Tuning guide
Shamisen tunings explained
Honchoshi, Niagari, and Sansagari describe interval relationships among the three strings. The absolute pitch can be transposed to suit the player or ensemble.
Honchoshi
Honchoshi is a foundational tuning relationship and often serves as the reference point when explaining the other common tunings. Absolute note names depend on the chosen base pitch.
Niagari and Sansagari
Niagari raises the second string relative to Honchoshi. Sansagari lowers the third string relative to Honchoshi. Confirm the intended tuning rather than inferring it only from position numbers.
Record tuning with the score
ShamiTab stores a tuning preset or custom string pitches with the track so notation, playback, and practice refer to the same setup.
Try this in ShamiTab
Turn shamisen notation knowledge into a playable score
Open the editor to write positions, hear playback, and prepare a printable page.