There’s something magical about the way Joni Mitchell approached her instrument.
Before the melody or the lyrics came, she would often begin by changing the tuning of
her guitar—sometimes wildly, sometimes gently, but always intuitively. This alone can
teach us more than a thousand music theory lessons.
When I first discovered Joni Mitchell’s alternate tunings, it felt like I’d found a secret
door in a house I’d lived in all my life. Instead of shaping her songs around standard
chords, Joni tuned her guitar to match the emotional weather inside her. She’d twist the
pegs until the sound matched a feeling, not a formula. Isn’t that wonderful?
To me, this is a permission slip. You don’t have to play what everyone else is
playing. Explore open tunings like Open D or even some of Joni’s own invention on a variation of Open G Tuning – let your hands fall in love with new shapes. It’s not about getting it right—it’s about
getting creative.
If you’re stuck playing the same old chords, consider this: maybe it’s not your hands that
are tired—maybe it’s your ears. Joni is a perfect example of inspiration on a creative search for new sounds.
Start tuning to how you feel. Start tuning to the wind….
~ Avigail
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