What even are guitar tabs?
Guitar tabs are an easy way to write out and visualize how to play songs on the guitar and bass parts for songs. It’s also an easy way to visualize what frets on what strings need to be played and in what order to play the songs you like.
There is a bit of a debate as to whether guitar tabs are ‘good’ or ‘bad’ for players to look at and use. well go over some good and bad points here. They are very simple to use once you understand them and they can be great at the beginning when you are learning. The criticism against them is that they make it ‘Too easy’ or that it’s not reading ‘real music’. To be fair there are certain aspect that tabs do miss, and we will look at those also. In general, I believe tabs are good for beginners as it’s an easy way to learn and understand how to play songs on the guitar.
How do you read Guitar Tabs?
Below is an example of a guitar tab and how it will generally be laid out.
The image of a guitar tab has 6 parallel lines going from left to right. Each line represents a string on the guitar. From bottom to top it will go ‘Low E’ A, D, G, B, e. this means the bottom line is the thickest string on the guitar and the highest line is the thinnest string on the guitar (the high E).
Across the lines there will be numbers on each line. These numbers indicate the fret number you will place your finger on and play. For example, if there is a ‘5’ on the bottom line of the image you will play the lowest string with the 5th string fretted.
The numbers can show up anywhere across the line on the tab. To know what notes are played first you just read it as if reading a book, from left to right. So, the notes come one after the other that read from left to right. If the notes are on different strings and aligned vertically this means they are played together at the same time.
What do the letters and symbols on tabs mean?
H = Hammer on
P = Pull off
\ & / = Slide
Both H & P (hammer on & pull off) mean you won’t have to pluck the string with your right hand, but you will make the string vibrate with your fretting right hand with these techniques.
Hammer on means holding on fret with one finger then quickly pressing down on a fret above. The pressure and speed of the finger ‘hammering on’ will make the sound without plucking the string. The pull off is when one finger is fretting a string and then pulling down ass you release the finger and let the note underneath (whether fretted or open) ring out.
The slash signs on tabs indicate there is a slide. This technique is when you have a string fretted and playing it, then with the fretting hand keeping the string pressed down and fretted, moving up or down to the fret that is indicated as the next note. ‘sliding’ it up or down the string.
The downfalls of tabs
Rhythm
The main downfall of tabs is that they often lack the ability to incorporate the aspect of rhythm into them. There is often a straight line vertically down the image to indicate the end of the bar. These are often different and arbitrary lengths on different tabs. Another way of attempting to indicate timing and or rhythm is that the spacing from left to right of each note or fret will be further or closer apart indicating a shorter or longer length of time between them. none of these really get into the nitty gritty of rhythm and are only indicators of it, which is why that is one main downfall of tabs.
Depth
Tabs are good because they are easy to follow and practical to look at when you are starting out to know exactly what to play. When you start to get better at playing and want to know more about music and theory etc. tabs fall short. They don’t tell you the notes, the chords, the fingering and many more. It is the bare bones of what you need to know. If you start playing with others or want to show others what you are playing, the tab will be much more complicated to explain than if you know a little music theory and the language within music theory.
On the bright side
Some people will tell you to stay away from tabs due to their downfalls and being ‘too simple’. I agree to a certain extent, but I think at the start when you are learning it’s a great tool to get you started. They’re simple, easy to follow and tell you exactly what you need to play. This can build confidence and give you the skills to start playing songs quickly without having to learn a lot of theory which can potentially turn people away before they experience actually playing some music they like.
Use tabs at the start, play some songs you enjoy, but as you get better and continue playing, start to learn the other parts of music that tabs miss out. A little bit of theory, the notes on each string/fret and some technical aspects of rhythm are great to start looking into when you feel you are ready. These will allow you to put two and two together and understand more about what you are playing and not just how to play it.
At the end of the day, it’s about making sound and music that you enjoy, whether that’s on your own or with others it doesn’t matter. These are all tools that will help you start and continue to learn what you like and don’t like when you’re playing. Use the tools wisely but keep in mind what you want out of playing the guitar and/or bass, then just have fun with it.
The Music Student – Learning to play music without a teacher