How to Relatively Tune a Tenor Guitar
A tenor guitar is a short-scale, four-string guitar typically used in old-time jazz and related music. The tenor is typically tuned CGDA -- just like a tenor banjo, another four-string instrument that was wildly popular in the Jazz Age. After you tune a tenor guitar using an electronic tuner or piano, you can fine tune it by tuning it relatively -- that is, making sure each string is tuned properly relative to the string next to it. If the tuner says the guitar is in tune but the chords still sound "off," relative tuning will generally fix the problem.
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Instructions
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Make sure the lowest string -- the C string -- is tuned as accurately as possible, using an electronic tuner or piano.
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Finger the C string at the fifth fret. This raises the pitch of the string to a G.
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Play a G note on the C string, and then play the string right next to it, which is the G string. The notes should be identical. If the open G string sounds slightly higher or lower than the G note on the C string, adjust the tension on the G string until it's an exact match.
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Finger the G string at the seventh fret, which raises its pitch to a D. Now check that note against the third string, which is the D string. Again, adjust the D string until it sounds identical to the D note on the G string.
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Finger the D string at the seventh fret which raises its pitch to an A. Check the highest string, the A string, against this note and adjust the tuning of the A string if necessary. The tenor guitar is now tuned relatively.
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Tips & Warnings
To keep this sequence of frets in mind, just remember '577.'
To remember the standard tuning for the tenor, think of the mnemonic, "Classy Guys Do Alright."
If you can find chord charts for the tenor guitar, look for charts for the tenor banjo, which is tuned the same way.
Tuning a guitar relatively requires a sharp ear and a relatively quiet environment. It is almost impossible to hear small variances in tone when other people are talking, playing or tuning around you.
