How many C6 players in the UK

[Tony Russell Davis]

This is a good thread Jimmy - an overdue topic. I use C6th mostly now I'm not playing in a country band.
The "secret" that I found was to revert to a G on top instead of the D that is becoming more prevalent. One tuning with "chromatics" (we know what is meant by the inaccurate term so don't go there!) on a guitar is enough, I reckon. Then you treat that neck as a "plank tuning" - i.e. learn to move the bar - with sparing use of the pedals changing the basic tuning, rather than pedalling in the notes as we do on E9th.
Here's a tip/excercise. Try finding the notes for "When You Wish Upon a Star" in G (start 5th string 7th fret). Don't go up past the 14th fret or down below the 6th fret, and see how many times you can jump intervals at the same fret (clue - e.g. the first two notes). If you do that a number of times you'll discover the relationship of the notes without doing "scales" as such. Every tune contains scales anyway, mostly partial ones, but they're there.
If anyone wants me to, I'll tab it out (somehow) but try yourself first?

[henry]

thanks for this Tony. this is what i'm in the process of doing on E9 at hte moment.. trying to find how to play scales and melodies without using pedals.
I'll give 'When You Wish Upon a Star' a go..

can wait for this uni to arrive..

[Tony Russell Davis]

Aaagh - E9th be different. Play scales on that with bar at one fret and try pedals to get the next note in (ordinary major - shoulda said that!) scale. Then try to find the notes of that scale while sounding the first note of the scale too. That's a way to learn "intervals" and they become chords. You'll get some easy, you will struggle with others, you might even have to SLANT THE BAR!! But it's all ways you learn your way around the thing. Tony.

[henry]

i've learned some scales at the 4 main E9 positions.. i.e. open, pedals down, A and raise Es, and lower Es.

so thought I'd start learning the scales without the pedals.. inspired by some of Joe Wright's instructional vids..
it's really helped link up the various positions.

also been trying to get some bar slants going.
slow progress.
but with the recent posts about the near-impossible task of compensating for intonation with bar adjustment I thought that was a good long term goal.

my cousin is a pianist, he was telling me that getting harmony going in his head was a project in itself.
i.e. beside the technique involved, he had to be able to imagine of all the harmony parts simultaneously.

I have found this a real challenge.
where using pedal and level changes I could be sure that the relative pitch changes were ok. so if my bar was in the right place and straight then i was in tune.

With bar slants, you need to be able to hear both notes at the same time and adjust either end of the bar, depending on which note is sharp or flat.
a very different skill.

[Tony Russell Davis]

OK - maybe slants are a bit adventuresome at this stage. I put that in case some instruments might have unusual changes. Anyway, we should be concentrating on 6th tunings here. I guess you didn't get your uni yet?

[henry]

nope. still no uni, but i think it will be here soon.

one thing i read on the American forum was learnign scales on sets of strings that are a tone apart. which you get on E9 between D, E, F# and G# on strings 9,8,7,6 of E9. my understanding is that these shapes can be applied direct to C6?

bar slants.. yep difficult but I think i'm getting a lot out of trying to do them. even if it's years before i can pull them off, i think my ability to control the bar is improving.

[davegallagher]

I play a bit of C6. I'm no Curly Chalker, but I learnt a lot very quickly from a Paul Franklin Beginners course. Henry if you want a copy of it let me know. Same rules apply to B6 but you have to keep that knee lever in position and resist the temptation to resort to the E9 licks you already know!!!

[Ruby Darnell]

I generally use C6 for the style I mostly play and keep my 8 string lap steel in that key. I guess it depends what you want to play whether C6 is right for you. I'd love to try some other tunings if I can get another guitar, F13 is one I'd like to try, but I love the sound and little riffs that C6 gives. Joaquin Murphey style etc.