Online Andean bandola tuner

Andean bandola string notes

Frequencies are calculated with the reference A at 440 Hz. If your group tunes to a different reference, such as 442 Hz, adjust it with the − and + buttons next to “A = 440 Hz” and the tuner shifts every note.

Depending on the instrument, the bandola has 12, 14, 16 or 18 strings, in double courses, triple courses or a mix of both; for example, the 16-string bandola usually has its first four courses tripled and the last two doubled. In every case, the strings in a course are tuned to the same note.

The 3rd course is the 440 Hz A, the same reference A as a tuning fork. That's why many bandola players tune that course first and then the rest in fourths.

How to check the fourths by ear

Each course is a perfect fourth above the previous one (five semitones). To check, fret a course at fret 5: it should sound the same as the next, higher course played open.

Unlike the guitar, there's no major-third exception here: the interval between courses is the same across the whole instrument, so scales and chords repeat with the same shape.

From four to six courses: a bit of history

According to bandola player and teacher Jairo Rincón Gómez (“A Contratiempo” magazine, 1989), the bandola started out with four paired courses tuned G, D, A and E. Around 1860 Diego Fallón added the B course, and around 1890 maestro Pedro Morales Pino added the F♯ course, giving the six courses used today.

Rincón also notes that, with the move to 16- and 18-string bandolas, string tension increased and many musicians began tuning them lower, in a “relative” way, like a B♭ transposing instrument, that is, a whole step down. If your group uses that tuning, the chromatic tuner works just as well: look for each note a whole step lower.

How to tune your Andean bandola with this tuner

1. Tap Enable microphone and accept the browser's permission request. The sound is analyzed on your device: it isn't recorded or sent anywhere.
2. Leave the tuner on Auto so it recognizes which string you're playing, or tap a note to lock it (tap it again to go back to Auto). Strings that sound exactly the same share a button; octave strings get their own.
3. Play a single open string with medium force and let it ring. Mute the other strings in the course with your hand so the microphone hears just one.
4. If the needle is to the left, the note is flat: tune up. If it's to the right, tune down. Anywhere between −5 and +5 cents counts as in tune.
5. Once a string stays in tune for a moment, its button gets a green check mark. Keep going until every string has one.
6. Use the speaker icon under each note to hear the reference and train your ear.
7. Go over every string again at the end: the tension of some strings shifts the others slightly.

Tips for tuning your Andean bandola

• Tune the 3rd course (A) first, then the others in fourths, working down and up from there.
• Pluck each string separately with the pick: if you play the whole course, the tuner hears two or three strings at once.
• The 1st-course strings (G5) are very thin and tight: tune up slowly and never go past the note.
• If the bandola is in tune on the open strings but the 12th fret doesn't give an exact octave, it may need its intonation adjusted by a luthier.

Common tuning problems

• The needle jumps between notes: play a single string, a little more softly, and wait for the sound to settle. The first instant of every note always sounds slightly sharp.
• It doesn't pick up the low strings: phone microphones struggle with low frequencies. Hold your phone closer to the instrument or play the harmonic at the middle of the string (12th fret): the tuner recognizes it as the same string and tells you it sounds an octave higher.
• The open strings are in tune, but what you play sounds off: check that no string is in the wrong octave and that your strings aren't old. If it still sounds wrong, ask your teacher or a luthier to check the instrument's intonation.
• It goes out of tune right away: new strings keep stretching for several days, and changes in temperature and humidity shift the tuning. Tune in the same place where you're going to play.
• The browser doesn't ask for the microphone: check the site permissions in your browser settings and make sure no other app is using the microphone.

Frequently asked questions