Phil - MO - Posted - 11/20/2009:  07:48:21

I purchased the Tony Trischka Fiddle Tune Book.
For once I thought I would do the right thing and start from the front no matter how basic it is.
I ran through all the basic scales and rolls in the G turning as written.
When I come to the first song, it is written in C tuning and the 2nd version in D tuning without using capo. I think I am OK with this as I play Reuben in D tuning.
My question is that if somebody else takes the lead and I want to play backup, all the time I've taken to learn the chords up and down the neck in G tuning is suddenly not of any use. I've never ran into a chord chart other than for G tuning. Do I now have to learn all new left hand positions to play backup chords in the different tunings??

Richard Dress - Posted - 11/20/2009:  07:52:05

The real difficulties come when you have to retune your banjo for the next song while your band and the audience waits for you to get it done right.

steve davis - Posted - 11/20/2009:  07:55:00

In D tuning you will find familiar chord shapes as they were on the 1,2 and 3 strings in G tuning except that the same positions are on the 2,3 and 4 strings.
The "F" shape on 2,3 and 4 strings at the 5th fret is a D chord in D tuning.

In D tuning the open chord is D,the barre at 5 is a G chord and the barre at 7 is an A chord.

Edited by - steve davis on 11/20/2009 07:56:57

beegee - Posted - 11/20/2009:  09:06:20

I often use my Keith tuners to tune back to G while someone is singing and play D-chord backups(without the 5th string), then tune back down to D

The KIDD - Posted - 11/20/2009:  09:30:39

Yep, what will help most is to go to jams applying the newly learned chord configs in basic jam tunes.(especially where female vocals are present). The keys of D E and F will be used alot and you can switch configs during the night. I often do it in the same song (like Home sweet Home,Bury me beneath the Willow, Lifes Rail way to Heaven , Pretty Polly etc)...That way your working outta the same bar and beat arrs' on a regular basis and not just learnin the formations just for the "chords" sake. You'll learn to move them through a song inotherwords.
John

minstrelmike - Posted - 11/20/2009:  09:38:37

Yes, the chord forms in different tunings are different for the same reason the chords on mandolins and guitars are different.

Learning a new tuning is learning a new neck. The physical example is the many player who carry multiple banjos in multiple tunings.
Learning a few tunes in a different tuning is different than learning to jam or improvise in the tuning.

Your choices are to 1. learn everything in a single tuning, or 2. learn multiple tunings well or 3. just learn basics in a few of the new tunings.

For jamming, I do everything in a single tuning and learn all my songs there.
For shows and bands, I do different tunings without having to bother learning to improvise that much or do backups in random keys.

johann - Posted - 11/20/2009:  12:46:31

http://www.banjohangout.org/myhango...albumid=3732

I put some effort into the four other major tunings (drop-C, D, double-C, and G-modal) a while ago. These five charts (along with the standard-G) is what I came up with.

What I found on a fundamental level was: there are generally three different major chords you can form and they can be characterized by the lowest note played -- one of the triad tones: root, 3rd or 5th.

The diagrams use a capital I, III, and V to show closed-form major chord (the root, 3rd, and 5th). Then the chart shows where all the i, ii (ii = 9th), biii (aeolian minor), iii, v, vi, bvii notes are (in lower-case).

The only thing you now have to learn is where these closed-form chords are on the neck. Also, I find that I do different rolls when I'm in different tunings. I found that D-tuning was the most difficult and I had to write out what I thought were good sounding backup rolls and licks. I'm still not satisfied with how I sound when backing up when in D, but its getting there and I'm certainly better than when I started this a year ago.