How to read Guitar Tablature.

[wambow]

First is first you need to know what tablature is.

Tablature; Tablature is a graphic
method of showing how to play noted
and chords on the guitar. It uses a six-line staff,
each line representing one string of the guitar.


This is how a tab staff will look like in text.

||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||

Or in a book like this.

The numbers on the lines represent the fret played according to the line the number is on. So lets say.


||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||---------------------2--------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||------------------------------------------|| 6th string

That would be 4th string 2nd fret. Its just like math and the x-axis and y-axis.



||-------0--0--0----------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||------------------------------------------|| 6th string

Thats 1st string open(playing no fret) three times
Thats pretty simple its starts getting complex Such as.




||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0--0--0--0--0---0--0--0---|| 6th string
PM---------------------------------|

That means Palm mute.(Muting it with your struming arm so its muffled)


AH
||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||--------------------------------------12--|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0--0--0--0--0---0--0------|| 6th string

Thats an ARTIFICIAL harmonic(Refer to my other guide).
If it isnt AH it would be NH witch is natural(Refer to my other guide)

||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0--0/5---0--0---0--0--0---|| 6th string
PM---------------------------------|

The / Means slide to the fret. \ Means slide away from it and vise versa.

||-------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||-------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||-------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||-------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------5h6p5-------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0----------0--0---0--0--0---|| 6th string
PM---------------------------------|

Uncapitalized h means hammer on. Uncapitalized p means pull of. Where you play the note and with another finger you press the next one. Easy.

||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0--0--5b-----------0--0---|| 6th string
PM---------------------------------|

B means bend the string. Its self explanatory. The number after the b means what to bend to.



||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0--0--5b7r---------0--0---|| 6th string
PM---------------------------------|

Means bend the string to 7. But then releasing it to its original pitch.


||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0--0--5\-0-/5------0--0---|| 6th string
PM---------------------------------|

Those notes mean a whammy dive. witch you press in the tremolo into your guitars cavity. Lowering the pitch and returning it to normal.

||------------------------------------------|| 1st String
||------------------------------------------|| 2cd String
||------------------------------------------|| 3rd string
||------------------------------------------|| 4th string
||------------------------------------------|| 5th string
||--0--0--0--0--0--0--5/-0-\5------0--0---|| 6th string
PM---------------------------------|

Means an inverted dip. Or dive. Where the pitch goes up by pulling on tremolo bar. Easy


||---12-h-15--T--17p12-h-15-T-17---------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||
||------------------------------------------||


Means tap 17. You know those solo that sound fast? But really arent


Thanks for reading this guide! Hope it helps. I know its simple but may help alot.

 

[Merchant Of Crystal Tears]

Amazing....Indeed.
Great work, 9/10.

 

[Rawr]

I love this guide! But some of the technical words I don't understand.

Other than that, 9/10.

 

[Sinful Thoughtz]

Good guide, i'm not going to say "alot" of spelling errors, but majorly there is. Fix those, and you'll be in good company.

7.5/10

 

[spector90]

Loved it!

One of the best guides I'v seen in 'user education'

10/10

 

[wambow]

Thanks alot

 

[Macroman]

I'm getting into learning guitar myself and this is an excellent guide. Its going to help me allot. Thank you very much

 

[Ballin Boi]

Very nice.

8/10

 

[wambow]

I'm getting into learning guitar myself and this is an excellent guide. Its going to help me allot. Thank you very much

Woah. Just message me if anything [email protected] I can teach you the advance techs. Good to know i helped out a Game Dev

 

[Ballin Boi]

You don't care that you helped me !

 

[wambow]

You didn't tell me Im glad i helped anyone.