones. This will bring your string to D4.

The target notes for each string in this tuning are as follows:

• 6th String (Low E): D2
• 5th String (A): F#3
• 4th String (D): A2
• 3rd String (G): F#4
• 2nd String (B): A3
• 1st String (High E): D4