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SOUNDLAB is here for the students, musos, creators, and scientists of music. Occasionally, i'll try to pass on some cool scales or some insights that i've gathered from living, playing, touring, and recording music. hope it's helpful and opens some new passage ways for you. i've also included below some of my favorite guitar players, and my tour equipment rigs.
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ALTERNATE TUNINGS
If you're a guitarist (or any string player really), the world of alternate tunings awaits you. I discovered long ago how guitarists and songwriters would tune to various chords or drone-like groupings of notes. You've been listening to odd tunings for years and may not even know it. This history is vast and many artists have made careers using odd tunings:
Joni Mitchell and Richie Havens are two that come to mind. Of course, many slide blues players tune to an open G chord or E chord. Led Zeppelins' Jimmy Page, Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth), John Martyn, Leo Kottke, Michael Hedges, Kaki King, and Adrian Belew - all incorporate alternate tunings to their music...the list of musicians is endless really.
Changing the tuning on your guitar is like getting a new instrument or finding a new sonic area to explore....new voicings, new ideas, new songs...it awaits you. Below I've listed a few tunings for you to check out. also, i should mention that using a capo with this idea is interesting as well.
Explore these tunings, and be sure to invent some of your own. try them with 6 and 12 strings and electric guitars.
use pedals too. Rock out. Have fun!
EADGBE standard tuning
DADGBE drop D tuning
CFA#D#G,C
CFA#D#GA#
DADF#GD
CFA# D# GG#
DADF#GD
EADGAE
DADGAD modal (kashmir, black mountain side)
CFCCGD
DADF#AD
CGCGBbD
CACGCE
CGCGCE
a few tunings by Sonic Youth
EG#EG#EG#
CGCCGA#
DGDDBB
CCGGGD
GGDDD#D#
EBEEAB
GGDDEbEb
F#F#F#F#EB
David Gilmour's Slide tunings
EBEGBE
DGDGBE
Jimmy Page tunings (led zeppelin)
CACGCE (C6) (friends, bron-yr-aur-jimmy page)
CGCGCE (open C)
DGDGBD (open G)
EADGBD (dancing days)
CFCFAF (open F)
EACFAC
DGCGCD the rain song
EADADE the rain song live
EAEAC#E (open E) in my time of dying
a few source recordings:
joni mitchell - hejira
led zeppelin - III, houses of the holy, physical graffiti
any sonic youth album
michael hedges - aerial boundries
pat metheny - new chautauqua
Any questions?
Contact me here.
Tim
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my favorite guitar players.
i've been asked so many times who my favorite guitarists are that i've decided to list some in no particular order. it's just that these guys have been so influential for me as a player and a listener.
if there are any you don't know, go check them out.
always something worthwhile to discover. -t
cal collins
paco de lucia
carlos parades
michael oldfield
steve hillage
robert fripp
jimi hendrix
herb ellis
robin trower
steve tibbets
jeff beck
roy buchanon
jimmy page
andy summers
bill frisell
eric clapton
pat metheny
david torn
ritchie blackmore
adrian belew
rob fetters
rick iannacone
jef lee johnson
john mclaughlin
ralph towner
god speed you black emperor
steve hackett
albert lee
todd rundgren
john abercrombie
nels cline
pat martino
wes montgomery
buddy guy
vernon reid
prince
the edge
neil young
thurston moore
lee renaldo
john frusciante
tony iommi
allan holdsworth
john scofield
john lee hooker
david gilmour
fred frith
pete cosey
michael hedges
jimmy bruno
steve howe
leo kottke
curtis mayfield
bb king
frank marino
greg ginn
tom verlaine
richard lloyd
jonny greenwood
albert king
freddy king
srv
eric johnson
john martyn
jan akkerman
duane allman
terje rypdal
joe pass
muddy waters
joni mitchell
billy gibbons
derek bailey
arto lindsay
steve tibbetts
pete townshend
marc ribot
grant green
george harrison
tal farlow
steve morse
martin barre
johnny marr
robert quinne
james 'blood' ulmer
this list is far from done...but in one swoop, these are the ones that immediately come to mind.
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gear.
lot's o' questions on tours about what i'm using for efx pedals.
so i thought i'd post two pedal board set ups. the first is what i use when touring with poet Ursula Rucker, and the second is for the power trio Spoonful. if you have any questions, just drop me a line. as with anything, through the years you experiment with all kinds of pedals and sounds and eventually come to what you like. it's important to find you own personal sound. hope these setups help to inspire you.
11/06/05
latest news: i'm currently touring the king britt presents: sister gertrude morgan project. so i will be putting up the equipment used for this. still with the fenders tele thinline and 57 strat....pedal board is somewhat related to spoonful rig...vol, tuner, boss turbo overdrive, mxr distortion plus, boss sampler delay, line 6 dl4 delay modeler, dod preamp to
(whatever they have for me backline - fenders, hopefully)...see you on the road. tour schedule on update page.
Ursula Rucker setup
i use acoustic-electric guitars touring with Ursula,
a Takamine EF341 which has been my main
guitar since Les Nubians days. The other guitar i use is a Godin multiac steel with midi control for the Roland GR-33 synth.
Spoonful setup
This setup is still in progress. I'm experimenting with
the colours of ALOT of different distortions, fuzzes, overdrives, and preamps (ouch!) that push hard the fender deluxe reverb and fender hotrod deluxe amps. axes of choice for this one is the fender 57 strat + fender tele thinline.
*** latest edition: radial tonebone switchbone ab-y
class A switcher...amazing!
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