How to Tune a Guitar in D

Learning to play the guitar in an altered tuning can not only provide new fingerings, but new inspiration as well. One of the most common altered tunings for the guitar is the open D tuning, which is where all the strings are tuned to ring a D major chord.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Guitar tuner

1. Using the tuner, tune the sixth string down a whole-step to the note D.

2. Tune the fifth string to the normal note A.

3. Tune the fourth string to the normal note D.

4. Tune the third string down a half-step to the note F#.

5. Tune the second string down a whole-tone to the note A.

6. Tune the first string down a whole-tone to the note D.

Tips & Warnings

• Make sure to double check each string before playing. Usually strings will need to be tuned at least twice before they stay in a new tuning like D.

Resources

• Keeping a Guitar in Tune