Tuning Your Sanshin

Looks like there are still a lot of you who are finding us through a search for learning to tune your sanshin. We posted an entry about a neat little freeware app called Sankichi-kun at the beginning of the month. The only thing is that the app is in Japanese so here’s a quickie explanation chart for the app (note that you’re looking at the Mac OS X version).

Sankichi-kun English Explanation Chart
  1. Tuning for Sankichi-kun is in the key of C which may be a tad too high of a pitch for most people. I usually practice in C but we’ll often perform in B and sometimes lower (A#, A) for female singers. This is the default, or “honchoushi”, tuning for sanshin.
  2. Click on this karakui to tune in “ni-agi” (ni-age in Japanese language), the raising of your 2nd (middle, nakajiru) string. You’ll find this particular type of tuning on koten ongaku (classical music) songs.
  3. Click on this karakui to tune in “san-sagi” (san-sage in Japanese language), the lowering of your 3rd (bottom, miijiru) string. We use this a lot on minyou (folk, shima uta) songs.
  4. This area indicates the current tuning (i.e., honchoushi, ni-agi, san-sagi) you’re in.
  5. This is the uujiru, or top string.
  6. This is the nakajiru, or middle string.
  7. This is the miijiru, or bottom string.
  8. This is a view of the available notes you can fool around with. For tuning purposes, you’ll be clicking on the notes at the top (合 ai, 四 shi, 工 kou) which are your open strings. With these notes, you can play “Asadoya Yunta” among other songs. Pretty neat. :)
  9. These buttons at the bottom of Sankichi-kun are extras. Clicking the one on the left-hand side will “take you to the beach” and clicking it again will “take you back home”. The button in the middle will quit the app. The pull-down button on the right-hand side has pre-set tunes you can practice with or just enjoy listening to.

This basically explains Sankichi-kun but if you have any other questions feel free to email me at karakuipress[at]gmail[dot]com or leave a comment on this post. Maybe I’ll upload a video of my tuning of the sanshin in the near future. ;)

Tuners for the sanshin.

Here’s additional information on gear you can use to help with your sanshin tuning.

  1. AW-1 Micro Tuner from Korg — all the cool kids are using it.
  2. TU-12 Chromatic Tuner from BOSS — the ol’ standby which I’ve owned for over 15 years but used mostly for guitar/bass tuning.
  3. Pitch Instrument (P-13E) from Tombo — your grandfather’s father’s tuner! Durable, easy to carry around in your pocket.
  4. iPod from Apple — Me? An Apple fanboy? It’s possible to make an audio file of different pitches and have it on the ready in your iPod. Yes, really. ;)
Korg Micro Tuner on a sanshin.

A reference pic for those who may be wondering what that thing (it’s the AW-1 Micro Tuner from Korg) is on the ‘ten’ of a person’s sanshin. Now you know. :)

((Update))

We’ve been receiving a lot of requests for a video tutorial on tuning your sanshin so here it is: Tuning your sanshin, Part 1.


Download a higher quality of it at Revver.

13 Responses to “Tuning Your Sanshin”

  1. Searched Again on Karakui: Tuning Your Sanshin « Karakui Says:
    03/31/2007 at 12:21 PM

    [...] decided that this post deserves its own Page. You’ll find the link to our Pages at the top right-hand area of [...]

  2. Lise Fecteau Says:
    10/28/2007 at 7:29 AM

    I received a sanshin for my inlaws of Okinawa. I am trying to read your notes et to understand but it is a bit difficult as I am not a musician and as I usually learn more easily by earing or following others. Would you email me you video

    thank you

  3. Keith Tonaki Says:
    11/23/2007 at 9:27 PM

    Is the AW-1 micro tuner from Korg available locally (in Honolulu)?

  4. Richie Says:
    11/24/2007 at 12:30 PM

    @Keith Tonaki: Yup, it’s available locally in Honolulu at music stores like Good Guys Music and Dan’s Guitars.

  5. Lise Fecteau Says:
    01/16/2008 at 4:59 AM

    Thank you very much : it is much clear. for me now. I bought a tuning machine and it works. The major problem I have is that when my sanchin is tuned it doesnt stay because it is hard to keep the karakui in place in a whole. I just have to touch de karakui and the tuning is gone because the cords don t stay in the whole: so I always have to push the karakui in the whole at the same time I am tuning the cord because it is not stable. It is normal. Or do I have to do something to make the karakui stayed the way I place it. I wish you understand me as I am french and english is not my normal language.
    thank you.
    I wish that you place a video on the web that shows how to tune and how to learn the basic for playing sanchin
    thank you for everything

  6. Richie Says:
    01/27/2008 at 11:26 PM

    @Lise Fecteau: Thank you for the comment. Having an instructional video on tuning the sanshin is definitely something that’s in-the-works here at Karakui.com. Since I don’t own a video camera, I’m experimenting with my MacBook’s built-in iSight camera and either iMovie or QuickTime. Hope to have something up in a month or less if I feel confident about the result.

  7. Tutorial: Tuning your sanshin, Part 1 « Karakui - Okinawan Pop Culture Says:
    01/28/2008 at 11:42 PM

    [...] So here it is, our first video tutorial on tuning your sanshin. Be sure to check out our “Tuning Your Sanshin” page for more info. I’ll also have it up for download — at a better quality than [...]

  8. Dianne Goldrick Says:
    03/28/2008 at 1:58 PM

    I live in the USA and I was wondering where I could purchase the Pitch Instrument (P-13E) from Tombo here. Any information would be helpful.

    Thank you,
    Dianne Goldrick

  9. Richie Says:
    03/29/2008 at 8:54 PM

    @Dianne Goldrick: I haven’t seen the P-13E on sale in the USA but another pitch pipe, from Kratt, is available and I’ve used it before. http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=kratt+master+key+pitch+pipe&btnG=Search

    If you’re looking, in particular, for the Tombo, it can be purchased online through Amazon.co.jp. http://tinyurl.com/yosfl6

  10. Steve Says:
    07/01/2008 at 9:11 PM

    Awesome site, trying to learn the sanshin myself. But I’m having a hard time becuase I’m not very musically inclined. Anyone know of any good sanshin guides for beginners that is also in english?

  11. Richie Says:
    08/04/2008 at 10:40 AM

    @Steve: Thank you for the comment. There’s a lack of information in English for learning the sanshin as much of it has been passed directly from teacher to student (at least in Hawaii). I’m planning (it’s been on my to-do list) to get a website out with English tutorials for the sanshin but for now, feel free to pick my brain if you have any questions.

  12. Naota Says:
    03/02/2009 at 8:42 AM

    This is a great site. I was wondering if you knew anywere (site or otherwise) I could get some tabs for my sanshin. I’m teaching myself, but it’s been going pretty slowly.
    Thanks.

  13. Richie Says:
    03/02/2009 at 7:07 PM

    @Naota: Thank you for the comment about the site. I’ve been quite horrible about updating my own site Three Strings so a site that’s worth checking out is called Simple Sanshin Source http://simplesanshin.com/.

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