Cuatro Venezolano

wolf69 · Nov 20, 2010

Hi, i just want to show the " cuatro venezolano "

Is a 4 strings instrument tradicional from Venezuela and Colombia, is mostly used for strumming with a singer but they are some very good cuatro finger players.

It is almost mandatory to learn in school, that a good thing, all the kids have a little cuatro at home.

I think it sounds and looks a little bit like a baritone ukulele, the tuning is A D F# B

Here you have some examples

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oDVEhxEVKI&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=outKf8pcDvI&feature=related

I hope you like it guys

mm stan · Nov 20, 2010

Aloha Wolf69,
That was awesome....I've gained an intrest in it and learned from it....Thanks, MM Stan...

wolf69 · Nov 21, 2010

Look what i found, interesting

http://www.southcoastukes.com/index_files/cuatro.htm

wolf69 · Nov 23, 2010

Here is another 4 strings instrument called Bandola, with a cuatro

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sj5TivWTaw&feature=grec_index

I Ukulista · Nov 24, 2010

Nice. I've read that the tuning is A,D,F#,B with some players. Is that correct?

wolf69 · Nov 27, 2010

I Ukulista said:
Nice. I've read that the tuning is A,D,F#,B with some players. Is that correct?

Yes, that's the standart tuning for the cuatro

Someday i'm going to put some baritone ukulele string on one to see what happens

I Ukulista · Nov 27, 2010

I've tried A,D,F#,B tuning on a ukulele that did not sound so good with G,C,E,A, and it really sounded much nicer.
Thanks for the link to the Cuatro. I live in Wales and have a Chilleno friend who always calls my ukulele el Cuatro!

adrianifero · Dec 2, 2011

Hey guys, i'm a cuatro soloist from venezuela. If you have any questing i'll gladly answer it.

This is how we tune the cuatro:
http://www.tucuatro.com/en/lessons/basic/233-how-to-tune-the-venezuelan-cuatro

And here we have some more info on english:
http://www.tucuatro.com/en/

Trinimon · Dec 2, 2011

Love the cuatro! It's very popular this time of year in Trinidad for the Parang music with it's heritage leading back to its Venezuelan influence. Trinidad is only 7 miles from Venezuela.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85Lny6ZjDro&feature=related

PoiDog · Dec 2, 2011

adrianifero said:
Hey guys, i'm a cuatro soloist from venezuela. If you have any questing i'll gladly answer it.

This is how we tune the cuatro:
http://www.tucuatro.com/en/lessons/basic/233-how-to-tune-the-venezuelan-cuatro

And here we have some more info on english:
http://www.tucuatro.com/en/

Aloha!

Based on the tuning guide you have it seems like the cuatro is tuned with both the A and B strings (the 4th and 1st) an octave lower than would be found on the 'ukulele. Is that right?

coriandre · Dec 4, 2011

HMS is selling one tuned like a baritone
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Cordoba-Soli...442?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1e68ff0972

adrianifero · Dec 22, 2011

PoiDog said:
Aloha!

Based on the tuning guide you have it seems like the cuatro is tuned with both the A and B strings (the 4th and 1st) an octave lower than would be found on the 'ukulele. Is that right?

Yes PoiDog, that's the main difference with the ukelele tuned as ADF#B, both A and B are one octave lower.

You can see some nice videos of cuatro soloist here. First one is me playing

http://cambur-pinton.com.ve/blog/videos/

adrianifero · Jun 22, 2015

Hey Guys, just wanted to share with you a cover i did using the Venezuelan Cuatro. The song is "La Mer" or "Beyond the sea". I hope you enjoy it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-5DgNp4zDA

k0k0peli · Jul 26, 2015

I am hooked already. I am ready to buy a (cheap) new baritone and mount a D'Addario J98 Cuatro Venezuela string set. Then I'll have 1) a Puerto Rican cuatro (5 courses, 10 strings) tuned narmally, 2) a Paracho (Mexico) cuatro-menor (4 courses, 12 strings) tuned like a 'uke, and 3) a bari 'uke (4 strings) tuned like a Cuatro Venezolano (CV). Am I confused yet?

I already have a taste of what fingerpicking a CV must be like. My Kala KA6 s-string tenor 'uke is strung g-cC-E-Aa so I'm learning to pick out bass lines on the top string. A standard 'uke with high notes on the top and bottom strings is odd enough to a lifelong guitarist like me; a cuatro-tuned 'uke with LOW notes there will be a nice challenge. Maholo!

adrianifero · Jul 27, 2015

Hey k0k0peli,

Glad to know you're giving a try to the venezuelan cuatro tuning! Hope the two low strings at the top and bottom are not too much confusing.

I'll share with you some youtube videos of the cuatro players that I like:

Marcel Montcourt
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINCMtt5XYJ04UplQAywMjhsJEBwnVf_a

Carlos Capacho
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINCMtt5XYJ1XfTHZ8_SK1xApygm-52Lp

Jorge Glem
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINCMtt5XYJ0IE9QxN8uHsAZ6bC8mz_gB

Miguel Siso
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINCMtt5XYJ2rNi__4H-VYO5qt3vAD8BT

Abraham Sarache (Rock)
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINCMtt5XYJ08piDlXo49O2jcALv4sRie

Mariana Masetto
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINCMtt5XYJ2PMcfw7eKOEtbLH8qPpkCb

Also, on regarding strumming, you can check a free cuatro course at TuCuatro that explains a little bit about the cuatro strumming differences with other instruments:
http://en.tucuatro.com/courses/

Hope this info gets you going!

Adrian

k0k0peli said:
I am hooked already. I am ready to buy a (cheap) new baritone and mount a D'Addario J98 Cuatro Venezuela string set. Then I'll have 1) a Puerto Rican cuatro (5 courses, 10 strings) tuned narmally, 2) a Paracho (Mexico) cuatro-menor (4 courses, 12 strings) tuned like a 'uke, and 3) a bari 'uke (4 strings) tuned like a Cuatro Venezolano (CV). Am I confused yet?

I already have a taste of what fingerpicking a CV must be like. My Kala KA6 s-string tenor 'uke is strung g-cC-E-Aa so I'm learning to pick out bass lines on the top string. A standard 'uke with high notes on the top and bottom strings is odd enough to a lifelong guitarist like me; a cuatro-tuned 'uke with LOW notes there will be a nice challenge. Maholo!

k0k0peli · Jul 29, 2015

adrianifero said:
Glad to know you're giving a try to the venezuelan cuatro tuning! Hope the two low strings at the top and bottom are not too much confusing.

I'll share with you some youtube videos of the cuatro players that I like:
<snip>

Thanks for all the vids! I've already ordered the strings -- they cost a whole US$3.49 shopped from Musician's Friend -- and I may try them on my current small-voice baritone as soon as they arrive. I can't get a bigger-voiced baritone for a couple of months yet for various good reasons but I'm eager to try that low-re-entrant tuning.

adrianifero · Jul 31, 2015

k0k0peli said:
Thanks for all the vids! I've already ordered the strings -- they cost a whole US$3.49 shopped from Musician's Friend -- and I may try them on my current small-voice baritone as soon as they arrive. I can't get a bigger-voiced baritone for a couple of months yet for various good reasons but I'm eager to try that low-re-entrant tuning.

Glad to know you'll have the strings soon, the J98 D'addario are, in my opinion, the best ones for Cuatro! I usually buy them in Canada at 4.49 which comes to be around 4 american dollars.

Here's a collection of my own videos using a professional cuatro with D'addario strings on it, hope you enjoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6kxZMKfcGo&list=PLTmKKSaauaUJOHlrI8xqdOctb25vFoOXa

Also, If you ever want to buy a cheap authentic cuatro to complete your instruments collection in the future, I would recommend the Cedar Cuatro that sells on TuCuatro for under $250 US, shipping included:

http://store.tucuatro.com

Have a good one,
Adrian

k0k0peli · Aug 1, 2015

adrianifero said:
Here's a collection of my own videos using a professional cuatro with D'addario strings on it, hope you enjoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6kxZMKfcGo&list=PLTmKKSaauaUJOHlrI8xqdOctb25vFoOXa

Also, If you ever want to buy a cheap authentic cuatro to complete your instruments collection in the future, I would recommend the Cedar Cuatro that sells on TuCuatro for under $250 US, shipping included:

http://store.tucuatro.com

Wonderful playing! And thanks for the lead. Ah, another item on my shopping list...

Fleapluckin_Flapper · Aug 19, 2015

Am I glad you posted this....I'm helping a cuatro player learn how to read tab and get to know the fingerboard better. I've tuned my uke to D tuning to work with him. He hails from Venezuela. Is there any tab or printed music resources you could share? Thanking you in advance......

bnolsen · Aug 19, 2015

wolf69 said:
Yes, that's the standart tuning for the cuatro

Someday i'm going to put some baritone ukulele string on one to see what happens

for straight strumming it sounded muddy to me. I didn't like it very much and switched my bari back to normal tuning. I wonder how a GCEA tuned cuatro might sound.

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