How to Read Guitar Tab for Beginners

Guitar tab, or tablature, is a way of writing guitar music that is very different to classic notation. It consists of six lines, representing the 6 strings, and numbers written onto the lines that represent the frets you hold down.

Benefits of Tablature Over Notation

Guitar tablature is easy to read and doesn't require any knowledge of music theory or rhythm values. You can combine the tablature with listening to a recording of the music to get the correct speed and rhythm.

Another major benefit is that it tells you exactly which fret to use for each note. With standard notation, each note written out can be found in several places on a guitar neck, and you can only determine the best location of each note to use through experience. Special effects like hammer-ons and pull-offs can also be shown in tablature.

11 h 14 is an example of a hammer-on where you pluck the note on fret 11 and then forcefully hammer another finger behind fret 14 to sound it.

13 p 12 is an example of a pull-off. In this case you would pluck the string while holding it behind fret 13, then use that fretting finger to pluck the string as you pulled it off, leaving another finger pressing down behind fret 12.

Disadvantages of Tablature

Although it is easy to read, most tablature only gives you information on the order of notes and where on the neck they are played. It doesn't tell you the tempo (speed), rhythm or dynamics (volume). This means that you have to rely on already knowing the song, or listening to a recording while you read the tab to work out how to play it. Standard notation shows you all of the above information meaning that you can learn a piece that you have never heard before accurately just by reading the music. You have to be quite a proficient reader of notation and have a good knowledge of music theory in order to do this quickly. Fast sight-reading comes with practise.

How to Read Guitar Tab

E------2---3---5---0---------------------

B-------------------------------------------

G-------------------------------x-----------

D-------------------------------x-----------

A-------------------------------x-----------

E-------------------------------x-----------

In the above example, the letters down the side are the tuning of the strings. Most guitars are tuned to EADGBE but some songs use different tunings. The lowest line represents the lowest sounding string on the guitar (positioned the highest on the neck) and the top line represents the highest sounding string (positioned the lowest on the neck).

The numbers tell you the frets to put your fingers behind when you pluck the string. In this case it is telling you to play fret 2, then 3, then 5 on the highest E string. The 0 means that you need to play the open E string.

If you see an x it means that you need to mute the string as you play it by lightly resting your hand or finger on it, not holding down any frets. It is an interesting effect used in many songs.

Tablature is also used to notate chords, where 2 or more notes are sounded at the same time. If you are to play several notes at the same time they will be positioned directly above each other.

E---------3-----------

B---------3-----------

G---------0-----------

D---------0-----------

A---------2-----------

E---------3-----------

The above example is how you would write out the chord of G major in tablature. In this case, all the notes should be played at the same time, usually strummed from the top of the neck to the bottom.

In Conclusion

What I have shown you are the very basics of guitar tablature. It does get more complicated and I may well write about this in future articles. Hopefully you now have some understanding of what guitar tablature is, the benefits and disadvantages, and how to read it.

Take your time, read lots of tablature, and you will master it in no time.