Im excited my brother got me this instrument for Christmas along with your definitive guide to the tsugaru shamisen. So i really hope i can learn this enough to play him something before he has to go back to Japan.
I think it's really cool that ni agari is tuned just like an Appalachian dulcimer. I also use this tuning for my guitar when I break strings at the end of the month.
Hey Kyle! Thanks a lot for making these videos. Helped me a lot. I bought a used nagauta shamisen two months ago. I'm a Heavy Metal musician who wanted to add something to my arsenal so I've been obsessing over the shamisen for over four years now. I have a question for you sir. Knowing that the standard shamisen tuning is CDC, and that the shamisen is an instrument that easily goes out of tune, I've been tuning mine one whole step lower ( A# F A#). It helps a bit because my 7 string guitars are tuned to A#D#G#C#F#A#D# so it's easier to transcribe the music that I wrote on guitar into the shamisen, and the decreased tension makes it less quicker for my shamisen to get out of tune. But I can't fully practice your licks with the A# tuning that way. I try to tune mine yo CDC but I just can't seem to. I do that squeezing the itomaki into the shamisen head (tenjin?) while tuning but it just gives 😭. Is there a way for my shamisen's itomaki to be more stable? I think if I force it, I might break my strings or worse, the itomaki. Thanks in advance for answering. More power to you sir. 🤘🏾
I just replaced my strings a few days ago. I jumbled the itomaki because I followed your steps in restringing from your other video. Since then the itomakis are just so unstable. I try to tune it to CDC but after tuning the ichi no ito to C with much squeezing of the itomaki into the tenjin, it just gives. 😭 I don't want to force it so maybe you could offer a little advice. Thanks again sir.
question: on the pitch of CGC, is the C higher on the top string? or is the top Main string supposed to be lower pitch like a Sanshin? EDIT: oh, I see the tuning is not too different from a Sanshin with the exceptions of how it is tuned
I'm thinking of buying one of these soon. I noticed san sagari is basically the same as a bass guitar in standard tuning - I already know how to play one of those, so that kind of makes my mind up for me really :P
Awesome!! Yeah, it's great that san sagari is the same tuning, isn't it! Ironically, many tsugaru shamisen players have a difficult time playing in san sagari because they're so used to playing in niagari. (Mostly speaking for myself, but others who have told me the same). Only recently I've made a mental breakthrough and finally feeling comfortable with it. It's a great tuning for improvising with western songs!
As a general rule, it's placed about three fingerwidths from the neo (tailpiece), but it can be adjusted slightly for tone preference - Farther for a warmer tone, closer for a sharper tone. :-)
Hmm, that's a good question. It's such a small change that I don't notice a huge difference in that regard. Because the instruments are fretless, I think players just unconsciously adjust their fingers until the sounds match.
Got a quick question. I have a new Tsugaru shamisen that I have tuned to niagari D because I want to match it with my D-tuned guitar. I know a lot of people tune to C, but if my ears are correct I hear some Tsugaru-style players tuning to D. The middle string snapped almost immediately after I got it, but since I replaced it a couple weeks ago it's been fine, yet I'm wondering if it's too much higher than recommended. Tsugaru shamisen has a thick neck, so I'm pretty sure that wouldn't warp at all, but in your experience is D tuning too hard on the strings? Thanks!!
Fushiryuu tuning to D should be no problem, though being tighter, the strings are more likely to break sooner than if they are tuned lower. it's possible that the strings that snapped was just an old string. :)