Martin Simpson Teaches Alternate Tunings: Guitar Book

Simpson's method moves beyond showing you tunings in isolation; he reveals how they relate to each other and to standard tuning, giving players a conceptual framework rather than just a collection of tricks. The historical perspective (from 19th-century composers through modern rock) contextualizes why these tunings matter musically, not just technically.

Opening a tuning like DADGAD or suspended 4th modal reveals new harmonic colors while your fingers remember familiar shapes from standard tuning. There's both the surprise of discovering sonorities you couldn't reach before and the satisfaction of recognizing how each tuning emerges from the same structural principles.

Intermediate to advanced acoustic guitarists ready to expand their harmonic and textural palette. This book serves players who want to understand the logic behind alternate tunings rather than memorize them mechanically.

• Start with open G and D before attempting the modal tunings; these foundational tunings make the relationship between pitch sets immediately audible and easier to internalize.
• Use the TAB notation as your primary entry point, then cross-reference the standard notation to build reading fluency in each tuning's new fingering landscape.
• Experiment with chord voicings in one tuning before moving to the next; staying with a single tuning long enough reveals sonorities you'll miss by jumping around.

Assign this as supplemental material for students in fingerstyle or singer-songwriter contexts who need to move beyond standard tuning. The historical examples also enrich music history discussions by showing how tuning choices shape repertoire across centuries and genres.

• Understanding the intervallic relationships between standard and alternate tunings
• Identifying and voicing chord forms across multiple tuning systems
• Reading music in TAB and standard notation simultaneously across tunings
• Recognizing historical and contemporary applications of alternate tunings
• Developing muscle memory and pitch sensitivity in non-standard tuning contexts