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While you’re getting that B-flat lined up with the F-chord I’d like to get you thinking something about how you actually play those chords.
 As we’ve been exploring this tuning we’ve found that some chords sound particularly fine when you play all six strings, like that home D-chord we started with. We’ve also found that some chords sound interesting but acceptable when you play all six strings, like this G-chord which has an open A-string in it if you play all six strings. (And A isn’t in a standard G-chord which would be made up of the notes G, B and D. A high A-note would be the ninth note in a G-scale if you count these things, so technically all six strings in that G-chord make it a G with a 9th added, but you don’t need to know that to enjoy the sound of it.) We’ve also found some chords that sound just plain wrong when you play all six strings, like this A-chord in fifths, that just isn’t right if you play the bass D-string.
 As we keep working in this tuning there’s obviously going to be some use to playing some strings and not others. Your choice might depend on what notes are available to you–if I don’t have a note that’s a part of that chord easily available on that string I don’t play that string. Or which notes you play might have more to do with your taste and how you want things to sound–playing more strings sounds fuller, fewer strings sounds maybe more intimate, so I vary it depending on how I want that phrase or that song to sound.
So while you’re wandering through the F-chord and the B-flat maybe spend a bit of time noticing that you’re only actually playing three strings. Compare how playing three strings for a while feels different from playing six strings for a while. For instance you don’t have to cover as much ground with the right hand so the moves are a little tighter. After a bit of doing you should be able to know what it feels like to play only three strings for a while, and be able to reproduce that approach and that feeling whenever you want to.
 So wander around the guitar with that thought in mind. It will be useful in some of the musical ideas we’ll come to as we continue to explore this tuning.
 So we were talking about that F-chord the other day, hopefully you’ve had a bit of time to work it out. The next part of that musical thought is this, the B-flat. Like the F-chord you’re going to find this a really useful thing to have available to you for various reasons. I’ll explain why once we’ve got all the pieces together, but for now take a bit of time to make this something you can get to.
 Okay, I’d like to show you something about DADGAD, let’s start here. I learned some time ago that a lot of very fine songs set down really well when they were played in what’s sometimes called the flat keys, their scales start on notes like B-flat and E-flat. B-flat is a particularly nice key to play in on the upright, just feels good with how the notes work out. B-flat isn’t particularly graceful on a guitar tuned in DADGAD. But oddly enough I’ve found that playing something in the key of F has an interesting flavour. It’s another one of those flat keys, although it doesn’t have a flat in it’s name (it does have one note that you play as a flat, B-flat). And a lot of very interesting things happen when you can work in F. So let’s start here. The three chords that are going to be most of interest are the root chord, the chord built on the 4th note of the scale, and the chord built on the 5th note of the scale. That’d be an F-chord, a B-flat-chord, and a C-chord. So, here’s the F. Once we get a bit farther in I’ll show you how this chord becomes useful in a whole bunch of ways. And there are all sorts of good things that can happen playing around with the F, B-flat , C-chord continuum (including maybe a G-minor chord as well). But for now take a few minutes and get solid with this as being an easy reach for you. It’s only one way to play an F-chord, but it is very useful. (You’ll notice right away that it comes in handy in between playing a C-chord and a G-chord, for instance. But I digress…)
 A number of Cape Breton tunes start here, the second finger can also cover the fourth fret of the bass D-string, might also try second and third fingers instead of three and four to see what the fourth finger can then play.
 I’m working on a little project I’ll think you’ll enjoy, looking forward to getting some of the sounds down so you can have a listen. In the meantime, we were talking about guitar parts, so here is that second experience from that same series.
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Messing around with mics, we were. When we were done, I asked if they’d mind just one more for me. These were the reels, never did have a chance to ask what they’re called.
First the tunes –>Reel Set
Two tunes, one firmly G-major, the other’s just as firmly in something else. I think of this second kind of tune as a modal D. The melody forces the chords to drop down one (yup, that’d be a C), then back up, to give it that particular feel. Sometimes I keep the D-chord and move only the bass note. I’m funny that way. The ‘other’ chord in that tune is based around an A. Neither major nor minor, I think of it as an A5. Probably worth pointing out that I’m not playing the bass D-string on that chord, and I might not play the treble D-string, either.
 Okay, let’s be honest here, I never really know what’s going to happen in a set like this. The sum total of planning at a session is often overhearing one player to another ‘three each?’. Apparently the traditional response is ‘yeah, we’ll see’, which allows a player to either play the tune a number of times, or not. That number might be three. Or not. Took me years to figure it out–don’t count, just play.
If I’m very lucky, a melody player will lean over and clue me in to a tune change, some nice people even supply a suggested key. The fact that the letters b,c,d,e and g all sound exactly the same when spoken with a fiddle under one’s chin takes little away from the kindness of the thought, also makes for some very interesting arrangements du jour. To tell the truth, I’m always happiest when I get a catch of eyes and a nod to tell me to pay attention, something’s coming up.
The rhythm of a set of reels is what it’s about. Whatever you play, don’t get in the way of what’s being played. After a time through I feel like we’re laying back into a groove rather than driving ahead. In a reel I’d normally be tempted to start playing the off beats (one-AND-two-AND-three-AND-four-AND), setting up the drive in the same way as a mandolin in a bluegrass tune. But on this tune I hear a different kind of thing going on in the second half of each musical phrase. So I fall into the first off-beat, then I wait to hear what’s going on. After a few phrases I can match the rhythm, and it translates well to the guitar. Let’s stay here for a while. At this point I start paying attention to the line of the melody so I can help accent or swell. A little goes a long way, no need to overplay.
 A nod confirms that we’re coming into a new tune. I’ve been warned beforehand where we’re likely to go. The question is always whether the rhythm I’ve set up is going to work in the new tune. One way to find out. The tune stops, I know it’s coming, so I’m ready. Hit the G to finish off the first tune, leave a space, then firmly on the downbeat with the new chord. And I’m playing basically the same groove as before. Hey, it works.
By this point my head’s down and I’m grooving, listening closely to what Pat and Kelly are laying down. When you’re playing a tune like this one, no matter how long you play it, it never seems quite enough times through. I understand why people put together medleys for concerts and such, but sometimes you barely get to know one tune before it’s gone. I’m all for keeping people’s attention, but sometimes I just wanna hear the thing roll for a while. Guess I played too many dances.
(Many thanks to Kelly Hood and Pat Simmonds for the tunes.)
 Get to know this, then lift the first finger to play the open A-string while the chord stays in place, you can also take the three fingers and move them up one fret for a version of a C-chord, and two more frets for a D-chord of sorts
 Pretty enough to know on its own, add the second fret on the middle D-string and it’s a power chord but don’t let that get to you, jigs and reels a thousand each start here, then it’s what you do with it, the fourth fret of the middle D-string is another thing to explore
Not a full C-chord, but good to have the sound of, one thing to consider is how much of the two open D-strings you play, or how much you let the C define what you hear, with all of these chords listen to how much you let the two treble strings ring, try fingering them as a useful note, or not playing them at all
 Going from home D-chord to this starts you on a bass progression worth hearing, try the bass D-string lightly if at all, it’s probably useful to know that anything you do on the bass A-string can be done on the other treble A-string, that C# for instance
 Home plus one, the fullest sounding major chord in the tuning, running up and down between this and the original home D-chord gets you somewhere interesting
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As we’ve been exploring this tuning we’ve found that some chords sound particularly fine when you play all six strings, like that home D-chord we started with. We’ve also found that some chords sound interesting but acceptable when you play all six strings, like this G-chord which has an open A-string in it if you play all six strings. (And A isn’t in a standard G-chord which would be made up of the notes G, B and D. A high A-note would be the ninth note in a G-scale if you count these things, so technically all six strings in that G-chord make it a G with a 9th added, but you don’t need to know that to enjoy the sound of it.) We’ve also found some chords that sound just plain wrong when you play all six strings, like this A-chord in fifths, that just isn’t right if you play the bass D-string.
So wander around the guitar with that thought in mind. It will be useful in some of the musical ideas we’ll come to as we continue to explore this tuning.