Rule of thirds two thirds of water, and these together, forming about one-third of the picture, the remaining two-thirds to be for air and sky; and he applies the same rule to the crossing and breaking of lines and objects, &c. Even at this early date, there was skepticism over the universality of such a rule, at least in regards to color, for Field continues: This rule, however, does not supply a general law, but universalises a particular, the invariable observance of which would produce a uniform and monotonous practice. But, however occasionally useful, it is neither accurate nor universal, the true mean
Major thirds tuning improvisation. In contrast, chords cannot be shifted around the fretboard in standard tuning, which requires four chord-shapes for the major chords: There are separate fingerings for chords having root notes on one of the four strings three–six. The repetition of the major-thirds tuning enables notes and chords to be raised one octave by being "vertically" shifted by three strings. Notes and chords may be shifted "diagonally" in major-thirds tuning, by combining a vertical shift of one string with a horizontal shift of four frets: "Like all regular tunings, chords in the major third tuning can be moved across the fretboard