Can't Help Falling In Love-Gorgeous new tuning!

[Steve Cunningham]

I recently discovered this tuning & have been obsessed with it...Cmaj13, C E G A B C low to high. It's basically C6 with the 2nd string down a 1/2 step and the 1st string down 2 whole steps. I wanted something to simulate that beautiful harp-like sound found in E9 PSG. I scoured the web looking for other examples of it and came up empty...plaease let me know if any of y'all have come across this tuning before.
Anyway, this song seemed like a good initial delivery system for it...

https://youtu.be/oQlaUZXPh-w?si=refla8tXrz_ay1vA

[Doug Beaumier]

That sounds really nice, Steve. A very open, airy sound. And the half step (B and C) on strings one and two allow for some interesting scale runs that aren’t usually heard on lap steel. Sounds a little bit like a diatonic tuning, although it’s not diatonic.

[Allan Revich]

That sounded great Steve! Really nice arrangement too.

[Andy Volk]

Flat out gorgeous, Steve. Agree with Doug: similar to diatonic in the way those intervals wash together. Great harmonics too.

[Steve Cunningham]

Sounds a little bit like a diatonic tuning, although it’s not diatonic.

Thanks Doug. Aren’t most tunings diatonic by nature? For example, all of the notes in C6 are in the key of C, therefore diatonic notes.

[Steve Cunningham]

Thanks guys!

[Jim Fogarty]

Aren’t most tunings diatonic by nature? For example, all of the notes in C6 are in the key of C, therefore diatonic notes.

You're exactly right, Steve. This is another steel guitar naming convention. I believe it comes from Jerry Byrd and what he called his Diatonic tuning, ala:

viewtopic.php?t=305741&sid=d68bb23b96f2 ... e2afd962d0

So steel players tend to use that term for a tuning with consecutive scale degrees on consecutive strings.

None of which has anything to do with how great that video sounded. How long have you been assimilating the new tuning? You're a magician!

[Doug Beaumier]

Aren’t most tunings diatonic by nature? For example, all of the notes in C6 are in the key of C, therefore diatonic notes.

Most steel guitar tunings are chord based (tuned to an open chord) and yes, they do contain diatonic notes of a particular key… but that doesn’t make them diatonic tunings. Diatonic tunings are based on a scale and have all, or nearly all, of the notes of a particular scale.

For example, John Ely’s 8-string A diatonic tuning has all seven notes of the A major scale, plus a note that’s not in the A scale (F).

D F F# G# A B C# E

Jerry Byrd’s C diatonic has six notes of the C major scale (it’s missing the D… Jerry said that note just seemed to get in the way).

So another way to put it, yes, C6 tuning (the C6 chord) has diatonic notes, but only 4 of them… and it wouldn’t be considered a diatonic tuning. A diatonic tuning has all or nearly all of the notes of a particular scale and is not labeled by a chord name. That’s my take on it anyway.

[Mike A Holland]

A really beautiful arrangement Steve. As steel players we are always interested in the details of how a piece is played. But the litmus test is how good and how beautifully played the music is. Irrespective of the instrument and the instruments anomalies. In this case your playing and arrangement ticks all those boxes............ really gorgeous. Now what was the tuning !
Mike

[Chuck S. Lettes]

Wow, Steve! So creative and unique. Those harmonics are beautiful.
Chuck

[Rick Rienks]

Hi Steve - I had to take a breath and compose a note to my son with the link to your video. That was an amazing excursion through tonalities. I am currently plodding along with an Open E+m3(6) reentrant. When I grow up I wanna be sort’a like you (I’m 80). Keep up the presentation. And thanks for that

[Steve Cunningham]

Thanks a lot guys, I really appreciate the kind words.

[Steve Cunningham]

None of which has anything to do with how great that video sounded. How long have you been assimilating the new tuning? You're a magician!

Thanks a lot Jim! I’ve been working on that tuning for about 3 weeks now…so far to go.