432 Hz tuning

How to tune to 432 Hz

1. Check that the A4 setting shows 432 Hz. This page selects the 432 Hz preset for you.
2. Choose your instrument with the instrument buttons and choose your tuning from the tuning menu.
3. Press Start and play the first string. If the instrument is at standard pitch, every string reads about 32 cents sharp, so loosen each one slightly below the target and tighten it back up to the note.
4. Tune every string the same way, then play them all again in the final recheck.
5. To switch back to standard pitch, choose the 440 Hz preset in the A4 setting and tighten each string up to its note.

String notes and frequencies at A4 = 432 Hz

The note names are the same as in standard tuning. The table lists the target frequency of each string with A4 set to 432 Hz.

What 432 Hz tuning is

432 Hz tuning is a choice of reference pitch. The note A4 is set to 432 Hz instead of 440 Hz, and every other note moves down by the same amount, about 31.8 cents. The scale, the intervals and the chord shapes do not change. A song in E major is still in E major, only slightly lower.

The difference is less than a semitone, so tuning down a half step does not get you to 432 Hz. If you want to play along with a recording made at 432 Hz, use this setting so your instrument matches it.

What the evidence says

Many websites claim that music at 432 Hz is more natural, more relaxing or good for health. These claims are not supported by good scientific evidence. The few studies on the subject are small and do not show a reliable effect.

The number 432 also depends on the second, which is a unit of time chosen by people. Nothing in physics or biology makes one reference pitch more natural than another. If you prefer how your instrument or your voice sounds at 432 Hz, that is a valid musical reason to use it.

Reference pitch in history

Before a standard was agreed, the pitch of A varied widely between countries, cities and periods. An instrument built in one place could be noticeably out of tune with one built somewhere else.

An international conference in London in 1939 recommended A4 = 440 Hz, and ISO 16 confirmed it as the international standard in 1975. Today 440 Hz is the usual reference, many orchestras use 442 Hz or 443 Hz, and baroque ensembles on period instruments often use 415 Hz.

Playing with others at 432 Hz

Everyone in a group must use the same reference pitch. If one player tunes to 432 Hz and another to 440 Hz, every note will clash by about a third of a semitone. Agree on the reference before rehearsal.

Fixed-pitch instruments are the main limit. Many digital keyboards have a master tuning setting that can match 432 Hz, but an acoustic piano needs a technician to retune it. On a guitar, bass or ukulele, 432 Hz lowers string tension by about 3.6 percent, so your usual strings work and feel only slightly looser.