Vildhjarta Tuning: An Ultra-Low Dive into Sonic Depths

This unique tuning, known as the "Vildhjarta" tuning, was notably utilized in their track "kanslan". It represents an extreme venture into downtuning, pushing the boundaries of conventional guitar setup to achieve an incredibly deep, resonant, and often dissonant sonic landscape. It's a tuning engineered for heavy, intricate, and often percussive riffing, characteristic of the modern progressive metal and djent genres.

Verbal Analysis

The Vildhjarta tuning plunges the guitar into an exceptionally low register, with its lowest string reaching an astounding E1 – a full octave below standard low E. This provides a truly thunderous foundation, bordering on bass frequencies, allowing for intensely heavy chugging riffs. The overall sound profile is dark, menacing, and capable of vast sonic textures. When played open, the strings produce a complex, non-standard voicing that leans towards dissonance and atmosphere rather than traditional harmony.

The upper strings (A#3, D#4, G#4) are arranged in a stack of perfect fourths, which is highly conducive to modern metal riffing, allowing for easy formation of power chords and open, suspended voicings by simply barring across these strings. However, the massive, irregular interval jump between the 4th string (F2) and the 3rd string (A#3) – an octave plus an augmented fourth – fundamentally redefines how chords and melodies are approached. This wide gap creates an expansive feel and makes traditional chord shapes largely impractical, encouraging players to explore new fingerings and voicings.

This tuning is not for the faint of heart or those seeking traditional chordal harmony. It's designed for rhythmic precision, percussive impact, and crafting intricate, low-end driven passages that exploit its extreme range and unique intervallic structure.

Technical Analysis

The Vildhjarta tuning consists of the following open string notes from lowest to highest pitch:

• 6th String: E1
• 5th String: C2
• 4th String: F2
• 3rd String: A#3 (Bb3)
• 2nd String: D#4 (Eb4)
• 1st String: G#4 (Ab4)

Analyzing the intervals between adjacent strings:

• 6th (E1) to 5th (C2): Major 6th (9 semitones)
• 5th (C2) to 4th (F2): Perfect 4th (5 semitones)
• 4th (F2) to 3rd (A#3): Octave + Augmented 4th (17 semitones) – This is a highly unusual and wide interval, a key characteristic of this tuning.
• 3rd (A#3) to 2nd (D#4): Perfect 4th (5 semitones)
• 2nd (D#4) to 1st (G#4): Perfect 4th (5 semitones)

The stacked perfect fourths on the top three strings (A#3, D#4, G#4) create a familiar and versatile shape for metal riffing. When strummed open, these three strings form an A#sus4 chord (without the 5th) or a G#sus2/A# voicing, offering both clarity and a modern, open sound. Due to the extreme nature of the drops and the wide interval between the 4th and 3rd strings, standard open chords are not achievable, and traditional barre chords become extremely challenging, if not impossible, without significant re-voicing.

How to Tune Your Guitar for Vildhjarta Tuning

Important Note: This tuning involves significant downward adjustments for all strings. Generally, tuning a string down more than 4 semitones (or up more than 4 semitones) from its standard pitch can lead to very low string tension, poor intonation, and potential string breakage if not using appropriate string gauges. For the Vildhjarta tuning, you will almost certainly require a much heavier gauge string set, possibly even a multi-gauge set, to achieve proper tension and playability. Proceed with caution.

• 6th String (Low E): Tune down 12 semitones to E1. Caution: This is a full octave drop and strongly advises using a much heavier gauge string to maintain tension and avoid intonation issues.
• 5th String (A): Tune down 9 semitones to C2. Caution: This is a significant drop. A heavier gauge string is highly recommended.
• 4th String (D): Tune down 9 semitones to F2. Caution: This is a significant drop. A heavier gauge string is highly recommended.
• 3rd String (G): Tune down 9 semitones to A#3 (or Bb3). Caution: This is a significant drop. A heavier gauge string is highly recommended.
• 2nd String (B): Tune down 8 semitones to D#4 (or Eb4). Caution: This is a significant drop. A heavier gauge string is highly recommended.
• 1st String (High E): Tune down 8 semitones to G#4 (or Ab4). Caution: This is a significant drop. A heavier gauge string is highly recommended.