As a guitarist, venturing beyond standard tuning can dramatically expand your musical horizons. Alternate tunings offer fresh sonic palettes and creative avenues to explore. Among these, “open” tunings stand out, transforming your guitar into a resonant chord with just a strum of open strings. Open E tuning, in particular, unlocks a powerful E major chord and opens doors to genres like blues, rock, and slide guitar.
In this guide, we’ll delve into the world of open E tuning. You’ll learn how to tune your guitar to open E, discover the advantages of this unique tuning, and explore iconic songs that have harnessed its distinctive sound.
Tuning Your Guitar to Open E: A Step-by-Step Lesson
Open tunings are named for the major chord they create when you strum all six strings without fretting any notes. The E major chord, with its bright and resonant character, is a natural fit for an open tuning, especially since standard tuning already includes three notes of the E major chord. Open E tuning builds upon this foundation by adjusting three strings to complete the E major triad across all six strings.
To understand the transformation to open E, let’s look at the notes in standard tuning:
E (6th string – lowest) – A – D – G – B – E (1st string – highest)
In open E tuning, we modify three strings to form an E major chord: the 3rd, 4th, and 5th strings are tuned upwards. The standard G string is raised a half step to G#, the D string a whole step up to E, and the A string a whole step up to B. This results in the following notes in open E tuning:
E (6th string – lowest) – B – E – G# – B – E (1st string – highest)
Notice how these notes – E, G#, and B – are the constituent notes of an E major chord.
Let’s break down the tuning process step-by-step:
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Start with the 5th (A) string: Pluck the 5th string (A string). Turn the tuning peg counter-clockwise (away from you) to raise the pitch. Continue tuning upwards until the 5th string reaches a B note. A helpful tip: Use an online guitar tuner like the Fender Online Guitar Tuner (available for both electric and acoustic guitars, and as a mobile app). You can tune by ear to match the tone of the open B string (2nd string), although it will be an octave lower.
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Tune the 4th (D) string to E: Next, adjust the 4th string (D string). Tune it up a whole step to E. This E should resonate at the same pitch as the open 6th string (one octave lower) and the open 1st string (one octave higher).
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Raise the 3rd (G) string to G#: Finally, tune the 3rd string (G string) up a half step to G#. This is a subtle adjustment, raising the pitch just slightly.
Once you’ve made these adjustments, strum all six strings together. You should hear a rich, full E major chord ringing out. You might need to fine-tune the strings as your guitar adjusts to the new tension, but soon you’ll be ready to explore the possibilities of open E tuning.
The Allure of Open E Tuning: Why Guitarists Use It
Open E tuning offers several compelling advantages for guitar players:
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Effortless Major Chords: The most immediate benefit is the ability to play E major chords simply by strumming open strings. Furthermore, barring across any fret will produce a major chord rooted at that fret. This makes playing major chords up and down the neck incredibly easy.
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Slide Guitar Paradise: The ease of playing major chords with barre chords makes open E tuning a favorite among slide guitarists. The consistent major tonality across the fretboard complements the gliding, expressive nature of slide playing.
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Resonant Open String Voicings: Open tunings, in general, allow for chord voicings that are impossible in standard tuning. The ringing open strings add a unique depth and resonance to chords, creating fuller and more vibrant sounds.
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Harmonic Richness: Open E tuning facilitates the easy playing of natural harmonics, especially at the 5th, 7th, and 12th frets. These harmonics naturally produce major chord tones, adding shimmering textures to your playing.
Open E Tuning in Music: Iconic Songs and Artists
Open E tuning has found its place across various genres, but it’s particularly prominent in blues and rock music. Its powerful, resonant sound lends itself perfectly to these styles.
Blues pioneers like Bo Diddley were early adopters of open E tuning. His signature self-titled track, “Bo Diddley,” is a prime example of the raw, rhythmic energy that open E can deliver in blues.
Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones is synonymous with open tunings, and open E is a cornerstone of his iconic guitar style. Classic Rolling Stones anthems like “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and “Gimme Shelter” showcase the jangling, open string chords and dynamic fills that are characteristic of Richards’ open E playing.
Bob Dylan famously embraced open E tuning for his seminal album Blood on the Tracks. While some songs were later re-recorded in standard tuning, the album’s initial open E compositions, such as “Shelter From the Storm,” reveal the beautiful and unique chord voicings Dylan crafted with open strings.
In more contemporary music, The Black Crowes‘ hit “She Talks to Angels” features acoustic guitar in open E tuning. The song demonstrates the tuning’s versatility, moving seamlessly between melodic chord sections, slide-like lead phrases, and delicate harmonics.
Expand Your Guitar Toolkit with Fender Play
Exploring alternate tunings like open E can be both challenging and rewarding. It requires you to rethink your fretboard knowledge and learn new chord shapes. However, the sonic possibilities and creative inspiration that open tunings unlock are well worth the effort. A new tuning can provide a fresh perspective and ignite your musical creativity.
With a free trial of Fender Play, you can embark on a journey to master open E tuning and other essential alternate tunings like open D and open G. Fender Play’s structured lessons and song-based learning approach make it easier than ever to expand your guitar skills and unlock new sonic territories. Embrace the world of open E tuning and discover a new dimension in your guitar playing!
