Retuning the mandolin-banjo isn't very common, but there are a number of very interesting possibilities. Here are just a few of them. Some of these tunings might require different string gauges, but most should work with standard strings.
You might also want to take a look at the table of tenor banjo tunings. There may be some tunings listed there that you'd like to try.
| Name | Pitches | Comments | String gauges | Links |
|---|
Fifth tunings |
| Standard | g d' a' e'' | This is the one most mandolin players stick to. It probably dates back to the 19th century and is identical to the standard violin tuning, making it easy to play violin/fiddle music. | | |
| Low | f c' g' d'' | A whole note lower than standard tuning. Can be useful if you prefer a slightly mellower tone to your instrument. | | |
| Alto | d a e' b' | A fourth lower than standard tuning. You probably need a mandolin with a relatively long scale for this to work. I use this tuning for Irish music to get an octave-mandolin feel, playing the tune one octave down. | | |
| Mandola | c g d' a' | A fifth below standard tuning. You can tune and play a mandolin like a mandola, although not all instruments will sound good that way. | | |
Open fifth tunings |
| GD | g d' g' d'' | Tune the first two string pairs one note down. | | |
| AE | a e' a' e'' | Tune the third and fourth string pair one note up. | | |
| GC | g c' g' c'' | | | |
| AD | a d' a' d'' | | | |
Open chords tunings |
| Open C | g c' e' g' | Also known as "Slack key" ukulele tuning. This is a common tuning for the ukulele and also work well on the mandolin. | | |
| Open D | a d' f#' d'' | The strings are tuned to a D major chord. | | |
| Split open D | f#/a d' a' a'/d'' | This is an interesting variant where two strings of the outer string pairs are tuned to different pitches. Apparently Bill Monroe used this tuning occasionally. | | |
| Open E | g# e' b' e'' | The strings are tuned to a E major chord. | | |
| Open G | g d' b' d'' | The strings are tuned to a G major chord. | | |
| Open A | a c#' a' e'' | The strings are tuned to a A major chord. | | |
Modal tunings |
| Dropped D | g d' a' d'' | Standard tuning with the first string dropped one note - or Irish bouzouki G tuning one octave up. This may be the most common atlernative tuning for the mandolin. | | |
| Modal D | d' g' a' d'' | One octave above the first four strings of a modal tuned guitar. | | |
| Modal E | a e' b' e'' | You can actually get this tuning without retuning the mandolin. Just put a Shrubb partial capo on the second fret across the lowest three string pairs only. | | |
| Modal A | a d' e' a' | A fourth above the first four strings of a modal tuned guitar. | | |
Other instruments tunings |
| English cittern | b' g d' e' | The 16th century cittern is the ancient ancestor of the modern mandolin. The tunings used on it works well on a modern instrument too. The cittern actually used three g strings with the middle one tuned one octave up. | | |
| French cittern | a' g d' e' | Like the English cittern tuning, but with the fourth strings tuned one note lower. | | |
| Ukulele | a' d' f#' b' | With a high fourth string pair that is (one note below the first string). This is the most common tuning for the soprano ukulele and it works well on a mandolin too. In Hawaii it used to be quite common to tune and play the mandolin like an ukulele. See also "Slack key" ukulele tuning | | |
| Octave guitar | d' g' b' e'' | One octave above the first four strings of a guitar. | | |
| Alto guitar | a d' f#' b' | Same as the ukulele tuning but with a low fourth string. This is the same as the first four strings on a guitar one fifth up. | | |
| Renaissance guitar | g c' e' a' | One fourth above the first four strings of a guitar. This was the most common tuning for the early (16th century) guitar, usually with one of the g strings tuned one octave up and only a single a string. | | |
| Alto plectrum banjo | g d' f#' a' | Plectrum banjo tuning one fourth up. | | |
Plectrum banjoc g b d' | It is a bit low for the mandolin, but it works. | | |
Special tunings |
| Dead man's tuning | d d' a' d'' | Tune the first string pair down to D and the fourth way down to D. Then you thrash out the tune on the middle strings and let them d strings ring as drones. Very effective. I use this tuning in a very different manner for playing Norwegian langeleik music, picking the tune on the first string (occasionally down onto the second) and using the others for drones. This approach would probably work well for other kinds of drone based music too, such as dulicmer and bagpipe tunes. | | |
| Split Dead man's tuning | d/a d' a' d'' | Like Dead man's tuning, but with the string of the fourth string pairs in different pitches, one down to D and the other up to A, creating an even fuller drone sound. | | |
