Tenor Banjo · 4 STRINGS
Tenor Banjo Irish Tuning
G D A E, low to high — every string a fourth down from standard.
How to tune
Getting into Irish
Work down the list in order — each string's tension moves the ones already set.
Allow microphone access
Asked once. Detection runs on your device; nothing is uploaded.
Play one string at a time
Let it ring open. A strummed chord gives the detector several pitches.
Centre the needle
Sharp means loosen, flat means tighten. Inside three cents is in tune.
Work up from string 4, one at a time
The lowest string carries the most tension, so setting it first means the rest hold. The panel below lists every target in that order.
Run through every string once more
Setting one string drifts the rest; the second pass makes it hold.
Changing from Standard
Every string a fourth down
Nothing keeps its standard pitch, but every string moves together — the intervals between them, and so every shape on the neck, stay exactly as they were.
Each bar shows how far that string sits from standard tuning. Select a string in Note Locking above to hold the tuner on it while you turn the peg.
About this tuning
About Irish Tuning
Tenor Banjo Irish tuning sets the 4 strings to G2 D3 A3 E4, listed from the lowest-pitched string up.
Compared with standard tuning it moves string 1 from A4 to E4 (a fourth down), string 2 from D4 to A3 (a fourth down), string 3 from G3 to D3 (a fourth down) and string 4 from C3 to G2 (a fourth down). Every string moves by the same amount, so the relative shapes stay identical.
Also known as
- GDAE tuning
Note frequencies
Irish string frequencies
The 4 open strings of Tenor Banjo Irish, lowest first, at A4 = 440 Hz. Each one is the pitch the tuner is listening for — G2 is G in octave 2.
| Note | Also | Solfège | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| G2 | — | Sol | 98.00 Hz |
| D3 | — | Re | 146.83 Hz |
| A3 | — | La | 220.00 Hz |
| E4 | — | Mi | 329.63 Hz |
Sharps and flats share a pitch on a tuner: C♯ and D♭ are the same frequency, and which name you use depends on the key you are in, not on what the meter reads.
Questions
Irish tuning, answered
G D A E, low to high — every string a fourth down from standard. The 4 strings are tuned G2 D3 A3 E4, from the lowest-pitched string up.
It moves string 1 from A4 to E4, string 2 from D4 to A3, string 3 from G3 to D3, string 4 from C3 to G2. The remaining 0 strings stay at standard pitch.
Yes. The tuner on this page listens through your device microphone and compares what it hears against the exact frequencies for G2 D3 A3 E4. Play one string at a time in a quiet room, and let the note ring rather than strumming.
No. This Irish tuner runs in your browser — there is nothing to download, nothing to install and no account to create. Allow microphone access when the browser asks and the tuner starts listening. It works the same way on a phone, a tablet and a desktop.
Related tunings
Where to go from Irish
Each one is described as the move from Irish, so you can see how far away it is before you commit to turning a peg.