The Tenor Ukulele Open E5 Power Tuning is a robust and unique setup for your Tenor Ukulele, designed to unleash its inner rock beast. This tuning shifts the ukulele's characteristic bright jangle towards a deeper, more resonant sound, making it ideal for players looking to explore rock, blues, or even metal riffs on their ukulele.

Verbal Analysis

Forget your typical GCEA; this tuning takes your Tenor Ukulele into uncharted sonic territory. With its lowest string pitched at a surprisingly deep E2, it immediately conjures a powerful, full-bodied sound reminiscent of the lower strings on an electric guitar. The strategic repetition of E and B notes across the strings creates a naturally resonant E5 power chord when strummed open, making it incredibly easy to lay down driving rhythms. It's a fantastic choice for simulating "standard guitar" rock songs, providing that essential raw, open-string power chord feel with minimal finger work. This tuning encourages a heavy strumming hand and a focus on rhythmic intensity, perfect for basic rock anthems.

Technical Analysis

The tuning configuration is as follows, from the lowest (4th) string to the highest (1st) string:

• String 4 (Lowest): E2
• String 3: B2
• String 2: B3
• String 1 (Highest): E4

When strummed open, these notes form an E5 power chord (E, B). The intervals between the strings are:

• E2 to B2: Perfect 5th
• B2 to B3: Octave
• B3 to E4: Perfect 4th

This makes it exceptionally easy to play power chords. By simply barring all four strings at any given fret, you will instantly create the corresponding power chord (e.g., barring at the 1st fret yields F5, 2nd fret for F#5, and so on). This direct approach simplifies playing rock riffs and progressions, allowing for quick chord changes and a focus on rhythm. While not ideal for intricate jazz or complex melodic lines, it excels at providing a solid, driving harmonic foundation.

How to Tune

To set your Tenor Ukulele to the Open E5 Power Tuning, follow these instructions for each string:

• String 4 (Lowest, target E2): Keep this string as is; no change (0 semitones). Ensure it resonates at E2.
• String 3 (target B2): Tune this string up 2 semitones.
• String 2 (target B3): Keep this string as is; no change (0 semitones). Ensure it resonates at B3.
• String 1 (Highest, target E4): Keep this string as is; no change (0 semitones). Ensure it resonates at E4.

Important Note: This tuning involves relatively small adjustments for the strings that require movement (String 3 tunes up 2 semitones). For more extreme tuning changes (exceeding 4 semitones up or down), a different gauge of strings is generally advised for optimal tension and playability, but for this specific tuning, your current strings should suffice for the specified changes.

String 4 (Lowest): E2

String 3: B2

String 2: B3

String 1 (Highest): E4