[Dixielandjazz] Re: Tuning guitar players

[Laurence Swain]

Mike C." <mike at michaelcryer.com> wrote (some typo editing by me):

 I prefer to see players that don't use tuners, but that tune to 
 instruments that cannot tune such as piano. Usually when I rehearse or
 run a band I have everyone tune to the piano. If the piano is not
 available then tuners are cool. I think it's best to be able to tune
 your instrument without the use of a tuner. Internalization always
 works best.

Could not agree more.

It's hard to imagine how awful a band must sound if there's an acoustic piano at the gig as 
part of the group, and players tune to a tuner; the tuner is absolutely true to absolute pitch, 
when the piano often is not. 

There is no way to get a gig's acoustic piano to absolute pitch (unless Jimmy Mazzy is in the 
band) just before a job.  EVERY band member I've performed with, when I've played the 
gig's acoustic piano, has come to me to tune their instrument to the acoustic piano.

But if I'm gigging with my Kurzweill keyboard, no harm can be done if everyone tunes to a 
tuner, as the keyboard is electronically locked in to absolute pitch. 

But even then, most still come to tune to the piano (keyboard) because they don't HAVE a 
tuner.

Larry Swain