Strings Tenor Guitar

[Colin the Bear]

I got a video sent to me of a band leader i was vaguely aware of. Eddie Condon. I'd never noticed before that he's playing a four string guitar.

Here's the vid

View: https://youtu.be/FGxquYERsSw


A bit of googling and reading later and it turns out to be a tenor guitar. No me neither. Tuned like a tenor banjo in fifths, CGDA. Brought in to facilitate banjo players doubling. Apparently the popularity of Django Reinhardt made the six string more popular and it faded into the back ground. I've dabbled with banjo, mandolin, bazuki etc but this is the first time I've come across Tenor guitar. I don't get on with standard six string guitar. It seems such an illogical instrument to me.

I can feel the gas building.

 

[Tenor Viol]

That's the same tuning as cello and viola - viola is an octave higher than cello. The cellos C is the one below the bass clef which is a third below the E of a normal guitar

 

[Andrew Sanders]

As you say tuned the same as tenor banjo. I think it was developed as a transitional instrument to help banjo players move to normal guitar. And Django started his musical journey on banjo.

I heard Karine Polwart playing one a couple of weeks ago and I've suffered from GAS ever since.

 

[thomsax]

The NO player Tiny Grimes played the 4-string tenor guitar. I think it was a Gibson. A guy her over is on a five string Strata liked guitar.
.

 

[Eoe]

There are a lot of different tunning on the tenor . Traditional view of tuning lutes is to tune them the way that suits you. even classical guitarist can not argue this point they just push a standerd tunning to make it easy to write, teach and read. The only 4 string i use is a bass and only for slap and funk..all other types of music I use my seven string bass.

 

[Colin the Bear]

I was talking to a banjo player who uses a baritone ukelele tuned same as the banjo because she hadn't the time to learn guitar but wanted the sound. I must remember to tell her about my (re)discovery

 

[Eoe]

When I was studying flamenco I was required to create my own tunning. She could take a six string tune them all to banjo tuning tune the first 4 to banjo the last two just duplicate the ones you want to I have seen this...here is my station in my conservatory.

 

[Andrew Sanders]

The NO player Tiny Grimes played the 4-string tenor guitar. I think it was a Gibson. A guy her over is on a five string Strata liked guitar.
.

I believe the first tenor guitar was a Gibbo.

 

[Andrew Sanders]

When I was studying flamenco I was required to create my own tunning. She could take a six string tune them all to banjo tuning tune the first 4 to banjo the last two just duplicate the ones you want to I have seen this...here is my station in my conservatory.View attachment 8188

Nice geetars!

 

[Ivan]

When I was studying flamenco I was required to create my own tunning. She could take a six string tune them all to banjo tuning tune the first 4 to banjo the last two just duplicate the ones you want to I have seen this...here is my station in my conservatory.View attachment 8188

Nice photo of nice instruments but the composition could be improved...

Putting the alto in the foreground would do it for me

 

[Tenor Viol]

A 'standard' 6 course Renaissance lute is in G with the same tuning as my tenor viol: GCFADG. However... people played around. Viols can be tuned 'lyra way' which is more-or-less whatever you want within the limits of the strings, but that is played from lute tablature rather than staff notation - it is mind-warping to me anyway. I'll see if I can upload some lyra viol music... You get 'alto' viols, which are basically tenors, but tuned to ADGBEA. The treble is a 4th higher than the tenor at DGCEAD which is an octave above the bass.

Lutes got more complex as time passed evolving into 10 or even 12 courses of strings, with - in the caseof the archlute and theorbo - diapason strings as well.

 

[Andrew Sanders]

Nice photo of nice instruments but the composition could be improved...

Putting the alto in the foreground would do it for me

Didn't even see that! I must still be a guitar geek.

 

[Andrew Sanders]

I was talking to a banjo player who uses a baritone ukelele tuned same as the banjo because she hadn't the time to learn guitar but wanted the sound. I must remember to tell her about my (re)discovery

There are some very good deals on ukeleles including baritone ones at Musicroom

UK accordion | banjo | mandolin | ukulele instruments at The Music Room

There's a slightly dinged one for £40 on there. A man of your calibre could handle that Colin.
You don't even have to saw it in half.

 

[Ivan]

Didn't even see that! I must still be a guitar geek.

I feel a bit guilty given this is a thread about string-ed things

 

[Eoe]

I used the term Lute to referred to all stringed fretted instruments. Not the Renaissance lute etc per se. There are still several tunings for the early lutes. I do not play acoustics anymore and I stick with standerd tunning no matter what i play to make it easier to read. I have played so many tunings but even the last time I played a 10 course lute I tuned it standerdish . Tune the way that makes it easy. Unless you are studying the lute family the way I did.

 

[Ivan]

I used the term Lute to referred to all stringed fretted instruments. Not the Renaissance lute etc per se. There are still several tunings for the early lutes. I do not play acoustics anymore and I stick with standerd tunning no matter what i play to make it easier to read. I have played so many tunings but even the last time I played a 10 course lute I tuned it standerdish . Tune the way that makes it easy. Unless you are studying the lute family the way I did.

This is serious @tenorviol territory

 

[Tenor Viol]

This is serious @tenorviol territory

Well, in the sense that I have both a tenor and a bass viol and I did have a go a playing Renaissance 6 course lute but decided it would take way too long to get my head round playing it properly.

 

[Dave McLaughlin]

I heard Karine Polwart playing one a couple of weeks ago and I've suffered from GAS ever since.

I saw her play in Paisley a couple of weeks ago - rather good!

 

[Andrew Sanders]

I saw her play in Paisley a couple of weeks ago - rather good!

Yes Dave, I didn't know what to expect as I've only heard her in a band situation. She can hold a big hall all on her own.

 

[Eoe]

Well, in the sense that I have both a tenor and a bass viol and I did have a go a playing Renaissance 6 course lute but decided it would take way too long to get my head round playing it properly.

I never cared for the six course lute as a twelve string guitar has better tone I played lute for the rich chords of all the strings like 10 is as small as I would go and sympathetic resonance . my next acoustic instrument will be a harp Gutiar I love playing those things. You want serious gass give that a googel. With all the extended range instruments we have to start calling the twelve string a 6 course...like when you hear 8 string bass is it a 4 course or a actually a 8 string.. I actually went to buy what I thought was a 4 course bass but it was a 8 strings not coures made by Conklin.