Helpful Hints For Tuning Drums

The most important step in becoming good at tuning-drums is to practice--tune a LOT!

Be brave--find a sound that is YOU. The more time you spend experimenting with tuning, the less you will fear doing something "wrong". There IS no wrong sound. If you ask every drummer you meet how to tune, you will probably get a slightly different answer from each one.

The sound of your drums depends upon three things:

1. Choice of heads

2. Muffling

3.Tuning.

CHOICE of HEADS

This is the foundation for later tuning-drums and creating your "signature sound." There are many choices available, but the main types of heads are:

Clear heads-- Clear heads are known for their ease in tuning, and bright, open resonance, with plenty of attack. These heads are used by many drum manufacturers as standard for toms and bass drums.

Batter Heads are used on the top of drums (the side you strike with your sticks) and

Resonator Heads are for the underside of the drum.

Drum heads basically come in three thicknesses: thin, medium, and thick. Years ago, Remo gave these thicknesses names: Diplomat, Ambassador, and Emperor . These names are so well-known that if you go to any drum store and ask for, for example, an Ambassador -weight head you will get a medium thickness head no matter what brand you might choose.

So a nice safe choice if you are just starting out would be Ambassador weight clear heads for your bass drum and toms. You can make adjustments in the weight as you learn more about what you like.

Coated heads--these are the heads that have a white coating. They are (in my opinion) best used only for the batter heads of snare drums. Snare heads are much thinner and are used on the bottoms of snare drums.

Hydraulic heads--these heads are 2-ply(have two layers) and have a thin coating of oil between the layers. These first became popular in the 70's and are used as batter heads. They are strong and tune quickly and easily. They have less "ring" and a kind of warm mellow sound.

There are also Black Dot heads which have a polyester dot laminated to the center of the head for strength and dampening. Personally, I find these heads a little too "dead". It is much easier to muffle a drum than to add life to a dead, flat sound. of course this is just MY opinion. There are just as many opinions about choosing heads as there are about tuning-drums.

There are so many choices--how to decide? My advice is to stick with the basics and then when you have a specific sound in mind, try various heads to achieve that sound.

MUFFLING

Although much of the unwanted overtone sound (ringing) can be controlled by proper methods of tuning-drums, there are situations which require a little extra treatment.

If you are in a live situation and have no other resources, you can resort to good old duct tape to get rid of a slight high-pitched ring. You may have to move the tape to different points on the head until you find the source of the ring and you may have to use more than one piece. Place the tape so that it does not interfere with the playing area of the head. Be sure to leave little "handles" on the ends of the pieces of tape so you don't have to scrape it off of your head later.

For a more aesthetic and most times more effective solution, you can make a donut out of an old head. Find an old head the same diameter as the head you need to muffle. Cut around the edge removing only the rim, but leaving the edge flat. Now cut a smaller circle out of the inside piece. The donut should be about 3/4" to 1" wide. Place it on top of the drum's head. If the donut flies off at inopportune moments, affix it to the head with SMALL pieces of duct tape stuck to the rim.

Or you may purchase a commercial version such as "REMOS". These are pre-sized versions of the homemade donut. They now come in a couple different varieties. Choose ones that match the size of your drums. There are also drum heads with built in rings.

By the way how do you measure your drums? Measure from the outside edge of the shell to the opposite outside edge (diameter). Do not include the metal ring. Heads are measured in inches, so if you come up with something in between, you probably need to measure again.

Your bass drum may be muffled by "filling" it with soft, sound-absorbent materials such as blankets or pillows. Just be careful not to deaden the sound too much by overfilling. Or you can cut a hole in the back head. The problem with this is that it is difficult to experiment with the size of the hole. You would need a LOT of bass drum heads!

Of course, there are those who say that drums should NEVER be muffled. Some things you just have to decide from your own experience.

TUNING

The absolutely best source for a detailed discussion of changing heads and tuning-drums can be found at the Tomas Howie Drumming Web. I don't think anyone could add more. This guy knows it ALL!

Happy Drumming!

Tenor Ukulele Tuning - A Tips Guide For First-Timers

The tenor ukulele is the 2nd largest of 4 distinct lengths that define the ukulele family: soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone. The greater the scale length of a uke, the greater the volume and the greater the bass. A tenor uke will have a scale length (the length from the nut to the bridge) of 17" along with an overall length of 26". Although tenor ukes have grown extremely popular, they actually started out being preferred by just a somewhat small number of skilled players, such as Jake Shimabukuro.

This has now changed, with the tenor ukulele becoming a popular choice for novices. I wanted to create this short article in order to reply to a common question associated with the way to tune a tenor uke, which can be a tad confusing at the beginning, seeing as there are 3 ways to tune one: gc'e'a' (re-entrant c-tuning), g'c'e'a' (low-G tuning), or d'gbe' (re-entrant D tuning).

First off, let's start using the standard method: Re- Entrant C-Tuning.

Your G string needs to be higher than the C and E strings.

Your C is exactly like the middle C of a piano.

Your 4th fret of the C string is the same as the open E string.

Our 3rd fret of the E string is equivalent to the un-fretted G string.

Your 5th fret of the E string is going to be exactly like the open A string.

Second, the Low G tuning, which is over time becoming a very popular approach to tune the tenor ukulele, possibly as it more closely resembles a guitar. I prefer to tune mine using this method for solo performing, since you are able to create a bass accompaniment. To implement this tuning, just simply go through the above process, with the exception that the G string has to be tuned lower than the C string.

Finally, the least common is re-entrant D tuning - a somewhat new technique. You are going to want some non-standard strings so that you can make use of this tuning. This is also much like a guitar, but with the D string tuned higher.

Curious about how to decide upon which way to tune for your style of play? This is an effective general guideline:

Strummers - re-entrant C

Solo playing - low G

One example of exactly how I would tune a tenor ukulele to low G (g'c'e'a') is as follows:-

Hold down the second string (from the top) at the 4th fret, and pick it alternating with your open string underneath it. Tune this open 3rd string to sound the same as fretted one above it.

Then, hold down your third string (from top) at the 5th fret, and then tune the string beneath it so they sound the same.

Finally, tune your top string by simply holding it down on the 2nd fret, and tuning it in order to sound like your bottom string.

Have fun.

Tuning a Baritone Ukulele

Most stringed instruments are built in various ranges in terms of the voice they sound. For example, the well-known string instruments that make up the traditional Western string quartet, violin, viola, cello and bass, constitute the soprano, alto, tenor and baritone voices, respectively. Though it is sometimes thought of as a less serious instrument than the aforementioned, there are versions of ukuleles built that occupy those same voices, relative to the pitches of other ukuleles. Baritone ukulele tuning does not approach the depths of pitch so effectively navigated by a bass, but relative to other ukuleles it provides a lush canvas on which to paint the higher melodies of multi-part pieces.

Baritone ukulele tuning presents the player with two options. One may tune the instrument to the pitches G-C-E-A, as is the traditional tuning for ukuleles or one may opt for a guitar tuning. The guitar tuning utilizes the same pitches as the highest-pitched strings on a guitar, D-G-B-E. This latter tuning presents some advantages over others. For starters, there will be less tension placed on the neck due to the more slack strings. It also has playability advantage for those unfamiliar with the standard ukulele tuning.

The higher-pitched tuning, G-C-E-A, may make it easier to move from one ukulele voice to another, but there will be definite tradeoffs. The higher pitches, combined with the larger strings of the baritone ukulele, mean that the neck may be bowed by constant tuning to these pitches. Thicker strings under higher tensions are also harder to fret. Those who use this baritone ukulele tuning may find sounding a clear note a more demanding task than those who opt for the slack strings. For those who read sheet music, this tuning does have the advantage of requiring fewer ledger lines than the other tuning.

The guitar-style tuning, D-G-B-E, has its own advantages and disadvantages. If one is a skilled guitarist, the advantage is obvious. The difference between utilizing this tuning on a ukulele and a guitar is comparable to the difference between using British or American English: same language, slightly different sounds. This tuning is also easier on the neck and the tuning pegs, as there is significantly less tension than in the higher tuning. Tuning either range requires that one knows the correct procedure for tuning a ukulele or any other stringed instrument.

A tuning fork or an electronic meter can be used to get a good baritone ukulele tune. After the first strings are set, however, one must adjust the tuning a few times to get it right. Changing from one tuning to another will likely require some fine tuning to get the exact pitches to sound. Tuning devices are excellent tools but, ultimately, a stringed instrument has to be tuned to itself to sound a harmonious voice. This takes a bit of skill to do correctly, but those who are experienced guitarists will know the process well. Those who play any other ukulele will also have little difficulty.