Any reason guitar players should use GCEA ...

I have played guitar for more than 30 years. I just use my ukuleles in the tuning they were in when I got them. I really like re-entrant tuning because it is so different from guitar so "muscle memory" does not interfere with going in a new direction musically. I also have one ukulele in low G tuning because there is a lot of good music happening there too. That is the only difference between my two ukuleles in terms of tuning, which octave the 4th (G) string is in. I don't know if I will explore other tunings, since I am still learning the seemingly standard tuned ukulele.

One thing I will say is that I am learning ukulele on its own terms, rather than trying to relate it to the guitar. I don't ever think about the ukulele as being like a guitar capo'ed at the 5th fret other than occasionally seeing reference to that here. I would find that really confusing, where treating the ukulele as a completely different instrument seems more straightforward to me. I want to leave all the guitar "baggage" behind me when I pick up the ukulele and start with a clean slate. I find that approach refreshing and inspiring.

Tony
 
Tony, that's a good point and one I thought of but couldn't really evaluate before the fact.

In my case it's a more direct connection since I play a Tacoma Papoose, whose standard tuning is A D F# B E A.
 
Sequimite said:
rather than tuning to the 5th fret of a guitar: A D F# B ?
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you can tune them that way. in the past it was a popular way to tune them, commonly called D tuning. In fact, some sopranos sound better tuned that way, and many people still do.
 
Sequimite said:
Nope, that's why you tune the A string by playing the E string at the fifth fret.
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A guitar is normally tuned EADGBE, where the E and the A are low strings. We uke player only have the equivalent of DGBE (bariton tuning). Transposing that to the fifth fret, you go from D -> Eb -> E -> F -> F# -> G, so you end up with GCEA, and not A D F# B.
 
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Why care how it's tuned. A chord shape is a chord shape; just the key is different.

If you want to play it like a guitar, tune it like a baritone in G tuning.

If you want to play a four stringed sounding guitar, buy a tenor guitar or baritone.
 
Ha, nevermind. You can tell I'm a drummer, the notes at the fifth fret of a guitar are A D G C E A.

I don't know why I saw that alt uke tuning and thought it translated to the fifth fret of the guitar.

Standard tuning it is!
 
I've played guitar since the mid '60's, mostly chord-strumming and a bit of folky/bluesey finger-picking and, like others, I effectively treat the ukulele as a different instrument. I don't consider the limited range caused by the re-entrant tuning to be a problem, moreso the bonus, none of that bassy donk-donk-donk to get in the way of the bright shiny trebles :)

Having similar chord-shapes to a guitar can help, admittedly, but I shift from guitar to ukulele to banjo to mandolin with gay abandon and rarely find the different chord-shapes to be an issue, I simply consider myself to be playing in a different key depending on which instrument I'm holding ... different key, different chord shapes ... works for me !

A guitar capo'd at the fifth fret can only be an approximation to a ukulele. The extra bass strings can "get in the way", the capo can "get in the way", and the whole resonance of the larger body just makes it sound like a guitar being played "up the neck", simply no real comparision :)
 
I have just taken a 6 string banjo banjitar ..gitjo ..spawn of satan... whatever ...and moved the DGBE into the middle four string slots ....I tried it with ADF# B tuning ...shitty vid here for a larf http://youtu.be/RuK3mCrTpZ4 too bassy so I moved the strings.........anyway I have now managed to completely lose the plot and cannot remember what point I was trying to make ....what a tosser I am !!!!!!!

Oh yes ..the relationship between uke and git is the DGBE tuning part ...the intervals translate to GCEA eventually.........

Is there a nurse here ...I think I might have forgotten my meds again...............
 
Sequimite said:
Tony, that's a good point and one I thought of but couldn't really evaluate before the fact.

In my case it's a more direct connection since I play a Tacoma Papoose, whose standard tuning is A D F# B E A.
Click to expand...

A what ? Is that some sort of abuse of a Native American Child carrying vehicle ?

(forgive me ....I'm English ...so may not be aware ....I mean aware of any sensitivities surrounding the subject of my fun poking ....Jeez ...do you have to put a disclaimer on everything??)

...and does anybody know the South American instrument...ukulele sized ...10 stringed (5 doubles) made traditionally from a dil....... no sorry ...an Armadillo

...now made from wood ? They are brill....(this bit is actual serious question....for a change)
 
Jim Hanks said:
Bwahahahaha! :biglaugh:

Papoose http://www.elderly.com/new_instruments/items/PAPOOSE.htm

Charango http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charango
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Jim you are a First Class Dude......... the Tacoma Papoose is a new one on me ....I saw a very excellent duo ..one Chilean and one English guy playing South American music recently and was very struck by the uke like instrument ..which I spoke to him at some length about ...and forgot the bloody name of .....excellent liitttlee instrument ...Thanks
 
I also have to confess that my curiosity was piqued because I read the thread entry as ...."Any Reason, Guitar Players ?"..........which I thought was a fair enough question in it's own right .........but that's just nasty ole me....
 
For what it's worth, here's my Papoose with its Jumbo big brother:

1924657_10202465112802238_1988599754_n.jpg
 
Sequimite said:
For what it's worth, here's my Papoose with its Jumbo big brother:

1924657_10202465112802238_1988599754_n.jpg
Click to expand...


Hell fire ...the kid would end up like a sliced egg on a salad if you tried to fit him/her in the big one .....the little one is kind of cute.....

hang on mmmm egg on salad ....

Nah seriously (what ,me ...c'mon I CAN be ..just don' wanna ) I am intrigued by all these stringy thingies ...as I may have mentioned earlier i am trying to converty a six string banjo abomination into a baritone steel string banjo .....by removing two strings .....mwahahaha...might adjust the nut and bridge if it sounds half right .....
 
Sequimite said:
Ha, nevermind. You can tell I'm a drummer, the notes at the fifth fret of a guitar are A D G C E A.

I don't know why I saw that alt uke tuning and thought it translated to the fifth fret of the guitar.

Standard tuning it is!
Click to expand...

It is, but you were thinking it was the last 4 strings of the guitar instead of the 1st four strings. A "D" chord on a guitar (xx0232) is a "G" chord on the ukulele (0232) in GCEA tuning. Even as a guitar player, I played ukulele for an embarrasingly long time before I realized that. :)
 
Bagaag said:
It is, but you were thinking it was the last 4 strings of the guitar instead of the 1st four strings. A "D" chord on a guitar (xx0232) is a "G" chord on the ukulele (0232) in GCEA tuning. Even as a guitar player, I played ukulele for an embarrasingly long time before I realized that. :)
Click to expand...

Oh come on........you never did? Really ......well ....ummm me too.....oops:rolleyes:
 
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