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Guitar tuning · 6 string
DADGAD Tuning
The Celtic tuning — an open Dsus4 that refuses to commit to major or minor.
The strings
Low to high, the way you would say it out loud.
D6th
A5th
D4th
G3rd
A2nd
D1st
Getting there from standard
3 strings move; the rest stay where they are.
- 1st string — E down a whole step to D
- 2nd string — B down a whole step to A
- 3rd string — leave it at G
- 4th string — leave it at D
- 5th string — leave it at A
- 6th string — E down a whole step to D
Why players use it
Strummed open, DADGAD is a Dsus4: no third anywhere. That ambiguity is the whole point — it sits under both major and minor melodies, which is why it took hold in Irish and folk playing where modal tunes live.
What it buys you
Ringing drone strings under a melody, and one-finger chords straight across a fret.
CelticFolkFingerstyleAcoustic rock