One of the questions frequently brought up when it comes to alternate guitar tunings is the issue of tuning or re-tuning the guitar, or flipping back and forth between various tunings.

We’re all familiar with how the rock stars do it - a roadie jogs up and hands the rock star a new axe, in between songs.

We mere mortals, however, especially those among us who only possess a single guitar, may be totally put off by the prospect of having to re-tune at all, much less to a whole new tuning.

Of all the alternate guitar tunings out there, open-D has to be one of the most “flip friendly” alternate guitar tunings of all.

The simplest method to tune or re-tune, of course, is to use an aid such as an electronic tuner, or a pitch pipe, or even a handy piano keyboard. But, in the absence of one of these devices, re-tuning your guitar to open-D can still be achieved with a minimum of fuss.

To make the move to open-D, it’s quite important to follow an orderly transition from standard tuning. Rule number one: take advantage of the existing strings.

Conveniently, two of your strings will remain unchanged: your current A and D string stay right where they are (provided they themselves are in tune).

This is in important link between the two tunings, and one of the principle reasons why flipping from standard guitar tuning to open-D is relatively simple.

From here, the simplest way to make the flip is to start with your low E string. Use your existing D string as a guide to re-tune your low E even lower by a full tone. Hit your existing D string first, then the E string and loosen it until it matches D, except one octave lower. Once they sound alike (but an octave apart), you have half the job done - the D A D portion of open-D tuning is complete. (Fans of drop-D tuning, by the way, should be very familiar with this step.)

Next take your high E string and do exactly the same thing - lower it a full tone to D. Hit your now middle D (the one you didn’t alter), then the high E and match its pitch to the D, except an octave higher. Now you should have three D strings, all in tune, but an octave apart, low to middle to high D. You’re now already two thirds of the way to open-D tuning.

The next string to change is your B; it too has to come down a full tone to A. For this step, use your existing low A string as a guide, striking it and then the B string, and then loosening the B string until it matches the A, only an octave higher.

All that’s left now is your G string. The simplest way to bring this one down to F# to finalize your re-tuning is to strike all six strings and then lower the G until you hear a nice D major chord. Confirm it by hitting individual strings, high to low, listening for that F# to be a proper part of the chord. You can check this by playing an F# on your now middle D string (fourth fret) - the two notes should match.

Making the flip between standard tuning and open-D tuning is a relatively straightforward task. Of all the alternative guitar tunings out there, this one has the bonus of two shared strings (A and D) which serve as valuable guides to retune remaining four. Like any other skill related to guitar, retuning or “flipping” between tunings, takes - you guessed it - practice. But it is well worth the effort to get to and enjoy open-D tuning.

About the Author
Frank Foxx is a semi-professional guitar player and part-time guitar teacher who plays exclusively in the tuning of open-D. He has written a guitar method book, extolling the virtues of what he considers to be the most versatile and easiest of all guitar tunings, entitled Guitar-eze A Simpler Approach to Playing the Guitar. His website is www.easierguitar.com… He keeps a blog at http://open-d.blogspot.com/ dedicated to helping guitarists and aspiring guitarists see the light.