| Table 1-2 tuning word for the various one-region tunings | |
| Type | Tuning Word, Intervals seen from the player |
| Bass 4 str. | #1<4,4,4,4<#4 |
| Spanish Guitar | #1<4,3,4,4,4,4<#6 |
| Guitar in fourths | #1<6x(4)<#6 |
| 8 strings in fourths | #1<8x(4)<#8 |
| 8 strings Crafty | #1<2,3,5,5,5,5,5,5<#8 |
1.2.1 Tapping on the ordinary classical electric guitar and bass guitar
A recent example is the Spanish Jesus Aunion. He plays a normal instrument , but detuned a second lower . The action is reasonably low. His technique involves tapping mixed with various techniques as cutting on open strings, tap chords, strumming, rasgueado, slapping. The sound is overall very ‘open’ and resonant and the playing involves rhythm and dynamics. Consult also the discography of the works of the Belgian guitar player Pierre Driesmans and the French Serge Pesce, who have both introduced interesting guitar techniques.
| Table 1-3: Jesus Aunion’s Spanish guitar tuning | ||||||
| String Nbr | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Open Pitch | D1 | G1 | C2 | F2 | A2 | D3 |
| Gauges | .054 | .036 | .026 | .017 | .013 | .010 |
String number seen from the audience
Similarly, there has been attempts to include tapping on the ordinary bass guitar. Olivier Verschueren has presented recently (2000) compositions including tapping, mixed with effects.
Surprisingly, there has been relatively few attempts to play on ordinary guitars tuned all in fourths. This seems to be the domain of dedicated ‘tiptar’ players.
1.2.2 The 8-strings tiptars
These are dedicated instruments, specifically built for tapping. Players of this type of instrument use the alternating-two-hands-on-one side method rather than the separate hands per side, in usage on the 2-regions tiptars. Frank Jolliffe says ” It should be noted that players of the 8-string touchstyle guitars incorporate both crossed and uncrossed hand positions as well as something I call the “linear hands”. This position has the hands moving in a leapfrogging fashion, over the top of one another, along the same or adjacent strings, while going up and down the fretboard. ” In “Touchstyle Quarterly” Vol 5, Number 2, April 1999. Notice that this type of linear playing can also be used on each or both regions of a two-region instrument.
There are mostly two types of tuning: In fourths or in Crafty fifths.
1.2.2.1 THE 8-STRINGS TIPTAR IN FOURTHS
The 8-str. tap-guitar can be tuned all in fourths and in one region. The tuning word is simply ” 1<8_4ths<8″ seen from the player. Some manufacturers consider that the tuning in B is the standard. Recently, Paul Mimlitsch and Ray Ashley have chosen to tune from low Eb (1999).
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| Table 1-4 The 8-str. all in fourths tuned first from low B-1, second from Eb0 | ||||||||
| String | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Pitch (open) | B-1 | E0 | A0 | D1 | G1 | C2 | F2 | Bb2 |
| Gauge | .106/.125 | .100 | .080 | .060 | .040 | .025 | .016 | .011 |
| Pitch (open) | Eb0 | Ab0 | Db1 | Gb1 | B1 | E2 | A2 | D3 |
| Gauge | .100 | .080 | .060 | .040 | .025 | .016 | .011 | .009 |
1.2.2.2 THE 8-STRINGS TIPTAR IN CRAFTY FIFTHS
Some players play a fifths tuning variant, that reflects their experience as “Crafty” guitarists. For the melody strings they adopted a tuning derived from Robert Fripp´s “New Standard Tuning” ,On this instrument, 6 strings are in fifths. On the top of that add a third then a second. This tuning, which is not uniform, is used amongst others by Markus Reuter and Kuno Wagner. The strings are tuned as follows
| Table 1-5 The 8-str Crafty tuning, with 6 fifths, one third, then a second. | ||||||||
| string | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| notes (open) | Bb-1 | F0 | C1 | G1 | D2 | A2 | C3 | D3 |
| String diam. | .100/.105 | .080 | .060 | .040 | .020/.016 | .012 | .011 | .010/.009 |