Dadgad

[Caillou]

Hello,
I couldn’t find a thread about the DADGAD tuning, so here it is !
Until recently, I had never explored alternate tunings, but I felt the need for a fresh approach to the guitar. That’s when I decided to give DADGAD a try
I might return to standard tuning at some point, but for now, I’m finding DADGAD incredibly inspiring. The expanded low end with the open D gives the guitar a wonderfully deep and resonant tone. The interval of a second between the G and A strings opens up opportunities for close voicings that remind me of the kinds of chords I used to play on the ukulele. This interval also allows for "cascading" notes, something ukulele players call campanella style
Interestingly, I haven’t come across many jazz guitarists using this tuning. It seems that jazz players aren’t particularly drawn to alternate tunings in general. DADGAD is more common in the folk world, where artists like Nick Drake and Joni Mitchell have created some truly iconic music with it
That said, some guitarists have made beautiful music with DADGAD, although many of them are outside the jazz sphere. Here are a few examples that I’ve been enjoying, sorry if this stretches beyond the jazz universe :

Pierre Bensusan, who has made DADGAD his standard tuning

Laurence Juber, formerly of Wings

Jamie Bell, whose sound and feel remind me of Ted Greene

Sandy Shalk

Farhad Tajarobi

Have you ever tried this tuning ?
What are your thoughts on it ?
Do you know of any guitarists who have used DADGAD with a touch of jazz ?
Looking forward to hearing your insights and discoveries

[Mick-7]

Tuning the bottom E string done to D is fairly common, Johnny Smith, Barney Kessel, et. al., did it. But beyond that, any advantage is outweighed by all the drawbacks: it would change all the note relationships, chord fingerings, etc. Ralph Towner may use it, not sure, he does use alternate tunings.

[RJVB]

Do you know of any guitarists who have used DADGAD with a touch of jazz ?

I'm guessing that the touch of a jazz guitar doesn't count even if there's something a bit jazzier thrown in?

[Irishmuso]

any advantage is outweighed by all the drawbacks: it would change all the note relationships, chord fingerings, etc. Ralph Towner may use it, not sure, he does use alternate tunings.

Totally agree. Tried it when I was much younger but found it very limiting for anything other than drone based folk music for which it's a bit of a quick fix. Might work for solo jazz guitar, but playing with other musicians would be a struggle.

[Caillou]

I completely understand. It’s incredibly hard to let go of the muscle memory and habits built over years in standard tuning. Switching to DADGAD feels like learning a new instrument in some ways
Of course, like any tuning, DADGAD has its limits. But just because it’s been widely used in folk music doesn’t mean it’s restricted to that style. After all, standard tuning has given us everything from Pat Metheny and Andrés Segovia to Paco de Lucía and Jimi Hendrix. DADGAD could be just as versatile, depending on how it’s approached
I’ve found that it opens up textures and voicings that are difficult or impossible to achieve in standard tuning, especially for solo playing. It’s more about embracing what’s unique about it rather than trying to force it into the same framework

[Rob MacKillop]

I have authored a few Mel Bay DADGAD books. The above one is mainly Ragtime, but with a couple of early jazz-style pieces.

[Skip Ellis]

I like a lot of the Celtic/folk genre and even commissioned a guitar to play it (Brook Lyn) but found that, after almost 65 years of playing standard tuning, I just couldn't make the change. I never play anything the same way twice and to learn those tunes, I felt locked in to someone's TAB arrangement which I didn't want to do and trying to read the notes was maddening because nothing was where it was supposed to be. I decided that trying to learn an entirely new tuning for, maybe 10 songs, just wasn't worth the effort; even though there were advantages to the tuning (open strings, etc), those songs can still be played effectively in standard. Just my $.02....

[Kirk Garrett]

Open tunings s always sound like open tunings. It’s a narrow area that indicates why standard tuning was always a good idea.

[Doctor Jeff]

I’m not really a fan of open tunings, at least they don’t help with the songs I play.

But last spring I played a show with a singer who wanted to do Christopher Cross’ Sailing. I knew the notes, but struggled with playing them using standard tuning. Then I found a tab on Ultimate Guitar showing that the original tuning was DADGbAE.

Then it all fell into place. The arpeggios were simple and straightforward.

For various reasons, I didn’t want to retune my Gretsch or bring a second guitar, so I used a ukulele with a capo, which worked out just fine.

[RJVB]

the original tuning was DADGbAE.

If you write that DADF#AE it becomes open D major with an added E, so not an entirely open tuning?

(or a renaissance lute tuning with dropped 2nd and 6th strings )

We have a member here (goes by mrwoland if I remember the spelling correctly) who always uses a tuning based on Fripp's tuning.

[Alter]

I go through periods where i practice Dadgad, prety much the only alternate tuning besides the simple drop D that i 've spent time with.

Here's a couple of videos, the second one being timely with the holidays coming up!

[Dave70]

Open tunings s always sound like open tunings. It’s a narrow area that indicates why standard tuning was always a good idea.

Check out that Jamie Bell video in the original post. I never would have guessed DADGAD... lol His channel has other vids too, man he does have the Ted Greene vibe...

[Caillou]

An open tuning does sound like an open tuning if one relies solely on the open strings. However, dedicating time to it reveals beautiful closed voicings that are impossible to achieve in standard tuning. The interval of a second between the G and A strings in DADGAD creates textures reminiscent of a pianist's right hand. I believe DADGAD (or any open tuning) can unveil unsuspected potential if one takes the effort to go beyond its surface possibilities

[cyberglad]

mb it's crazy, but I wrote the entire electric guitar album in DADGAD. Not a single song in standard tuning. Hello Pierre Bensusan mixed with Mateus Asato and Jeff Beck
It’s more soul and blues than rock, the tuning is more suitable for those styles.


Spotify:
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Apple Music:
Dadgad on Electric – Album von Yuri Gladkov – Apple Music


YouTube Music:

[darkwaters]

I’ve used it over the years on my old Tak acoustic for Celtic fingerpicking and Middle Eastern with a pick. Can’t say I ever tried Jazz with DADGAD. Perhaps I’m missing something. It would certainly be a challenge I think.

[supersoul]

I really like alternate tunings. They bring out something different in the guitar, and it doesn't have to be droney, either. But it does let me make the guitar sound orchestral in ways I can't with open tuning. It's great for writing songs, and pushing me away from my normal patterns. Sometimes I've written things in an alternate tuning, transcribed it with a piano, then played them in standard tuning.

The most recent ones I've messed with are:
CGDABD
CGDGAE
CGDAAD

DADFAD
DADF#AD

DADGAD has been used a lot. Kashmir!

Nick Drake used CGCFCE for the songs Pink Moon and Parasite, and probably others.