a’ d’ a’ d” ; bb eb’ bb’ eb” ; b e’ b’ e” ; c’ f’ c” f” ; d’ g’ d” g”

This is one of the most common families of alternate tunings when it comes to baroque violin music. A great number of composers wrote music using one of these. Some notable examples:

Johann Heinrich Schmelzer (1620 – 1680): several dance movements and sonatas;

Giovanni Maria Bononcini (1642 – 1678): two sonatas; 

Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644 – 1704): Rosary Sonata no. 4 “The Presentation”, and partita no. 4 from Harmonia Artificiosa Ariosa;

Carlo Ambrogio Lonati (1645 ? – 1715 ?): two sonatas;

Johann Pachelbel (1653 – 1706): three trio sonatas.

Johann Joseph Vilsmayr (1663 – 1722): one solo sonata.

A handful of traditional and newly composed Norwegian tunes uses the tuning a d’ a’ d”. One example is the tune Hyljarliv, written by fiddle player Hans W. Brimi.

The same can be said about a handful of traditional and newly composed Swedish tunes, such as Rysstjärnsleken by Mats Edén.

A few appalachian old-time tunes use the tuning a d’ a’ d”.

Irish fiddle player Enda McNamara plays a version of the tune Greg’s Pipes in a d’ a’ d”.