I’m just wondering if anyone has ever arrived at the desired note you get when you tap a properly tensioned shamisen skin. I have reskinned my first instrument and it gives a nice bright note on both sides when tapped, but is it correct?
I’d appreciate any input I can get.
I used white calfskin on the first one, and am also wondering about the calf vs goat skin choice. Any input there?
As always, thanks
Kevin
Hi Kevin!
I once tried tap tuning with a microphone and spectrograph thingy (the way mandolins can be tap tuned) but it didn’t work well. Because every skin is different, relying solely on specific frequencies is risky. (Some skins may break before a certain frequency is reached) Basically, there’s no right answer to what is the ‘perfect tension’. The best way to get the right tension is to just tap and hear what sounds good to you. 
Generally, if it sounds bright and you feel a sharp bounce when tapping your finger on it, that’s where you want to be.
When I was learning how to skin shamisen, I was in the dark for so long. “How do I know what’s right?” Basically, there is no right answer. The main point is as tension rises, the feeling (both sound and snap-back when tapping it with your fingers) will noticeably change. You may even have to keep stretching it until it breaks in order to understand how the sound response changes. (It’s not required though)
Good luck!
Kyle
Thanks for the quick response Kyle. You are doing a great job bringing a wonderful instrument to us all!
Great replies . . .