D-A-C#-F#-C#-D
• OVERVIEW •
Introduced by multi-tuning Japanese virtuoso Ichika Nito in 2019. His jagged configuration twists all but the 5str away from Standard – while never taking any of them more than 2 semitones from this starting point.
Fantastic for fresh major-key melodies and extended chord shapes. Try teasing out the dissonance of the parallel octaves on 4+2str and 6+1str – separated by a clashing minor 2nd (C#-C# vs. D-D). Ethereal indeed!
Pattern: 7>4>5>7>1
Harmony: Dmaj7 | 1-5-7-3-7-1
• TUNING TONES •
Multi-step meend in Raag Bageshri: some riyaz improv in one of my all-time favourite ragas
Sep 30
E8 Boogie (Squarepusher): @sqpusher did I get them right? Tried to work out guitar voicings for this curious chord sequence in E8 Boogie (…originally at the request of a student!)
Sep 27
Raag Jaiwanti Todi (SrgmPDnS): An Ahiri-prakriti raga introduced by Maharaja Jaiwant Singh Waghela (1904-1980): the hereditary ruler of Sanand who gained wide renown as a spiritual teacher, vocal educator, and generous patron of the nascent Mewati gharana (also the creator of Gyankali and other ragas). Sung here by his student Pandit Jasraj – a bandish I’ve always loved, especially the ferocious taan and colourful harmonium accompaniment…
Sep 22
Raag Prabhateshwari (SrgmPDnS): A mysterious raga created by Hariprasad Chaurasia, played here by his nephew Rakesh – resembling a blend of the morning Ahir Bhairav and the late night Bageshri. I was inspired to learn the raga when researching Maa Annapurna Devi’s time teaching Hariprasad (many thanks to my crack team of experts including Rupak Kulkarni, Alam Khan, George Ruckert, Suresh Vyas, Anindya Banerjee, and Gopi Shanker, who all gave valuable assistance in illuminating the raga’s origins)
Sep 15
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#raga #jazzguitar #indianmusic #icm #londonmusic
Original: Squarepusher/Tom Jenkinson (from 1997’s Hard Normal Daddy)
#jungle #jazzguitar #warprecords #idm #dnb @warprecords
—Original: Pandit Jasraj (khayal); Appa Jalgaonkar (harmonium); Nizamuddin Khan? (tabla)
#raga #khayal #indianmusic #worldmusic #icm
—Original: Rakesh Chaurasia (bansuri), live at Darbar 2008 @chaurasia_rakesh @darbarfestival
#raga #darbarfestival #indianmusic #bansuri #worldmusic
• SOUNDS •
Ichika Nito’s 2019 Ethereal Demo showcases his signature mix of vigorous legato, fluid rhythms, and two-handed tapping techniques – inspired in part by early training in classical piano. He expands on these foundations in a rare English-translated NatalieMu interview: “[I] divide the guitar into the upper half [6-5-4str] and the lower half [3-2-1str], and think of it as the bass and treble of a piano. I press the strings alternately with [both] hands so that the sound is not interrupted. There are many notes…as I want to connect them as smoothly as possible…”.
Here, Nito makes particular use of the parallel octaves on 4+2str – with the 2str ringing out slightly louder due to its raised tension (2str tends to be the loosest in Standard, hence many guitars having a B-string ‘saddle offset‘ – but here it becomes the tightest). This is exactly how to demo a new tuning in under a minute!
- Ethereal demo – Ichika Nito (2019):
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• NUMBERS •
| 6str | 5str | 4str | 3str | 2str | 1str | |
| Note | D | A | Db | Gb | Db | D |
| Alteration | -2 | 0 | -1 | -1 | +2 | -2 |
| Tension (%) | -21 | 0 | -11 | -11 | +26 | -21 |
| Freq. (Hz) | 73 | 110 | 139 | 185 | 277 | 294 |
| Pattern (>) | 7 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 1 | – |
| Semitones | 0 | 7 | 11 | 16 | 23 | 24 |
| Intervals | 1 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
- See my Tunings Megatable for further such nerdery: more numbers, intervallic relations, comparative methods, etc. And to any genuine vibratory scientists reading: please critique my DIY analysis!
• RELATED •
—Associated tunings: proximities of shape, concept, context, etc…
- Gothic: another from Nito with a minor 2nd jump
- Oud (Arabic): same middle two, shuffled outer four
- Double Drop D: almost half the way back to Standard
• MORE INFO •
—Further learnings: sources, readings, lessons, other onward links…
- Ichika Nito: the Japanese virtuoso rarely seems to talk about himself (…at least in English-indexed format), preferring to speak through his sounds – although a translation of this Natalie.mu interview contains fascinating insights about his early training as a virologist (“even when I was busy with research, I cut down on sleeping time to make music”), and imaginative approach to the fretboard (“the idea is to divide the guitar into the upper half [6-5-4str] and the lower half [3-2-1str] and think of it like the bass and treble of a piano…I press alternately with both hands so that the sound is not interrupted…”)
- Ethereal etymologies: the word ‘ethereal’ itself (defined by Merriam-Webster as “celesteal, heavenly, unworldly, spiritual…lacking material substance, marked by unusual delicacy or refinement”) derives from Ancient Greek (“…the Earth was composed of earth, air, fire, and water, [but] the heavens…of a purer, less tangible substance known as either ‘ether’ or ‘quintessence’: an invisible light or fire…from the Greek aithein, a verb meaning ‘to ignite’ or ‘to blaze’. When ‘ethereal’…debuted in English [~1522], it referred [to] ‘regions beyond the Earth’…)
Header image: Ichika Nito, lit somewhat ethereally
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George Howlett is a London-based musician, writer, and teacher (guitars, sitar, tabla, & santoor). Above all I seek to enthuse fellow sonic searchers, interconnecting fresh vibrations with the voices, cultures, and passions behind them. See Home & Writings, and hit me up for Online Lessons!
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