A-D-F#-B Tuning On A Soprano

Papa Tom

Papa Tom

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Inspired by how tuning my Tom Pocket Uke up to CFAD made the instrument "sing," I decided to try bumping my soprano up a step, from GCEA to ADF#B.

Wow! I can't believe the difference this has made in the tone and feel of the instrument. All of a sudden, I am love with it again!

I know that ADF#B has no place in the real world, and that I won't be able to stay with the same fingering and play with anyone else, but as long as I'm playing alone, I'm going to keep it here and make it my little secret!
 
Papa Tom said:
Inspired by how tuning my Tom Pocket Uke up to CFAD made the instrument "sing," I decided to try bumping my soprano up a step, from GCEA to ADF#B.

Wow! I can't believe the difference this has made in the tone and feel of the instrument. All of a sudden, I am love with it again!

I know that ADF#B has no place in the real world, and that I won't be able to stay with the same fingering and play with anyone else, but as long as I'm playing alone, I'm going to keep it here and make it my little secret!
Click to expand...

It doesn't matter if your fingering is any different. As long as you know the chords and all in your own tuning, that's all that matters. If they are trying to follow your fingering, that's their problem. I have all my ukes tuned CGDA and have no problem playing with the local groups.
 
Papa Tom said:
Inspired by how tuning my Tom Pocket Uke up to CFAD made the instrument "sing," I decided to try bumping my soprano up a step, from GCEA to ADF#B.

Wow! I can't believe the difference this has made in the tone and feel of the instrument. All of a sudden, I am love with it again!

I know that ADF#B has no place in the real world, and that I won't be able to stay with the same fingering and play with anyone else, but as long as I'm playing alone, I'm going to keep it here and make it my little secret!
Click to expand...

No place in the real world ????


Mate , sopranos were born playing D..... it is the relatively new world of the third wave that has brought about their emasculation to the slightly muddy sounding (for Soprano) world of gCEA....which is great for Concerts and Tenors ...


You just have to transpose your chords ......C shape GCEA is now D in ADF#B so F shape becomes G ...D7 is E7 ...G is A und so weiter....

and you can therefore still play with the GCEA fraternity......play the same shapes just remember that you are playing up two semitones ......obviously watch out for the barred F 3331 and F 7 3334 being at third fret ...wait till you try Bb Eb G C tuning...:love:...just be careful because the modern strings may not like that ....wimps that they are...lol...or you may pull your bridge off .....caution advised.
 
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Hmmm...I had no idea this has been done before. I thought I had made some groundbreaking discovery that would end up with a uke company being named after me. 'Sounds nice..."Tom Ukes." Imagine that?

Anyway, I still have a second soprano and a banjolele that sound great with gCEA, and I really don't want to have to learn the new names for chord fingerings that took me five or six years to memorize, so I will just use my two ukes tuned to gCEA on the rare occasion that I play with anyone else. When I play this particular soprano for my own enjoyment, I'm going to keep it right where it is.
 
As CeeJay said, ADF#B is the old standard and remains so in some countries.

I have a tutor book from the 1930s and it gives three "standard" tunings; GCEA, ADF#B and BbEbGC. My George Formby song book indicates the tuning to use at the top of each song and all three are used. The approach in earlier times was clearly to learn a basic set of shapes and retune to enable playing in a wider variety of keys. A capo permits the same approach but a capo on a soprano uke gets in the way, IMO. By all accounts, George Formby would several ukes in different tunings on stage.

I recommend you learn the relationship between the chord shapes and key in both GCEA & ADF#B. It's not difficult as the ADF#B chords are just one step above the same GCEA shapes; so C becomes D, G becomes A and so on. ADF#B is very useful for playing in E - just play D shapes.
 
I was standing by, waiting for a little "backlash" posting, LOL
 
Papa Tom said:
Hmmm...I had no idea this has been done before. I thought I had made some groundbreaking discovery that would end up with a uke company being named after me. 'Sounds nice..."Tom Ukes." Imagine that?

Anyway, I still have a second soprano and a banjolele that sound great with gCEA, and I really don't want to have to learn the new names for chord fingerings that took me five or six years to memorize, so I will just use my two ukes tuned to gCEA on the rare occasion that I play with anyone else. When I play this particular soprano for my own enjoyment, I'm going to keep it right where it is.
Click to expand...


I don't know if you use a chord book for reference at all ...what I am doing is pencilling in the D tuning next to the printed one ....so all my A chord pages have pencilled in Bs next door ....honest ..it won't take long ....just remeber which uke is tuned to what ...

George Formby did ...see Tootler's comment .
 
The biggest problem for me would be fingering a "B" chord when I want a "C."

"C" is the most used chord in my whole repertoire of songs, "B" is the one chord I avoid at all costs because, after about five years playing, I still can't switch to that fingering cleanly from any other chord. "B" is the devil to me!!!!!

I appreciate the advice and the encouragement. I fall into the category of players who switched from other instruments to rid myself of the stress of having to work hard, mentally and physically, at the art of making music. I will use this ADF#B uke only for self-amusement.
 
Papa Tom said:
The biggest problem for me would be fingering a "B" chord when I want a "C."

"C" is the most used chord in my whole repertoire of songs, "B" is the one chord I avoid at all costs because, after about five years playing, I still can't switch to that fingering cleanly from any other chord. "B" is the devil to me!!!!!

I appreciate the advice and the encouragement. I fall into the category of players who switched from other instruments to rid myself of the stress of having to work hard, mentally and physically, at the art of making music. I will use this ADF#B uke only for self-amusement.
Click to expand...

It would actually be a Bb shape.
 
Papa Tom said:
My mistake, but just as hard to finger!
Click to expand...

Because it is the same shape !! 3211 ..Bb GCEA C ADF#B...... BUT it is also B C Db D Eb E F F# G Ab A Bb (again) as you move it up the neck in GCEA and C to C and all between in ADF#B....so don't think that you are only learning one chord - you are learning a chord shape for many , many chords..well okay 12..;)



Just a thought .
 
Tom don't stress yourself out If your playing by yourself the C Tunes just become D tunes, G tunes become A tunes.

I have problems getting good intonation on B and Bb chords in the first position too. Your "D" tuning just transposes the chords down two frets. Change your thinking from moving down the fret board to up the neck. I will use "C' tuning for the example. You know the Standard G chord? (2320). Keeping your fingers in that shape slide them up the neck 5 frets and you have your C chord! If you are in "D" tuning the G chord becomes and A Chord so you only have to slide your fingers up the neck three frets to get a C chord. (as for the retentrant 4th sting either don't sound it or select the C, E or G note on that string that works for your fingers.
 
Papa Tom said:
The biggest problem for me would be fingering a "B" chord when I want a "C."

"C" is the most used chord in my whole repertoire of songs, "B" is the one chord I avoid at all costs because, after about five years playing, I still can't switch to that fingering cleanly from any other chord. "B" is the devil to me!!!!!

I appreciate the advice and the encouragement. I fall into the category of players who switched from other instruments to rid myself of the stress of having to work hard, mentally and physically, at the art of making music. I will use this ADF#B uke only for self-amusement.
Click to expand...

You probaly have already done this but just in case...I find it easier to barr these types of chords.

Barred.jpg
 
Ukuleleblues said:
You probaly have already done this but just in case...I find it easier to barr these types of chords.

View attachment 77880
Click to expand...


Good point ...and if you do the F shape similarly it becomes F# in GCEA tuning ..........and G # or Ab in the sparklier ADF#B tuning ........and likewise will move up the neck.....


We will stop nagging if you ask us ........;)
 
IamNoMan said:
Tom don't stress yourself out If your playing by yourself the C Tunes just become D tunes, G tunes become A tunes.

I have problems getting good intonation on B and Bb chords in the first position too. Your "D" tuning just transposes the chords down two frets. Change your thinking from moving down the fret board to up the neck. I will use "C' tuning for the example. You know the Standard G chord? (2320). Keeping your fingers in that shape slide them up the neck 5 frets and you have your C chord! If you are in "D" tuning the G chord becomes and A Chord so you only have to slide your fingers up the neck three frets to get a C chord. (as for the retentrant 4th sting either don't sound it or select the C, E or G note on that string that works for your fingers.
Click to expand...

It helps that it is already is a G .....and as it is re -entrant I play that one open or barre across at the 7th fret and make an F shape..but I prefer the G shape...it has a really nice dynamic and leaves the little finger free for noodling.......
 
The first ukulele method books I ever saw were for ADF#B tuning. Older books. Cool, thinks I, Bm7 tuning. Then I started to see the GCEA tuning which made a bit more sense to me from a transposing from other instruments point of view but sounded blah...besides, what do I need that for when my concert and tenors are tuned GCEA anyway? The higher tuning makes my little soprano ring and sing better, driving the bridge/top harder. Without the higher tuning I might not bother with the soprano at all. The variety is nice.
 
Papa Tom said:
Inspired by how tuning my Tom Pocket Uke up to CFAD made the instrument "sing," I decided to try bumping my soprano up a step, from GCEA to ADF#B.

Wow! I can't believe the difference this has made in the tone and feel of the instrument. All of a sudden, I am love with it again!

I know that ADF#B has no place in the real world, and that I won't be able to stay with the same fingering and play with anyone else, but as long as I'm playing alone, I'm going to keep it here and make it my little secret!
Click to expand...

Actually it does have some practical use if you're playing any classical stuff. I tune like that when my buddy plays guitar or piano so that the stuff like Menuet in G is actually in G; works for Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring too.
 
Mooh said:
The first ukulele method books I ever saw were for ADF#B tuning. Older books. Cool, thinks I, Bm7 tuning. Then I started to see the GCEA tuning which made a bit more sense to me from a transposing from other instruments point of view but sounded blah...besides, what do I need that for when my concert and tenors are tuned GCEA anyway? The higher tuning makes my little soprano ring and sing better, driving the bridge/top harder. Without the higher tuning I might not bother with the soprano at all. The variety is nice.
Click to expand...

I have a Martin soprano circa mid 50s and mine actuall sounds better in c tuning than in D. Could be the Aquila strings, I suppose...
 
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