How To Read Guitar Tabs With Explanation

Hi everyone,
Hope u all r well. I find in here many guitarist especially the beginer r facing the problem with reading the guitar tabs. So I prepare this lesson for those who r in confusion....hope that it will remove all ur fake and wrong conception and make ur guitar playing improvised.....If u like it then
plz plz comments..........

Tablature is a way of indicating the positioning of notes and fingering on the guitar fret board.

If you can read tabs, you will be able to play any of your favorites songs.

Aside from traditional music theory, tabs are among the easiest methods to playing your favorite songs... quickly!

Basic Tab Lines:

There are 6 tab lines representing 6 strings on the guitar. (The 1st string is the thinnest, and the 6th string is the thickest).

e----------------------------- String 1 (Thinnest)
B----------------------------- String 2
G----------------------------- String 3
D----------------------------- String 4
A----------------------------- String 5
E----------------------------- String 6 (Thickest)

When a number is placed on one of the lines, it indicates the fret location of note.

Example 1:

E----------------------------- String 1
B------4---------------------- String 2
G----------------------------- String 3
D----------------------------- String 4
A----------------------------- String 5
E----------------------------- String 6

(This means to play the 4th Fret on the 2nd string)

Example 2:

E----------------------------- String 1
B----------------------------- String 2
G----------------------------- String 3
D----------------------------- String 4
A------0---------------------- String 5
E----------------------------- String 6

(This indicates an open 5th string)

Example 3:

E----------------------------- String 1
B-----------6----------------- String 2
G-------5--------------------- String 3
D----------------0------------ String 4
A----------------------------- String 5
E----------------------------- String 6

This indicates:
5th Fret, 3rd string, then
6th Fret, 2nd string, then
an open 4th string.

Example 4:

E---1------------------------- String 1
B-----------8----------------- String 2
G-------7--------------------- String 3
D---------------2------------- String 4
A----------------------------- String 5
E------------------------12--- String 6

This indicates:
1st Fret, 1st string then
7th Fret, 3rd string, then
8th Fret, 2nd string, then
2nd Fret, 4th string, then
12th Fret, 6th string.

Tab Symbols:

There are tab symbols that you need to know before you want to learn a song in tab format. They are:
h - hammer on
p - pull off
b - bend string up
r - release bend
/ - slide up
\ - slide down
v - vibrato (sometimes written as ~)
t - right hand tap
x - play 'note' with heavy damping

When you see all numbers in a line one after another:

E---3------------------------- String 1
B---3------------------------- String 2
G---4------------------------- String 3
D---5------------------------- String 4
A---5------------------------- String 5
E---3------------------------- String 6

...it means you play the entire chord using all fingers.

When you see tabs that have "h"

E--------------------------------String 1
B--------------------------------String 2
G--------------------------------String 3
D--------------------------------String 4
A---------7h9-----------10h12----String 5
E---0--0----------0--0-----------String 6

....it means to do a "Hammer On" from the 7th fret to the 9th fret and again for the 10th fret to the 12th fret.

When you see other tabs that have "pO"

E--------------------------------String 1
B--------------------------------String 2
G--------------------------------String 3
D--------------------------------String 4
A---------9pO7-----------12pO10--String 5
E---0--0----------0--0-----------String 6

....it means to do a "Pull Off" from the 9th fret to the 7th fret and again for the 12th fret to the 10th fret.

When you see other tabs that have "b"

E--------------------------------String 1
B--------------------------------String 2
G--------------------------------String 3
D--------------------------------String 4
A---------7b9-----------10b12----String 5
E--------------------------------String 6

...it means strike the string 5 on the 7th fret, then bend the note up so that it sounds the same as the note played on the 9th fret.

ADDITIONAL TIP

Tabs are mainly a few lines with numbers on them. Once you know the basic positioning of where your fingers go, you are able to get a good feel for the song. Tabs are an easy way to read music and play a particular song. Proper music notation is more detailed and requires more study into it, however if all you want to do is play your favorite song, tabs are just as easy in the end.

GLOSSARY

h
Hammer On is produced by hitting a note first, before sliding your finger to another fret while the string is still ringing out.

p
Pull off is the same as a hammer on - but instead of placing our fingers onto the string, we are TAKING OUR FINGERS OFF the string, after striking it.

b
Bends are relatively easy to perform. Bends are shown in many different symbols. The b and ^ are common symbols used for bends. The ( ) usually contain a number in between and tell the player to bend to that note. Notes without ( ) usually have the note to be bent to next to the original note.
A bend is carried out by bending the string up on the guitar to produce a sound similar to that of the fret noted on the tab.

r
A release is done by picking the note in its bent position, but letting go of the string so that it can return to its normal pitch.

/ or \
The symbol \ signifies a slide down the neck, while / signifies a slide up the neck. The notes are picked in the order in which they appear from left to right.

v or ~
If you continue to hold the fret down after the slide, or even after picking any random note, it will cause the note to ring. This effect is called vibrato which is fluctuating the pitch of a note.

t
Tapping is where you tap the string repeatedly.

x
Gently rest a finger of your left hand over the indicated string or strings, and then strum. This will produce a dull, almost scratchy sound.

Here are some more tips:

When learning to play the guitar we all want to know how long it will take to learn. It really depends on how fast you can pick things up.

Some players pick it up in a month, whereas others take longer.

The important things to remember is there is no rush with this. We recommend practicing at least 1 hour per day and building on what you learn't the previous day.

So take your time and learn at your own pace. There's no one to compete with here. Just keep at it.

And finally -- every time your fingers are put to practice, they are being stretched and get tougher. It is only a matter of time till you'll be able to play those chords and hold those notes.

If you are having problems holding chords - the trick is to place your fingers as close to the actual fret as possible.

You know how when you hold chords, you place your fingers in-between frets...well, instead of doing this - place your fingers right up against the fret (as close as possible) and you will not have to press down as hard and chords will be a lot easier to hold.

Lastly, you might want to try getting a thinner gauge set of strings (perhaps not so thick!)
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-----Thank you-----

 

ba apni khub bhalo poran

 

khub sahajyo holo.......dhanyobad

 

Thanks........

 

Thanks Ronnie .... Nice job...i'm playing... if feel any problem can send to you

 

hello....ronnie......good job....tumi to fossils er gan sono...amak sono amra ki sobai r kishori r strumming pattern ta pls bolo na....kishori gantar chord ta to tumi i diechile amay.

 

Gud job dear

 

Thks for your help. acctually i am also a beggineer.

 

Thanks all of u........

 

thank bro............for help....

 

THANKS FRIEND
AMAKE DHANO DHANNE PUSPE BHARA AMADER EAI BASUNDHARAR cord ta pathaben ki my id (pathak.partha@rediffmail.com)

 

Darun post khub help holo

 

thank u.........

 

hey ronnie !!!
u r a darling !!

 

Thanks Ronnie I think I can play now...

 

Good Job, Ronnie. You've really taken the trouble to make us understand. Are you a pro?

 

great job bro )

 

hats off dude...ur awesome...aftr so mch trouble finally i can read d tabs all coz of ur help...thnx ag9...

 

Good job bro,but egulo jodi practically beginners der video kore dekhano jeto khub valo hoto,anyway ja korechho tai ba kom kiser?nijeke diye ja bujhechi r foreign e guitarist der kachhe giye ja dekhlam..we,the guitarists are really bad music readers..most of the parts are learned by ear..r etto versetile instrument world r ektao nei..so kan ke trainning dao