the leavitt tuning

Lucky Oceans · Post by **Lucky Oceans** » 24 Nov 1999 9:26 pm

A few months ago I received an email from a man who teaches guitar at the Berklee School of music. He sent me details of the Leavitt tuning for 6 string ( Csharp, E, G, Bflat, C and D - low to high) - an interesting tuning, indeed. Unfortunately, I've lost his address. Does anyone know it?

lucky

Website · Post by **Brad Bechtel** » 24 Nov 1999 9:52 pm

Mike Ihde (mihde@berklee.edu) is the man in question. He has a web page with some examples of his playing using this tuning here: http://www.megsinet.net/~junod/musicmikeihde.html

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Brad's Page of Steel:
www.well.com/~wellvis/steel.html
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars

Dave Van Allen · Post by **Dave Van Allen** » 27 Nov 1999 7:07 am

Hi Lucky!
I just saw Mike at the PSGA show in Connecticut... he has a smooth style, and his tuning allows fat chords with few if any bar slants.

He somehow also wangled a grant out of Berklee to go to Hawa'ii to study with Jerry Byrd...!

Interesting guy.

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 27 Nov 1999 2:18 pm

Hi Dave, Mike Ihde played at the Mass Steel Bash last month, too. He gets some amazing sounds from that little plank of wood!

I've been hooked on the Leavitt tuning ever since I first read about it 4 or 5 years ago. I wrote an article with an arrangement for this tuning in SGW magazine a couple of years back (Vol. 5, Issue 27, 28, a combined issue).

Mike Ihde is also a monster guitar player. I've heard him play with Robin Right in the Boston area several times.

dougb

www.dougbsteel.com

Wade Medlock · Post by **Wade Medlock** » 3 Dec 1999 9:19 am

Is there such a thing as a 10-string Leavitt tuning? If not, anyone wanna venture how to expand it to 10?

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 3 Dec 1999 10:28 am

There was a post here a few months ago about expanding the Leavitt tuning to 8 strings.

It seems to me that the tuning could use a little more low end.... a low C note as a root for the open C based chords, and an Eb to make a full Eb6 chord.

Keep in mind that this tuning was designed to maximize the chordal possiblities of 6 strings, and it does that nicely. The beauty of this tuning lies in it's simplicity. If you want to play 7th, 9th, diminished, and altered chords on a simple 6 string lap steel, this is the tuning for you.

dougb

dougbsteel.com <p ALIGN=CENTER><FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b">[This message was edited by Doug Beaumier on 12-03-99]</FONT></P>

Ian McLatchie · Post by **Ian McLatchie** » 3 Dec 1999 2:15 pm

Hey, Lucky, nice to see your name posted here. I've put a lot of miles on my copy of "Lucky Steels the Wheel." As for the Leavitt tuning, it's really worth getting into. The arrangements by Bill Leavitt and Mike Ihde are a great place to begin.

Mike Ihde · Post by **Mike Ihde** » 5 Dec 1999 11:13 pm

Lucky,
Glad to hear from you. I look forward to an e-mail. Thanks to Doug and Dave as well for the complements. I'm not the best Lapper in the world but if I can get people interested in Bill's creation then his name and his music will live on. For all who are interested, I have a new e-mail address. Actually I have 3. mihde@berklee.edu fingers@mediaone.net and thephotodoctor@mediaone.net
The last one is a new business I'm starting doing Photo retouching and restoration. So, if any of you out there have that old crusty, cracked, ripped and stained picture that you love, send it to me and you'll get back one that looks like it was taken yesterday! If I can figure out how to post a picture on this page I'll show you the very cool one I did of Buddy taken at the '97 Convention in St. Louis.
Doug is correct, adding a low C and an Eb should open up the tuning nicely to 8 strings.