| Ali Farka Toure (Mali) | G-A-D-G-B-E |
| Taara No.1 (Open C) | C-A-D-G-B-E |
| Taara No.2 (Open F) | F-A-D-G-C-E |
| Jarabi (Open F) | F-C-D-G-C-E |
| Cinquete-Six (Open G) | D-G-D-G-B-E |
In West Africa: The
guitar is wide spread from Mali to
Namibia from Tanzania to Madagascar. Often local guitarists may use
several open tunings who are influenced both by playing techniques of
ethnic instruments such as the Kora, N'Goni in Mali. In Mali the
Songhai, Tuareg and other neighboring groups use the GADGBE tuning
they play a varient of a pentatonic scale that lacks a third. In
contemporary "Tuareg rock music" they would use the GADGBE
tuning on the second guitar and the lead guitar tuned in
standard would play the melody. The Songhai who Ali Farka Toure (b.
1939 d. 2007) is a member of guitarists also favor the tuning GADGBE
to play Djambala music. "In an interview with Ali Farka Toure he stated
that the D'jambala should not be played after midnight, or this would
awaken the spirits". Through out West Africa from Senegal to Guinea
Cuban music
arose in popularty since the 1950s. Established bands like the
Orchestra Baobob (Senegal), Bembaya Jazz National (Guinea) and other
"orchestras" would employ the standard EADGBE tuning. Capo's are widely
used not just to match the singing capo's are also used also to play
the melodies on the fifth fret or sometimes higher; this is a common
practice amongst guitarists in the continent of Africa.
In South Africa:
Maskanda (or maskendi) is an urban music originated from the migrant workers since
the 1920s in which the music evolves with the time. The word Maskanda
comes from the muskant which in Afrikaans means "musician". Often the
guitar is accompanied by the violin, and sometimes concertina. When
alternate tunings are used the term for them is "chuning". Maskanda
guitarists would often tune their guitars to EADGBD the name of this
tuning is "Double First". In playing Maskanda music the thumb plays the
lower bass notes on the "E-A-D" strings independently from the index
finger which plays the highest pitch notes "G-B-D". One other Maskanda
tuning involves the highest E string tuned to D which becomes drop-D
although with a twist. A home made capo hand carved from wood is placed
on the 2nd fret in which a notch for the highest E string is carved so
then the drop D then becomes D-B-E-A-C#-F#. The use of alternate guitar
tunings are widely shared amongst the Maskanda musicians. Using capos
to achieve tunings also seems to be a practice among some African
guitarists. Older Maskanda melodies were slower in tempo then in recent
times.
| E-A-D-G-B-E | |
| E-A-D-G-B-D | |
| E-G-D-G-B-D | |
| C-G-D-G-B-E | |
| C-G-D-G-B-D | |
| C-G-D-G-C-D | |
| D-F-D-F-F-C | |
| E-G-A#-G-A#-D | |
| E-G-E-G-G-D | |
| Bb-F-C-F-Bb-C | |
| Bb-F-C-G-C-E |
| Standard | E-A-D-G-B-E |
| Andu Andu Rudang | E-A-D-G-A-E |
| Rabana | E-A-E-G-A-E |
| Stem Be | G-A-D-G-B-E |
| Stem Las Bas | F-C-D-G-B-E |
| Krambagan | F-C-D-G-C-E |
| Stem Pal | F-Bb-D-G-C-E |
| Stem Kambang Kacang | F#-A-C#-F#-B-E |
| Los Quinn Tallu Tallu | C-G-D-G-B-D |
| E-F#-B-E-G#-C# |
In Insonesia: The guitar was later introduced by the Dutch and Portuguese; as is in many cases alternate tunings are used in Indonesian guitar playing often reflecting on the region of where this style of guitar playing originated. The "stem" means "Tuning" in Bahasa Indonesia. A series of CDs released by the Smithsonian Institute focuses on a wide range of traditional, regional, folk and some contemporary musics includes a disc specific to Indonesian guitar.
| E-A-B-E-G-#E | |
| E-A-B-F#-B-D | |
| F-A-D-G-B-E | |
| F-Bb-C-F-A-C | |
| F-Bb-C-G-C-E |
In Papua New Guinea: In one article on the International Guitar Seminar forums the renowned
slide guitarist Bob Brozman mentions these tunings used in Papua New
Guinea.
In Myanmar (Burma): Little is recorded on the traditional music of Myanmar along with the recently introduced Western instruments from the guitar to mandolin, piano were introduced approximately some 100 to 200 years ago. One of the tunings used for Burmese slide guitar is F-G-C-F-G-C. Maybe either tuned a quarter tone below and or quarter tone above the desired pitch. The technique involved in playing in this tuning is based upon the Saungauk (traditional Burmese harp). A 3 disc CD series recorded by music producer and ethnomusicologist Rick Heitzman the “Burma Series” feature a wide array of traditional and western Instruments often played in alternate tunings.
in Vietnam: The guitar in Vietnam is sometimes called "Ghita", "Dan-Ghita" or "Luc huyen cam". This type guitar is has its origins
with in the Vietnamese American community in mainland America. During the early
1930s the Vietnamese American's at the time were looking for something
to which they could be play and adapt to their own traditional music. So
they had scalloped the frets and tuned the Vietnamese guitar in a low
"Open C" tuning C-F-C-g-c.