General Intonation
How To Read A Tuner
The distance between musical intervals is measured in cents. In equal temperament tuning, an octave is divided into twelve semitones of one hundred cents each. Tuning an instrument means producing a pitch that will not be too high or too low.
When playing a tuning pitch on an instrument, the tuner will show three possible readings. It will either be flat (low), in tune (center), or sharp (high). On most tuners, the line or “needle” will show where the pitch is. Flat pitches will shift the needle to the left, sharp pitches will shift the needle to the right, and the correct pitch will make the needle stand straight up. On the Tonal Energy app (shown below), sharp and flat pitches will illuminate different parts of a circle.
When playing a tuning pitch on an instrument, the tuner will show three possible readings. It will either be flat (low), in tune (center), or sharp (high). On most tuners, the line or “needle” will show where the pitch is. Flat pitches will shift the needle to the left, sharp pitches will shift the needle to the right, and the correct pitch will make the needle stand straight up. On the Tonal Energy app (shown below), sharp and flat pitches will illuminate different parts of a circle.
Recommended Tuners
This is an example of a stand-alone tuner. The author's recommendation is a TM-60 by Korg (current model).
Click the picture above to see the most current model at WWBW. Use the graphic above as a reference to operate this type of tuner. |
Tonal Energy: This is the author's recommended tuning app for equal temperament and just intonation.
Click on the above picture to visit the app's webpage. |
Time To Start Your Adventure
Playing with good intonation is a continual learning process for all musicians. You will find that there are many factors that can cause musicians to struggle with intonation. The more we understand about what causes intonation problems, the better we can learn to fix them.
Click the buttons below to see all the issues and solutions for each instrument. If you get lost, the Instruments tab is always at the top in the navigation menu.
Playing with good intonation is a continual learning process for all musicians. You will find that there are many factors that can cause musicians to struggle with intonation. The more we understand about what causes intonation problems, the better we can learn to fix them.
Click the buttons below to see all the issues and solutions for each instrument. If you get lost, the Instruments tab is always at the top in the navigation menu.