Guitar tuning

Modern Jazz FACGCE Tuning (F-A-C-G-C-E)

FACGCE leaves the six open strings ringing a complete F major ninth chord — all five of its notes, none wasted. That is where "modern jazz" comes from: the major ninth is the signature sonority of that language, and here you have it without fretting anything. Getting there is easier than it looks, because only three strings move.

🎸 Open the tuner in this tuning

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Strings and frequencies

String Note Hz
String 1 E4 329.63 Hz
String 2 C4 261.63 Hz
String 3 G3 196.00 Hz
String 4 C3 130.81 Hz
String 5 A2 110.00 Hz
String 6 F2 87.31 Hz

What chord does FACGCE make?

From the sixth string to the first, the open strings give F, A, C, G, C and E. Drop the repeated C and five distinct notes remain: F, A, C, E and G.

Read against the low F, those five are the root (F), the major third (A), the fifth (C), the major seventh (E) and the ninth (G). In other words a complete Fmaj9, with every note present and nothing doubled beyond the C.

That is unusual. Most open tunings leave a three-note triad ringing across several octaves: Open D gives a D major, Open C a C major, Open E an E major. Here the open chord is already a four- and five-note chord of the kind used in jazz and bossa nova.

There is an even clearer way to see it: the three bass strings (F, A, C) are an F major triad in close position, and the three treble strings (G, C, E) are a C major triad. An F major ninth is exactly that — F major with C major stacked on top. The tuning lays the two triads one over the other, which is why it sounds so settled when you strum it open.

Where the name comes from

It is worth being straight about this: "modern jazz" is a descriptive label, not an attributed one. It describes how the tuning sounds, not who invented it or which record it appears on.

The description is accurate. The major ninth chord is the defining colour of post-1940s jazz, and a tuning that leaves one ringing on all six open strings earns the name on its own merits.

What we could not confirm is a specific origin: no guitarist to credit it to, no known recording it appears on, no repertoire that uses it habitually. It circulates in tuning lists and in tuners like this one, and the trail ends there. Other tunings on this site do have a documented origin — DADGAD does, and so does Open D — but this one does not, and we would rather say so than make something up.

In practice that means it is a tuning for exploring rather than for reproducing a repertoire. What follows is what can be stated about it with a guitar in your hands.

How to tune to FACGCE from standard

Only three strings move, and none of them far. It is one of the smallest changes of any alternative tuning on this site.

The three changes very nearly cancel out in tension: two strings go up a half step and one comes down a whole step, so what the neck gains on one side it loses on the other. There is no need to change sets or adjust anything.

A quick way to check your work: the fourth and second strings should give the same note, C, one octave apart. If they match, you have both of them right.

The intervals between the strings

Standard tuning separates the strings by perfect fourths, except between the third and second, where the jump is a major third. Here the layout is different, and it explains the sound.

Low to high: sixth to fifth is a major third (F to A), fifth to fourth a minor third (A to C), fourth to third a perfect fifth (C to G), third to second a perfect fourth (G to C) and second to first a major third (C to E).

The two thirds at the bottom are what stack the F major triad; the perfect fifth in the middle is what separates the two halves of the chord; and the fourth and third at the top assemble the C triad. That large gap in the middle is what makes the tuning sound open rather than cramped.

For anyone coming from standard, the practical consequence is that chord shapes do not transfer: all five intervals between strings are different. On the other hand, the fifth, third and first strings are exactly where they always were, so scale patterns on those three still look the same.

Scales and harmony: what fits

The five open notes — F, A, C, E, G — all belong to both the C major and the F major scales, which share six of their seven notes. That leaves two natural paths.

The first is F major, the direct option: the scale that matches the chord already ringing. Anything inside it will fit the open strings with no effort at all.

The second is F Lydian, that is, F major with the fourth raised to B natural. It is the scale jazz associates with major ninth chords, precisely because it avoids the clash of the perfect fourth against the chord's third. If you want the modern sound the tuning's name promises, that is the way in.

And there is a third, less obvious one: play in C major and treat the F as the fourth degree. Since the open strings are simultaneously an Fmaj9 and a C6 with one note added, the tuning works just as well for accompaniment in the key of C.

What you can play with it

With no repertoire of its own to reproduce, the honest thing is to say what it is genuinely good for.

Jazz chords with open strings: the classic difficulty of playing ninths and thirteenths on a guitar is that four or five notes have to be fretted at once. Here several of those notes are already ringing, so wide voicings come out of two or three fingers.

Chord-melody arrangements, where you want the accompaniment to keep ringing while the melody moves. The open strings hold the harmony on their own.

Writing. With the familiar shapes off the table, different music comes out — the usual reason a guitarist changes tuning at all, and here it costs a change on only three strings, which is a very cheap way in.

How it sounds

It sounds wide, settled and bright, closer to jazz and bossa nova than to folk. Unlike modal tunings, which leave the chord undecided, this one leaves it fully defined: major, with a major seventh and a ninth.

The range is practically the same as standard tuning — the sixth only rises a half step and the first does not move — so the guitar feels identical under the fingers. What changes is what you hear, not how it plays.

Styles and genres

Modern jazz Bossa nova Fingerstyle Experimental

Recommended string gauges

A standard 0.010-0.046 electric set or 0.012-0.053 acoustic set works unchanged. It is one of the few alternative tunings where that is literally true.

The reason is that the changes offset each other: the sixth and second go up a half step, raising their tension by roughly 12 % each, while the fourth comes down a whole step, taking about 21 % off it. Overall the load on the neck ends up very close to standard tuning.

The only string worth watching is the fourth, which sits slightly softer than the rest once it is down at C. If it feels loose for picking, one gauge up on that string alone fixes it.

Tuning tip

Start with what the tuning hands you: play the melody on the first and second strings and let the four bass strings ring open. You have an Fmaj9 holding itself up underneath — exactly the job that would cost you four fingers in standard tuning.

Frequently asked questions

What chord is FACGCE tuning?

A complete F major ninth. The six open strings give F, A, C, G, C and E, which is five distinct notes: F, A, C, E and G. Over the low F they are the root, major third, fifth, major seventh and ninth.

Why is it called modern jazz tuning?

The label is descriptive, not attributed: it describes the sound rather than an origin. The major ninth chord the open strings ring is the defining sonority of modern jazz. We could not confirm who developed the tuning or find a repertoire that uses it regularly, and we would rather say so than invent a history for it.

How do you tune to FACGCE from standard?

Only three strings move: the sixth up a half step from E to F, the fourth down a whole step from D to C, and the second up a half step from B to C. The fifth, third and first stay where they are. To check it, the fourth and second strings should give the same note, C, one octave apart.

Is FACGCE bad for your guitar?

No. Two strings go up a half step and one comes down a whole step, so total tension ends up practically the same as in standard tuning. It is one of the alternative tunings that disturbs the load on the neck least.

What scales work in FACGCE?

F major is the direct option, since it is the scale of the chord already ringing. F Lydian — F major with a raised fourth — gives the modern jazz colour the name promises. And because the five open notes also belong to C major, the tuning serves just as well for accompaniment in that key.

What songs use FACGCE tuning?

None that we can confirm. It is a tuning that circulates in lists and in tuners without a known body of recordings attached to it. It is for exploring and writing, not for reproducing a particular record.

Do you need different string gauges for FACGCE?

No. A standard set works with no adjustment, because the tension changes offset one another. At most, the fourth string sits a little softer once it is down at C; one gauge up on that string alone is enough if you notice it.

Related tunings

Sources

  1. The chord, the intervals between strings and the tension figures on this page are worked out from the frequencies in the table above, which are the ones the tuner itself uses. String tension is proportional to the square of the frequency.

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