EDAMAME Tuning: A Deep Dive into Ichika Nito's Unique Sound

The "EDAMAME Tuning" by Ichika Nito offers an exceptionally broad and harmonically rich sonic palette, designed to inspire fresh creativity and push the boundaries of conventional guitar playing. As Ichika Nito himself demonstrated, this tuning allows for a unique blend of heavy, resonant lows and shimmering, articulate highs, making it suitable for both intricate melodic passages and impactful rhythmic work.

Verbal Analysis

This tuning feels like a captivating journey from the profound depths to airy heights. The lowest E1 string provides a foundational rumble, a truly guttural sound that can underpin any arrangement with immense power. This contrasts beautifully with the multiple C# and A notes found higher up, which lend the tuning a bright, almost crystalline quality. It's a tuning that encourages experimentation, moving beyond standard chord voicings to explore wide, open-string arpeggios and resonant, complex harmonies. The interplay between the low E and D strings creates a distinctive tension, while the prevalence of A and C# across octaves offers a strong sense of melodic clarity and sweetness.

Technical Analysis

This is a 7-string guitar tuning, articulated as E1 D2 A2 C#4 A3 C#5 E4 from the lowest (String 7) to the highest (String 1) string. Analysing the open strings reveals a fascinating harmonic structure:

• The tuning prominently features notes from an A Major arpeggio (A, C#, E) across multiple strings and octaves, suggesting a strong A Major tonality or a related mode.
• The lowest notes, E1 and D2, form a wide Major 7th interval (or a minor 2nd if inverted), which creates a thick, slightly dissonant, and very resonant low end.
• The perfect 5th interval between D2 and A2 (Strings 6 and 5) provides a solid foundation for power chords or root-fifth voicings.
• Notice the repeating A and C# notes: A2, C#4, A3, C#5. These are strategically placed to allow for rich, open chord voicings and arpeggiated figures. The intervals between A2 (String 5) and C#4 (String 4) and between A3 (String 3) and C#5 (String 2) are both Major 10ths (a Major 3rd plus an octave), creating very wide, resonant harmonies.
• The highest strings, C#5 and E4, are separated by a minor 6th, offering an interesting melodic and harmonic twist in the upper register.

Chords and Harmonic Potential

The open strings themselves form a complex, evocative chord: E1 D2 A2 C#4 A3 C#5 E4. This could be interpreted as a sophisticated E minor 11 (missing the G and B) with an added C#, or an A Major 7 / E with an added D. More simply, it suggests a rich polyphony over a deep E or D bass.

Specific open chord voicings that are readily available include:

• A Major Triads/Arpeggios: Strumming strings 5, 4, 3 (A2 C#4 A3) yields a strong A Major sound. Extending this to include string 2 (C#5) and string 1 (E4) creates a beautiful, open A Major 7 voicing with extended octaves.
• D Power Chords: The D2-A2 perfect fifth on strings 6 and 5 makes it very easy to create strong, resonant D5 power chords by simply muting the other strings or carefully picking.
• E Minor/Major Flavors: The prominent E1 and E4 act as bookends. Combining the full open tuning with the low E and D suggests an E Dorian or E Mixolydian influence, allowing for rich, bluesy, or modal improvisation over an E bass.
• Wide Voicings: The wide intervals between certain adjacent strings (e.g., A2 to C#4, A3 to C#5) encourage fingerstyle playing that emphasizes these open, resonant sounds, perfect for creating lush, arpeggiated textures.

How to Tune

To achieve the EDAMAME Tuning, carefully adjust each string to its target note. Please note the significant string movements and gauge recommendations:

• String 7 (E1): Tune down 7 semitones. This is a very substantial downward adjustment. As noted in the original description, using a very heavy gauge string for this low E is highly recommended for optimal tension, tone, and tuning stability.
• String 6 (D2): Tune down 2 semitones.
• String 5 (A2): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones).
• String 4 (C#4): Tune down 1 semitone.
• String 3 (A3): Tune up 2 semitones.
• String 2 (C#5): Tune up 2 semitones. For this higher pitch, a lighter gauge string might be beneficial, as suggested in the original description, to prevent excessive tension and improve playability.
• String 1 (E4): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones).

Always tune slowly and carefully, especially with large adjustments. If any string movement exceeds -4 or +4 semitones (as is the case with String 7), considering a different string gauge is generally advised to maintain string integrity and optimal performance.

• String 7: E1
• String 6: D2
• String 5: A2
• String 4: C#4
• String 3: A3
• String 2: C#5
• String 1: E4