Using dropped D while NOT in that key

[Howard Emerson]

Dropped D tuning is often the first 'foray' into open tunings for those testing the waters, and when one hears the fullness of the simple D chord with that fat root note sonority, it's an a-ha moment for many.

Of course it can be used as an 'extender' for other chords while playing in an apparently non-related key. This is exactly what I did with my arrangement of Ben Harper's early instrumental 'Number Three'.

Ignoring the capo for the moment, I wrote this in standard tuning, played in the key of C. While coming up with the arrangement (at Ben's request), I needed a fuller II minor chord (D minor if you ignore the capo), so I took the chance, lowered the 6th string a whole step, and hoped I'd be able to form all the other chord voicings I needed via thumb wraps, etc.

Here's the video I made while recording the track at Tiki Recorders in Glen Cove, NY.



I think it worked out very well.

Regards,
Howard Emerson

[Bob Womack]

Interesting. I've got a couple of songs where I use a similar technique. One is in A but I use the chord form of G capoed at the second fret. I do a partial capo that leaves the sixth string open, allowing me to walk down the sixth from A to E while allowing standard chording at the second fret.

Bob

[nbs2005]

That capo 2 open 6th string is a great trick to get the full bass on the d shaped E chord yet still allow you to fret that 6th string for the g shaped A. I use that a lot.

[mr. beaumont]

Johnny Smith (often) and Mundell Lowe (always, I think) used dropped D as their "standard" tuning-- for any key.

It's an underrated tuning for playing in keys outside of D. Although an open D chord in dropped D IS a thing of beauty.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Johnny Smith (often) and Mundell Lowe (always, I think) used dropped D as their "standard" tuning-- for any key.

It's an underrated tuning for playing in keys outside of D. Although an open D chord in dropped D IS a thing of beauty.

Hi Jeff…
I think Johnny Smith ONLY used dropped. A nephew of Chet Atkins (Gary Atkins from Ft Collins, Co) was a jazz player who took lessons from Johnny for over 30 years (in Colorado Springs), and he said Johnny told him to drop string 6 to D and never change it.

I use Dropped D to play in keys of C/Am, G/Em, and D/Bm (which is about 60% of my playing). When one plays inside chords (as opposed to barres), it's easy adapting it to many keys.

While it's fun to strum all 6 and let guitars ROAR in key of D, as a fingerstyler dropped D expands the fretted bass range (moves it up the fingerboard) when you are playing inversions up the neck.

[RRuskin]

I have used that tuning for D, A, E, F#, G, Dm, & F#m.

[Bluenose]

Eric Bibbs' version of "Goin' Down Slow" in dropped D is played in the key of A maj. and it works quite effectively, I thought, for the blues to have that low bass for the 4 chord. The video was part of a package of Bibbs videos from SGs' Guitar Workshop.