Tenor banjo tuning: GDae & CGda 

Hahahaha well, thank you - I'm glad it's been helpful. And thanks for driving up those view numbers 😀

Hey John! Glad I had something useful to offer. Lord knows I've 'borrowed' enough :-)

Thanks for letting me know- I wasn't aware that clip-on/ electronic tuners weren't keyed in on tenor banjo pitch. Even on chromatic setting? I really appreciate the info and I'm all the more glad it's helpful.

Thanks for your interest and comment! Funny enough, I'm not a banjo player either. This was my first banjo build - a special order and really fun - but I'm getting more demand for CBGs right now. First off I'd recommend going to the Maestro, Eddy Davis. He's bound to be THE guy with the answer. Have you tried the Banjo Hangout forum? Another really good bet. I can't imagine the tuning would be anything too non-standard. It seems like most work in this genre was done in jazz tuning (CGda), Chicago (DGbe), or plectrum (CGbd). I found a bunch of online sources including charts and lead sheets - looks like it's a common quest - and can share those with you if you email me. HTH!

Not dumb at all - it's a perfectly natural question and one actually asked many times before early on in this post. Yep, absolutely does uke tuning. I'd just go light gauge on the top A string since that's pretty high tension note at this scale. I'd suggest something like 22 ( orig g string from tenor tuned up or down?) 20 (lighter because tuned up from g) 14 (lighter because tuned whole step up from d) 10 or sager to start with 9 and see how it goes. HTH Cheers!

Irish players can take advantage of the lowest note (the C string).

Ahh, we always tune mandolins to GDAE, I'm in the applachian US though.

Yes, but mind those top string weights at pitch! I use 22 ( orig g string from tenor tuned up or down?)-20 (lighter because tuned up from g)-14 (lighter because tuned whole step up from d)-10 Cheers!

I'm not sure what you mean by standard American fourth string banjo. I'm not an in-depth expert on banjos, but the 2 types of 4-string banjos are tenor like this one and plectrum. Your strings depend on which type you have because they are different scale lengths and will put different tension on the strings so it's important to choose strings appropriate for your scale banjo. Tenor banjo scale is anywhere from 19" to around 23". Plectrum banjos are much longer thus a lot higher tension. If you have a tenor banjo, I recommend buying a set of tenor banjo strings to keep things simple. They're available online and no pricier than other strings. There are some options for light or medium gauge but start with one and go from there. Hope that helps.

Typically, GDAE string weights run about 12 - 40 (some shorter scale players - their banjo, not their stature :-) go even heavier) to compensate this low tension tuning. Otherwise the strings would be very floppy and create all sorts of noise. CGDA is a much higher tension and sets run about9 - 30 with that A string always on the brink. You could try tuning over and see how it goes - depending on the actual scale of your tenor (they do vary) and weights of your current strings they may float a bit in the slots. In a perfect world you'd probably want a dedicated nut filed for those heavier weights - or have the one on there filed if you're totally committed.Hope that's not TMI :-)

I build more than play so I stick to standard tunings, but here you could try referencing a movable minor chord shape. If so, for Fm it means tuning your bottom two strings (G and D in Irish) down whole steps to F and C respectively. The A would go down a half step to Aflat and the top E string would tune up a half to F. This gives you the notes of the F minor chord if that's what you're after. Those 2 bottom strings will be quite slack - you'd want to think about string tension there. The top 2 shouldn't be affected too appreciably. Cheers!

@@roughcutguitars Thanks! I'll give that a try.

Alex Wiggs I stay to pretty standard tunings on tenor. Do you mean a variation on 'Chicago' tuning (DGBE)? If so, you'd be going all strings tuned down 1-1/2 steps to BEG#C# and would (and could) increase your string gauges to compensate this. Or the bottom 4/bass tuning (EADG) down to C#? I've heard bass players doing this so thought that might be what you're after. If so you'd also tune down 1-1/2 steps and increase gauges. If you mean just tuning up a half from standard CGDA, then you'd decrease the gauge because your increasing string tension, or of course stay in CGDA, capo the first fret and transpose everything one fret up. If none of these is what you're going for, let me know more specifically and I'll be happy to try and help further.

@@roughcutguitars I'm pretty new to the tenor banjo (2 years) and I'm trying to learn a tune called 'Poll Ha Penny' from Angelina Carberry's CD, 'An Traidisilin Beo'. I texted her and she sent me this response: "we were tuned down to c# and I played the tune in A minor fingering, think if u put the capo on the 3rd fret or tune the D string down to c# it will be the same key." I'm not sure what she is trying to tell me. Thanks for any help! :-)

Alex Wiggs Yeah, I'm none the wiser from that explanation - sounds a bit contradictory. I'd guess she was referencing from trad Irish tuning but G down to C# is quite a drop and she says capoing up the 3rd fret, then mentions the D string... thesession.org or banjohangout.org are likely to have an answer. Both invaluable resources if you've been at it this long (see you commented a year ago) or I'm happy to check into it and follow up. Let me know and give me a few days.

Alex Wiggs Hey Alex, second crack at it after a night's sleep :-) I watched her playing it and indeed it looks like she's playing A min position at the second fret. We usually reference the tuning by the lowest note - thus called the 'bottom' string - but musician's are notorious for breaking rules (and we're the better for it, musically :-) She's probably referring to the top E string and tuned it all down to C# from there - perhaps to more easily accompany another instrument; she was playing with an accordionist. So, try EBF#C# and play the standard A minor position. This won't hurt to try for a moment, but depending on your banjo set-up you may not want to leave the tension off the neck for extended periods of time as the neck may 'travel' a bit :-) Give it a go & let me know.

Thanks very much!

Alex Wiggs I can tune it alright, but check out Jay Desrosier's demo on my channel; a proper player, there :-)

I made this video for a customer new to tenor banjo who didn't have a digital transducer tuner. In each tuning, I'm starting with the G and C (heaviest gauge) strings respectively, then going in order to the next lighter strings/ toward the floor as it were. I labeled the string I'm plucking at the bottom of the screen. I've been asked before to pluck the strings longer, but of course people can rewind and play again. Hope this helps answer your question.

​@@roughcutguitars Thank you for the reply. I'm still deciding which style to use, and I've learned to pick two songs, one per day, all up and down the board. If it doesn't have a banjo and a fiddle it's not music.

Please remember I'm referencing gauges and weights based on a tacked head skin. This tension is a lot different than a bracketed skin. Without creating a custom set of individual strings (I don't think it's worth the trouble unless younhave particular tastes or instrument issues) the top most prevalent sets I see for Irish tenor are (gauge/tension): E=12/19.1 A=16/15.05 D=24/12.79 G=38/12.3 and Deering (plus another same spec, can't remember name): E12/19.1 A18/19.05 D28/17.18 G38/13.53. You can see the second set has a much more even tension across the board. I'm NOT recommending one over the other. Just saying it's closer to the range that would suit this instrument best. Thanks for your comment!

Depends on the tuning you're using and scale of your banjo. Can you let me know?

@@roughcutguitars it is a 19 fret tenor banjo from the early 20th century, the decal on the pegboard depicts a cabin and says "winner" (i think-it is very worn) I don't have much background on it. I play guitar and want to use the banjo for playing rhythmically vs. jazz.

@@inkthay I'd really like to help but I need to know the specific scale length. Knowing the tuning would also help - both of these things affect tension on the strings, which can cause them to break if it's too much for the string gauge/weight. That assumes there's not a sharp edge somewhere on a point of contact with the string such as the nut or maybe bridge or even tailpiece, tuner post, or fret. Is the tuning one of these in the video? Here's how to measure scale length on any string instrument: images.app.goo.gl/Nr9JWBshPUvGK99dA

@@roughcutguitars I see. It is 23 inches

@@inkthay Thanks! Sorry for late reply - don't know why I don't see alerts for comments. OK. That's pretty much on the longer end of the spectrum for tenor scale, so tensionnis already going to be naturally higher. If you're using CGDA tuning, I definitely recommend tenor banjo string gauge 9 - 30. That 'top' (meaning highest treble range string) is at its limit and needs a light gauge. DGBE is a lower tension tuning overall, so you can probably go 12-40 or so. If you're still having issues, see if you can find a set with 11 on top. Lighter gauge strings generally sound more flabby, can buzz a bit because there not as tight along the length of the banjo, and have less projection/fullness/precise intonation, but the longer length of your banjo should compensate for that. Good luck, and thanks for watching and commenting.

It's my own build, thanks for asking (and sorry for the late reply.)

Here's a demo of it in 'Standard/jazz' tuning in case you're curious ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-UMIPsPrrEVs.html I also have a couple of demos in 'Irish' tuning on my channel. Never played - or built for that matter - any banjo before this, so had to learn really quick :-)

Hahahahaha :-) Thanks for that! Didn't know how to do time markers when I put this up. I'll get that in later today.