Discussions > Instrument Design, Construction and Repair
E/A options
Adam Smith:
Hello everybody,
Hope you're all enjoying this gloomy Monday! I have been offered an E/A box and I wondered what options it would give me.
You must forgive me, I have only been playing since August of last year and my knowledge is still lacking. I mainly play D/G with a Morris side, though am slowly building up my repertoire for sessions too.
Would this box allow me to harmonize/counterpoint with D/G boxes/tunes? Would I be able to play tunes across rows on it just like I can on a D/G or would it be whole new layout for me to learn?
A little help would be appreciated, I come from the guitar world so instruments in specific keys are new to me.
All the best,
Adam.
JohnAndy:
Hi Adam,
An E/A box would allow you to play tunes in the keys of A and E major, and also in related minor keys and modes (e.g. F# minor, C# minor, B Dorian, F# Dorian etc - keys with key signatures of 3 or 4 sharps).
It would not be suitable for harmony/counterpoint with D/G boxes. To play harmony lines you need to think in terms of staying in the same key as the melody but finding different notes within the key/scale used by the melody.
Therefore the best box for playing harmony or counterpoint lines for a tune played on a D/G box is another D/G box.
You'd be able to play the box in basically the same way as your D/G box (though it's possible there might be some layout differences) - but the tunes you play will come out in a different key.
The E/A box might be useful if you want to play along with Scottish fiddle music, as they quite often use those keys. But for Morris and English-oriented sessions you may find that nobody else wants to play in those keys!
Best of luck, John
Theo:
Another point to think about is where it is pitched EA can be pitched a tone higher than DG which is very high and squeaky, or it can (less often) be pitched an octave below that which is very low.
Adam Smith:
Thank you, John, for your very comprehensive answer. You've answered my question perfectly.
Theo, thank you also for the information. I was unaware that boxes could be in different pitches within their keys. Is this something you get with other tunings or just E/A?
Theo:
Just EA really.
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