Accordatura

What it means

Accordatura denotes the normal tuning of an instrument’s strings that holds for it. On the violin these are the perfect fifths G–D′–A′–E″, on the viola C–G–D′–A′, on the cello C–G–D–A, and on the double bass the perfect fourths E′–A′–D–G. The term is used above all when it stands against a deviation: after a passage in scordatura, the instruction calls for the return to the accustomed tuning.

In the notation

At the beginning of a work or movement the tuning may be given as a small group of notes without rhythm — four whole notes showing the open strings. If the usual succession stands there, it is the accordatura; if individual notes deviate, scordatura is present, and the player must retune before the movement. On returning to normal tuning, the word itself suffices in the notation.

Musical use

The accordatura is more than a technical default setting: it determines which keys sound comfortable. Because open strings speak with particular carrying power and richness in overtones, and because double stops at the interval of a fifth or fourth come easily, D major, G major or A major sound more open on the violin than, say, E♭ major. Composers reckon with this when they set a solo concerto in a particular key. Resonance belongs to it too: a stopped D′ lets the open D string vibrate along, which makes the tone fuller.

Performance practice

Always tune from the A string as reference and then check the fifths in double stops, not only singly — only then do you really hear whether they are pure. See that the fine tuners are not screwed all the way out, or you will have no reserve in the rehearsal. After every retuning a string needs time to settle; check the accordatura again shortly before the performance. If a work has a scordatura passage, plan the place of retuning into it: it must be long enough, and a second, already retuned instrument is the calmer solution.

Remember too that the string gauge must match the prescribed tuning: whoever fits high-tension strings and then tunes lower gets a dull, poorly speaking tone. In an ensemble everything is governed by the agreed reference pitch, which in early music can lie lower than the one usual today; clarify it before the first playing together. In cold the tuning sinks, in warmth it rises, and the strings react at differing speeds — so tune in the performance room and not in the dressing room.