Eharp tuning

Jeffrey McFadden · From: Missouri, USA

@Bill McCloskey -
I've been viewing your Steel Guitar Union Hall on YouTube, and find the Eharp tuning interesting. I have a couple of questions.
- Do you have a written chart of the strings, weights, tuning, that one could view? The verbal listing on the video I saw slips out of my grasp.
- You don't have The Rose tuned this way, do you? It appears that this tuning would not lend itself to pedal changes.
- What is the string spacing on the 10 string lap steel shown? It looks considerably wider than the 10 strings on a pedal steel.

I am considering building an Eharp lap steel. Although I'm beginning a 2nd attempt at learning pedal steel, my go-to instrument for years has been my home made, 7 string, lap steel, C6 tuning + addl low G. Much of my playing is melody based, and Eharp tuning looks like a fascinating tuning for building melody.
-- Jeff
_________________
Well up into mediocrity
I don't play what I'm supposed to.
Home made guitars

Bill McCloskey · Posted 8 Jul 2024 7:28 am

1. Not only do I have written charts, I have all of Eddie Alkire's lessons digitized in a dropbox. PM me your email address and I'll add you to the dropbox list.
2. The Rose is tuned to Johnny Cox's D13 tuning. like the Alkire tuning, it lends itself to lots of chords per fret. For instance you can play a 1 2m 3m 4 5 6m 7dim triads on a single fret. Like the Alkire tuning, very few people are currently playing it so there is lots to explore and document. However Robert Schaefer, who dedicated his life to the Eharp tuning, expanded his tuning to 14 string, 8 pedals, and knee levers. Below is his final copedent.

3. I don't really remember the string spacing. Definitely wider than a pedal steel but I played an extended Eharp tuning a 12 string superslide so string spacing is about the same on that.

For standard Eharp, tuning and string gauges are as follows: (L2H) C# E F F# G G# A B C# E 36, 32, 30, 28, 26, 24, 22, 20, 18, 16

Jeffrey McFadden · From: Missouri, USA

Thanks. Excellent information. PM sent.
_________________
Well up into mediocrity
I don't play what I'm supposed to.
Home made guitars

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