I should know the answer to this...

So, I have a baritone uke, and my concert is on the way. I've been cheating by practicing the gCEA tuning chords on my baritone (tuned to DGBE) while I wait for the concert to arrive (I've only been playing a few days). So my question is this:
If I'm not playing with anyone else (thus having to worry about being in the same key) is there any reason that I can't just play the same chords on my baritone that I will play on my concert when I just want a different sound? I mean, I know that when I play a C chord (according to the soprano/concert/tenor chart) on my baritone, it's not really a C chord, but if I'm not playing with other people, does it matter?

The different string tunings means that even though you may be fingering a proper gCEA chord, the non-gCEA tuning likely means you aren't actually playing a chord.

Remember, chords are composed of three or more notes that are compatible. Just fingering randomly or for different tuning doesn't result in you playing a chord of a different key.

Of course, unless I'm wrong, the gCEA C position on a Bari does play a chord here - the G. But likely won't always be the case.

I believe you can put a capo on the fourth fret of your baritone uke and play the "real" GCEA chords as if the capo were your nut and the fifth fret was the first fret. Does this make sense? So you can keep practicing, but you will be playing the "real" chords as they are supposed to sound and be played.

DGBE and gCEA

The relationships between the strings are the same, except for the non-reentrant tuning on the 4th string.

So ALL your gCEA chord shapes will be proper chords on a DGBE bari, just with different names.

Example: chord sequence C,F,G7 (0001, 2010, 0212)
On your bari this will become G,C,D7

Each of the chords on gCEA becomes a new DGBE chord. Most importantly, the RELATIONSHIPS between the chords WILL BE THE SAME!

Effectively, you're just transposing everything by the same amount.

Of course, unless I'm wrong, the gCEA C position on a Bari does play a chord here - the G. But likely won't always be the case.

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Sorry, I'm afraid you're wrong there. It WILL always be the case!

So, the answer to your original question: so long as you're not playing with other people, it really won't matter! If you're singing, the new key may not suit your voice. Or, songs that you find tricky in gCEA may suit your voice on the bari!

PoiDog said:

The different string tunings means that even though you may be fingering a proper gCEA chord, the non-gCEA tuning likely means you aren't actually playing a chord.

Remember, chords are composed of three or more notes that are compatible. Just fingering randomly or for different tuning doesn't result in you playing a chord of a different key.

Of course, unless I'm wrong, the gCEA C position on a Bari does play a chord here - the G. But likely won't always be the case.

Click to expand...

All gCEA chord shapes will translate perfectly to a DGBE instrument-- they'll just be different chords in DGBE. The intervals are exactly the same, so the chords will work the same-- just transposed. The other difference, as another poster mentioned is that gCEA implies re-entrant tuning where g is higher than C; most all baritones don't use re-entrant, so the D is lower than the B. While you chords are still musically correct, they are going to sound different.

There is absolutely no reason at all why you shouldn't use the same chord shapes on your concert as you have been using on your baritone.
Be aware, though, that if you are singing along, it will be a full five half steps higher on your concert and probably very difficult.

I came to uke from guitar and so, learning uke chords, I kept thinking "guitar capo 5" - it would be the same with baritone to concert.

You will, inevitably, end up playing with other uke players so it is a good idea to learn to transpose if you are going to learn use both baritone and concert. I have a couple of sopranos in european tuning aDF#B, so I often need to transpose. It's a useful string to your bow!

Thanks so much for the info, everyone! I definitely plan on learning to transpose eventually. For now, I'll keep practicing on my baritone until my concert arrives.

Any combo of notes is a chord. (theoretically)

Playing GCEA shapes on a DGBE Bari just means you are playing chords transposed down a few steps. What you are actually playing are chords akin to a guitar. Remember a guitar standard tuning is EADGBE, so the Bari is tuned like first four strings of guitar. Accordingly, a GCEA g shape plays a D chord, a C shape plays a G chord etc.

nohoval_turrets said:

Example: chord sequence C,F,G7 (0001, 2010, 0212)

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Slightly OT, but anyhow: C is 0003 in gCEA tuning, 0001 is C7

Louis0815 said:

Slightly OT, but anyhow: C is 0003 in gCEA tuning, 0001 is C7

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Good reading Louis0815,
On your bari this will become a G7.

Louis0815 said:

Slightly OT, but anyhow: C is 0003 in gCEA tuning, 0001 is C7

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Ah yes! Should have proof-read that more carefully! Should read 0003. Thanks Louis0815.