Troubles with tuning

Playing/Techniques
#1

Hi everyone, I finally got myself a shamisen today in the mail!

But I’ve been having problems with tuning it. When I turn the pegs to make the pitch higher, they will just turn back to the original pitch when I let go. I tried the technique that Kyle uses in his tuning video (the pinky and thumb thing) but I still have this problem. I tried turning the pegs fairly hard thinking it might stay once it’s turned enough, but I ended up breaking the small string: san no ito (though to be honest I think this thing came with very cheap strings). Any advice?

Also, you can expect an order of strings from me soon Kyle XD

#2

David,
I know you are an experienced musician (as a Taiko drummer) but just out of curiousity, Is Shamisen your first stringed instrument?

Well regrardless of that, Yes, there are indeed some tricks to keeping the Shamisen in tune.
I`ll share one that I use everyday before practicing, before concerts, between songs but especially after re-stringing.

First of all, find the pitch you wish to tune to. To give this a context let`s imagine the example of being on stage and just at the end of a song your string breaks. You rush backstage and frantically restring your Shamisen hoping to make it back out before the next song.You find the right pitch to tune to but unfortunately at this point thinking it will stay on the desired pitch will be about as frustrating as trying to float down a river in a boat with a gaping hole at the bottom.

So here`s what I do to quickly overcome the problem.
follow these steps…

1.)First secure the string in place firmly and tune it to the right pitch.
2.) Next stretch the string out (this will force it out of tune again).
3.) repeat this process over and over. (stretch it out of tune, tune it, stretch it
out of tune, tune it). At a certain point you will discover that stretching the string
no longer has the effect of knocking it out of tune.

At this point your Shamisen has stabalized and you can safely return to the stage
or jam session free of stress from tuning problems.

#3

Also remember to guide the thick string so that it does not go against the wood on the side when tuned to the right pitch. If it does it will apply pressure on the tuning peg that can make it turn. The same applies for the thin string but it’s pretty hard to string it like that.

Also, are the loops where the strings are tied below the edge of the body so that the string first comes into contact with the skin before going up towards the bridge?

#4

thanks for the tips and advice everyone. Ultimately I think the main thing causing me issues were the terrible strings that came with the shamisen I bought. We’ll find out when my new strings arrive.

Kevin, when it comes to stringed instrument experience I only have about a year and a half of bass guitar. During that period of time I never once broke a string, so I have very little knowledge of this type of thing.

#5

Hi David, I could possibly be completely wrong, but are you tuning to the correct pitch? Generally we tune to C Sharp starting with the first string (fattest), I know that the pitchpipe I use can be difficult to interpret to the correct key. Maybe try out this online tuner if your not already.
Hope it may help.
Regards,
Pete.

http://www.get-tuned.com/online_tuners.php

#6

You also have this link on this very site: http://bachido.com/overview/tuning

Is it really true about C Sharp Pete? My impression is that the normal is just C.

#7

Hey Karl, C sharp is what I’ve been taught by my teacher. I think there is a multitude of tunings depending on the song being played, but that is the one that is common to all the songs I am learning right now.

#8

Hey Pete, Karl and David,
A brief (Shamisen) history of tuning and tuning pegs…

The large tuning pegs obviously draw influence from a number of
instruments throughout Asia.
In the case of Shamisen they served a practical purpose which was that
it helped the player to drop to a lower or higher key very quickly.

Historically a working Shamisen player would be expected to “adjust” to the singer. In the course of an evening the singers would alternate on and off the stage. When a big man with a low voice would jump up the player would drop to A flat or even G (or lower). If the next singer was a petit young girl the player would swiftly tune up to a much higher key.

It is only very recently, under the influence of the western mind in Japan, that
Shamisen has adopted a standard. C or C sharp (and I can only speak for Tsugaru Shamisen since that is what I was trained in). This is no doubt due to the need for some kind of universal tuning reference once the music began appearing in tabs or other written form ( i.e. western notation etc…)

However if asked it is in fact historically accurate to say that Shamisen has
no standard tuning whatsoever.

I personally prefer the key of B as I find my fingers can flow most naturally in that key.

© 2020 Kyle Abbott