Hawaiian Slack String Guitar Tuning

I started my holiday season this year visiting family in Hawaii and in addition to some fun in the sun, and some really amazing produce; we took the opportunity to learn a bit about Hawaiian culture and music. It sometimes amazes me how much technology and software surrounds me and is a part of my life even when I am trying to unplug myself from the grid. This time it was my appreciation of music that started me thinking about PitchPerfect guitar tuning software.

I had the chance to listen to a very interesting performer who not only played for the audience, but talk about the history of music on the islands. He talked about the traditional instruments they played on the islands, how music and hula played a big part in their oral history and how the Hawaiians began to adopt the guitar and use more western melodies learned from Spanish contractors and other traders. As they continued to embrace and experiment with the guitar Hawaii made two contributions to guitar music before also creating the ukulele. The lap steel guitar and the slack string guitar both originated on the Hawaiian islands.

Unlike my instrument, the cello, the guitar has many alternative tunings that can be used to achieve different sounds or make it easier to play certain chords. This makes the guitar a very versatile instrument but it also makes tuning the guitar more of a challenge. This is why it can be extremely useful for guitar players of all levels to take advantage of an easy-to-use tuning program like PitchPerfect when tuning their instrument, especially when using a tuning pattern you aren't as familiar with.

For a tropical influence to help you relax as we all make our way through the rest of this holiday season maybe you will try a slack-key guitar tuning and look up some Hawaiian music to help you hang loose. Also be sure to take a look at our other musician software for guitar players and more. Because even software can help you relax, by doing things for you, like taking the stress out of tuning.

Do More with Audio - Blog Carnival February 7, 2011

Here are this edition's entries to Do More with Audio:

Florine Church presents 20 Incredible TED Talks for Both Music Students and Lovers posted at Bachelor's Degree.

Jennifer Lynch presents 20 Soulful Blogs for Vinyl Fans and Collectors posted at Top Online Colleges.

Bobby Owsinski presents Bobby Owsinski's Big Picture Production Blog: 5 Steps To Prep For Mixing posted at Bobby Owsinski's Big Picture Production Blog.

Jena Ellis presents 11 Greatest TV Theme Songs of All-Time posted at Online Certificate Programs.

Katie Tellefson presents 40 Blogs for the Cajun Enthusiast posted at Accredited MBA, saying, "With Cajun culture and history comes amazing music and even more amazing food. It isn�t every day that you get to nosh on gumbo or dance to the sounds of a fast-paced accordion, but with these Cajun enthusiast blogs, you�ll gain a better understanding of the culture and appreciate its quirks."

Steve Guttenberg presents Does lossless audio guarantee good sound? posted at The Audiophiliac.

Nathan Madsen presents Tips for Creating Audio for the iPhone posted at The Sonic Spread.

You might also be interested in:

• Put a DJ in the house
  
• Solving A Musicians Tuning Stress
  
• Streaming Audio Recorder Saves Time for Radio Producers
  
• MIDI Support Coming to NCH Software
  

That concludes this edition of "Do more with audio." Be sure to Submit your audio article, story or success to the next edition.

Solving A Musician's Tuning Stress

As a musician for 16+ years, I encountered many challenges while learning to play the violin. One of the most frustrating and embarrassing aspects of learning an instrument was learning how to tune it. As a child, I was given a few tools to experiment with but none compare to PitchPerfect Tuning Software.

I started out with a pitch pipe, which was really more like a quiet whistling toy than an aid for tuning my instrument. It was especially difficult to use, because one must simultaneously blow into the pipe, play a soft smooth note and adjust the violin pegs to tighten or loosen the strings accordingly - all at the same time. This tuning approach was incredibly time consuming and somewhat inaccurate. I would typically give up after struggling with this method for about 5 minutes and proceed to play my violin in tune or not; much to the dismay of the audience who suffered through concerts.

My next tool was an electronic tuner, which was a pretty nifty device. You fed it a couple of AA's, bowed across the strings softly and it showed little indicator lights telling you when you were too sharp or flat. It was a nice enough contraption, but I'm sure you can see where the problems began when the batteries would wither. The machine would gradually begin to point you in the wrong direction and your strings would no longer match up with the person in the chair next to you. Eventually the poor gadget would cease to work altogether and it would OF COURSE happen to be on the day of a big competition or a show and you would flit about minutes before stage time, begging everyone nearby for their tuning device (heaven forbid they still used a pitch pipe; sharing spit with strangers is never pleasant) and frantically tune yourself before going on stage.

As you can tell, it was very stressful growing up in the age before laptop computers and smart phones, but now it's as simple as a quick (and free!) download to my iPhone and laptop and I have an easy and accurate way to get my violin in tune wherever I may go. The PitchPerfect Instrument Tuner has a clean interface and easy-to-read note identification that comes in handy not only for tuning, but perfecting and identifying individual notes.

If you like PitchPerfect, you should try out TempoPerfect metronome software and our other software for musicians, so you never miss a beat.

Software for Musicians

Audio Software is one of our biggest categories, and sound editing is just the beginning; we have lots of tech solutions for musicians too. From music recording software to other handy musician software tools, each program is specifically designed for a particular music related task so musicians can go high tech while tuning, transcribing or even just practicing. Check out a few of our audio software favorites for musicians:

TwelveKeys Music Transcription Software is perfect for any musician trying to learn how to play a piece of recorded music, or for notating compositions. TwelveKeys provides a visual aid for musical transcription using a graphical representation of the music, allowing musicians to notate any orchestration with accuracy and ease.

Crescendo Music Notation Software is a simple way to work with musical notation. Crescendo allows musicians to compose, save and print music from their computer. The wide array of notation symbols, time and key signatures, and text on a free-form layout gives you complete control over musical arrangements.

PitchPerfect is a free guitar tuner that also works great for other string instruments. It automatically detects the note you are playing and lets you know if you are sharp, flat, or perfectly in tune. Performing will be less daunting, having this product to eliminate the need of tuning a guitar conventionally.

TempoPerfect is a free software metronome. Designed to help musicians play in time, this tempo software creates accurate beat patterns for simple or complex rhythms. TempoPerfect provides a clear and precise beat that won't wind down, making it an essential tool for all musicians.

WavePad Sound Editor is designed to be an easy to use audio editing package. Within minutes you will be able to open or record a file and edit it. It has many robust tools including audio effects to amplify, normalize, reverb, a free sound effect/music library, text-to-speech voice synthesis, and a voice changer, just to name a few. Combined with MixPad multitrack mixing software, these two audio applications are perfect for any audio project, from making soundtracks and podcasts to creating high quality demo CDs for your band.