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Guitar
Hold, tune, strum, and pick a guitar properly

Learn to play the music you love.

Few instruments can match the range of sounds the guitar can produce, or the ease with which you can learn. With just a few chords, you can play thousands of popular songs. So pick up an old acoustic or electric and learn how to:

Play more than 30 common chords, including open, barre, and power chords Read guitar chord diagrams and tablature for any song

The Parts of the Guitar

There are two main types of guitars: acoustic guitars, which produce sound naturally without external amplification, and electric guitars, which require electricity and an external amplifier, or amp, to boost the volume of sound they produce. Though acoustic and electric guitars produce sound in very different ways, they share many of the same basic parts.

1. headstock 2. tuning pegs 3. nut 4. neck 5. fretboard 6. frets 7. fret markers (dot inlays) 8. pickguard 9. sound hole 10. pickups 11. bridge 12. body 13. volume knob 14. pickup selector switch 15. tone knob(s)

16. pick

17. amp

18. strap

All of the following parts exist in both acoustic and electric guitars, unless otherwise indicated. Guitars come in left-handed and right-handed models. This list, and the instructions throughout this guide, apply to right-handed guitars and players. Left-handed players should follow the instructions as theyre written but reverse any mention of left or right. 1. Headstock: The top most part of the guitar, which holds the tuning pegs in place. 2. Tuning pegs: Also known as tuning machines, the pegs that anchor the guitars strings to the headstock. By twisting the turning pegs, you can tune the strings (see How to Tune Your Guitar). There may be three tuning pegs on each side of the headstock or six lined up all in a row. 3. Nut: The point at which the headstock meets the neck of the guitar. Grooves in the nut help keep nut the strings in place.

4. Neck: The guitars backbonea long, narrow piece of wood that extends from the guitars body and holds the fretboard. 5. Fretboard: Also called the fingerboard, the flat front of the neck, which holds the frets and fret markers. 6. Frets: Refers to both the narrow vertical metal pieces inlaid at standard intervals along the fretboard and to the spaces between each fret. 7. Fret markers: Also called dot inlays, the dots marked on the front and sides of the fret board at the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, and 17th frets. The fret markers help you to see which frets youre playing. 8. Pickguard: A plastic guard that protects the body of a guitar from getting scratched while being played. Not all guitars have pickguards. 9. Sound hole (acoustic guitars only): The hole in the center of the body. The sound hole amplifies the sound of the vibrating strings, making the guitar more audible.

10. Pickup: A device that captures the sound of the vibrating strings so it can be amplified by an amp. All electric guitars have pickups, located at different places between the neck and the bridge. Acoustic guitars equipped to be played electrically have pickups embedded in the sound hole or under the bridge.

11. Bridge: A structure that anchors the strings to the body and keeps the strings separate at precise widths. 12. Body: The rounded portion of the guitar beyond the bottom end of the neck. The body is typically made of wood. On acoustic guitars, the body is hollow, which naturally amplifies the sound of the vibrating strings. On electrics, the body is solid and does not provide amplification. 13. Volume knob (electric guitars only): A dial that allows you to adjust the volume of the sound sent to the amp. 14. Pickup selector switch (electric guitars only): A dial that allows you to switch between multiple pickups to achieve different tones. 15. Tone knob (electric guitars only): A dial that allows you to adjust the amount of bass or treble in the sound sent to the amplifier.

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Guitar Gear
To play any guitar, whether acoustic or electric, youll need a guitar pick and a guitar strap. For electric guitars, youll also need an amp. Pick: A wedge-shaped piece of hard plastic that allows a guitar player to strike all the strings on a guitar at once, as opposed to plucking each string with the fingers. A pick is held between the thumb and index finger (the first finger next to the thumb). Guitar strap: A length of fabric that loops over your shoulder and connects to both ends of the guitar. A strap makes it much easier to play guitar while standing. Amp: A device that plugs into a guitar via a cable and electrically amplifies the sound captured by the guitars pickups. Once you have the guitar resting in the right place, you need to position your right and left hands in the correct way. Hold the neck with your left hand and position your right hand above the sound hole (on acoustic guitars) or between the pickups (on electrics). Cradle the neck by holding your thumb in the middle of the back of the neck and placing your four fingers on the opposite side.

Guitar

How To Play Notes on the Guitar

When you pluck or strum a guitar string, the string vibrates, creating a sound with a certain pitch, called a note. You can play different notes by frettingpressing down on the string at different frets along the guitars fretboard. By fretting a string, you shorten the length of the vibrating string. The shorter the string, the higher the note it creates when vibrating. Fretted notes therefore sound higher in pitch than the open string (unfretted string). As you fret higher along the fretboard (closer to the body of the guitar), the notes become higher in pitch. To fret (play) notes on the guitar, think of your fingers and thumb as if they were a pair of pliers, pressing toward each other to sound notes along the neck.

To play the 2nd fret, youd play just to the left and as close to the 2nd fret as possible, and so on.

Which String Is Which?

The guitar has six strings, each of which sounds a single note when played open (without playing any fret). The 6th string is the fattest and lowest-sounding string. Its the one located closest to your head or the ceiling when youre holding the guitar. It sounds a low E (explained later) when played open. The 1st string is the thinnest and highest-sounding string, the one closest to your feet when youre holding the guitar. It sounds a high E when played open. The strings in between are the 5th, 4th, 3rd, and 2nd strings. The notes they sound when played open are A, D, G, and B, respectively.
(low E) (A)

How To Hold the Guitar

You can play guitar either seated or standing up. Seated: Spread your legs a bit and position the rounded middle portion of the bottom of the guitar on your right leg. Use your right arm to support the back of the guitar and grasp the neck with your left hand.

Which Fret Is Which?

Frets tell you exactly where to put your fingers on the fretboard in order to play the correct notes (unlike a violin, say, which has no frets). Most electric guitars have either 22 or 24 frets, whereas acoustics usually have 20 frets at most. The frets on the guitar are identified by number: 1st fret, 2nd fret, 3rd fret, and so on, with the 1st fret closest to the nut, all the way up by the headstock of the guitar.

6th 5th 4th

(D)

Playing a Fret
Playing a fret does not mean you place your finger directly on the fret itself. It means you press down just to the left of that fret (a little toward the headstock). Keep in mind that the term fret also refers to the spaces between the frets. Standing: Sling a guitar strap over your left shoulder to support the guitarit should rest against your right hip.

3rd 2nd 1st

(G)

(B) (high E)

Which Note Is Which?

The notes you can play on the guitar (or any other instrument) are identified with letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. There are also notes halfway between some of these lettered notes, called sharps and flats. A sharp, indicated by a # sign, denotes a half-step up; a flat, indicated by a b sign, denotes a half-step down. Each sharp can also be called a flat, and vice versa: A# = Bb, C# = Db, D# = Eb, F# = Gb, G# = Ab. In all, there are 12 named notes you can play: A, A# (Bb), B, C, C# (Db), D (Eb), E, F, F# (Gb), G, G# (Ab) Each of the 12 notes has a universal frequency, or pitch, which means that an A played on a guitar will be the same note as an A played on a piano. But there are many instances of each note, each of which varies only in how high or low it soundsthe underlying frequency never changes.

19th 21st 17th

15th

play as close to the left of the fret as possible (from the player's perspective)

12th 9th

7th 5th

3rd

To play the 1st fret, you would press down on the string between the nut and the 1st fret, as close to the 1st fret as possible.

The information contained in this and every Quamut guide is intended only for the general interest of its readers and should not be used as a basis for making medical, investment, legal or other important decisions. Though Quamut makes efforts to create accurate guides, editorial and research mistakes can occur. Quamut cannot, therefore, guarantee the accuracy of its guides. We disclaim all warranties, including warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, and must advise you to use our guides at your own risk. Quamut and its employees are not liable for loss of any nature resulting from the use of or reliance upon our charts and the information found therein.

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Copyright 2007 Quamut All rights reserved. Quamut is a registered trademark of Barnes & Noble, Inc. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States Writer: Ande Flavelle

Photo Credits: Page 1: PeterG/Shutterstock (photo 1), Jules Frazier/Photodisc Green/Getty Images (photo 2), M.E. Mulder/Shutterstock (photo 3), Milos Jokic/Shutterstock (photo 4), Bobby Deal/ RealDealPhoto/Shutterstock (photo 5), Scott B. Rosen/Bill Smith Studio (photo 6), Gordon Swanson/Shutterstock (photos 7-8), PeterG/Shutterstock (photo 9), Pekka Jaakkola/Shutterstock (photo 10), Tim Hope/Shutterstock (photo 11), Scott B. Rosen/Bill Smith Studio (photo 12), Mikhail Olykainen/Shutterstock (photo 13), Johanna Goodyear/Shutterstock (photo 14), Jules Frazier/Photodisc Green/Getty Images (photo 15); Page 2: Milos Jokic/Shutterstock (photo 1), Scott B. Rosen/Bill Smith Studio (photo 2), Bobby Deal/RealDealPhoto/Shutterstock (photo 3); Page 3: Jason Nemeth/ Shutterstock (photo 1), Andrea Leone/istockphoto (photo 2). Illustrations by Precision Graphics.

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For instance, you can play several different E notes on a guitar: some (such as the guitars 1st string when played open) are high, while others (such as the 6th string when played open) are low.

Guitar
5th fret 4th fret 3rd 2nd fret fret 1st fret open string

Guitar Chord Diagrams

To play most instruments, you need to be able to read standard musical notation. But not so for guitaryou can learn to play guitar without knowing how to read music at all. Chord diagrams are chord cheat sheets: they show you where to put your fingers and which strings to play. Guitar chords can be written with standard notation, but chord diagrams are much faster and easier. Each diagram shows the first four frets vertically, as if your guitar were leaning up against a wall. Symbols and numbers show which strings you should play, at which fret, and with which finger:

low

6th 5th 4th 3rd 2nd

E A D G B E

Why You Dont Need to Know the Notes

Thanks to chord diagrams and a system of guitar notation called tablature (see Guitar Chord Basics and How to Play Songs with Tablature), you dont really need to know which note on the guitar is which. The only notes you absolutely must knowin order to tune your guitar so it sounds right are the notes of each open string, which you know already, from 6th to 1st: (low) E, A, D, G, B, and (high) E.

high

1st

Tuning Forks and Electronic Tuners

For the 5th fret method to work, the 6th string must start off in tune and sound an E when played open. If its not in tune, youll end up tuning the entire guitar based on the wrong reference note. Two common tuning tools can help: Tuning fork: A metal, Y-shaped tool that sounds a specific note when struck with a hard object. Sound the fork and tune the 6th string to match it. Electronic tuner: A digital device that can identify the frequency (and thus the pitch) of each string as you play it and indicate whether you should tune it higher or lower. An electronic tuner can be used to tune just the 6th string or all six strings.

strings with X are not played

strings with a white or red circle should be played open

How to Tune Your Guitar

When you first pick up a guitar, it will likely be out of tune, which means the notes of open strings will not be E, A, D, G, B, and E. In order for the notes you play to sound right, youll need to adjust each open string to bring it back in tune.

nut left-hand fingering 1 2 3 1st 2nd f r e t s

How to Use the Tuning Pegs

You can adjust the pitch of each string by tightening or loosening the tuning pegs on the guitars headstock. Turning a peg away from you tunes its string higher in pitch. Turning it toward you tunes the string lower.

2 3 4

1 T

3rd 4th

Standard Tuning (E-A-D-G-B-E)

Each string on the guitar can be tuned to sound any note when played open. But the vast majority of songs are written for guitars that are tuned to what is called standard tuning: E, A, D, G, B, and E. All beginners learn to play guitar using standard tuning.

Dont Get Addicted to Electronic Tuners

Though electronic tuners are handy and very easy to use, its crucial to know how to tune by ear using the 5th fret method for two reasons: 1. You wont always have a tuner available. 2. If you play as part of a band or music group, youll need to tune to other guitars or instruments by ear.

strings red circles indicate the root note of the chord

How to Tune Using the 5th Fret Method

The most common way to tune a guitar to standard tuning is called the 5th fret method. In this method, you tune the six strings of the guitar in pairs, by comparing the sound of a fretted note with the sound of an open string. If the guitar is in tune, both strings should sound the same. To tune using the 5th fret method, complete these written steps or refer to the following fret diagram: 1. Play the note at the 5th fret of the 6th string and let the sound continue ringing. 2. While this note is still ringing, play the open 5th string by itself. The two notes should sound the same. 3. If they dont match, tune the open 5th string higher or lower so it matches the pitch of the 6th string played at the 5th fret. a. Adjust the pitch of the 5th string by playing the 5th string, and as the note is still ringing, slowly turn the tuning peg counterclockwise. b. Avoid turning the tuning peg haphazardly without listening to how far the note is going up or down in pitch. Be sure to hear it and gradually bring it in tune with the 6th stringguessing is difficult and usually frustrating. 4. Play the 5th fret of the 5th string and then match and tune the open 4th string against it, just as you did with the 5th and 6th strings above. When the 5th and 4th strings are in tune, proceed to the 4th string and tune the 3rd string open to match it. 5. There is one exception to the patternthe 3rd string is played at the 4th fret to tune it to the open 2nd string. 6. When the 3rd and 2nd strings are tuned to one another, play the second string at the 5th fret and tune the open 1st string to it. The guitar should now be in standard E-A-D-G-B-E tuning. The following diagram of the 5th fret method makes things easier to visualize. Fret each string where the dots appear. While that fretted note is still ringing, play the next string open and tune the strings until they sound the same.

Open-Position Chords
Nearly all beginning guitarists start off by learning openposition chords, since these chords: 1. Are easy to play using chord diagrams 2. Form the building blocks of most folk and rock songs For some open-position chords, you play the first four or five strings only; for others you play all six. All open-position chords require you to play at least one open (unfretted) stringhence the term open-position chord.

Guitar Chord Basics

A chord is a combination of three or more notes sounded at the same time. Since guitars have six strings, guitar chords can have up to six notes. There are two fundamental types of chords that youll learn as a beginning guitarist: openposition chords and barre chords. Open-position chords: Chords played with a combination of fretted notes and open strings. These chords can be played only within the first three frets of the guitar neck. Barre chords: Chords that do not use open strings. Barre chords can be played anywhere on the fretboard, not just within the first three frets. All open-position and barre chords are named based on their root note and chord type. Root note: The root note of a chord is usually (but not always) the lowest note in the chord. A chord whose root note is A is an A chord. Chord type: The five main types of chords are major, minor, 7th, minor 7th, and major 7th. A chords type describes the chords sound, or mood. Chords are named by taking the root and adding the chord type: an Am7 is an A minor 7th chord. Different types of chord have different sounds or moods, shown in the following table. For instance, the Am7 chord has a sound that combines a 7th chord with the sad sound of a minor chord. Chord Type Major Minor 7th Major 7th Minor 7th Sound / Mood Positive, cheerful Dark, sad, sorrowful Bluesy, funky Jazzier, mellower version of a major chord Jazzier, mellower version of a minor chord Symbol M (or none) m 7 M7 m7

How to Play Open-Position Chords

Heres the basic method for playing open-position chords: 1. Place each finger of your left hand on the proper fret of each string (indicated by the chord diagram). 2. Strum or pick the strings needed to play the chord with your right hand.

Strumming
Strumming means using a guitar pick to play the required strings all in one motion, starting from the lowest and ending with the highest string. Strum by twisting the wrist of your right arm. If you strum by moving the whole arm up and down, youll both tire more quickly and wont have as much control over which specific strings you strum.

Picking
Picking refers to sounding the notes of a chord in succession, one by one, as opposed to all at once. You can pick using either the guitar pick or your fingers. Picking is also known as arpeggiating the chord.

Open-Position Chord Finger Positioning

When playing open-position chords, its crucial to get your fingers in the correct position and to press down against the strings with the correct amount of force. Follow these guidelines when playing:

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1. Press down hard on the fretboard with the fingers of your left hand to keep the strings from buzzing. 2. Stand each finger as straight up as possible, perpendicular to the fretboard. 3. Keep your thumb down and behind the neck. 4. Position each finger as close to the fret as possible (to the left, from your point of view). This will reduce the buzz that results when notes are not fully fretted. 5. Keep a small open space between the guitar neck and the palm of your left hand.
1 2 1 3 1 2 3

Guitar
How to Play A-form Barre Chords
There are five types of A-form barre chords: major, minor, 7th, minor 7th, and major 7th (E-form barre chords dont include this last type). A-form barre chords work just like E-form barre chords, with two big exceptions: 1. Fingering is based on an open-position A-major chord. 2. You always play just strings 1-5.
Open-Position E-Form E Chords Barre Chords E major
2 3 4 3 4 2

G
1 2 3 4

Dmaj7
1 2 3

Amaj7

Open-Position A-Form A Chords Barre Chords A major major

major
1

1 2 3 1 2 3

B7

G7
2

Em
3

minor (m)

Am
1 2 3 1

minor (m)
2 3 4

Barre Chords
20 Fundamental Open-Position Chords
These 20 open-position chords form the foundation of the vast majority of pop, rock, and folk songs, from Bob Dylan to the Beatles, from U2 to Radiohead, from Coldplay to Shakira, and virtually everyone in between. In these diagrams, the red dots indicate each chords root note(s). The root of an A major chord is an A, for example. An A will occur at least once (or more than once) in a chord whose root is A.
1 2 3 2 3 2 1

Barre chords offer guitar players a lot of flexibility: They can be played at any fret. They enable you to play chords that cant be played as open-position chords. They make it easier to play chord progressions, series of chords in a row (see Chord Progressions). Barre chords require you to press down your left index finger across five or six strings all at once. This can be difficult at first: to create this barre and fret all the notes without causing lots of string buzz, youll need to develop some significant hand and finger strength.

E7
1 2

7th (7)
2 3

A7
1 2

7th (7)

2 4

Em7
2

minor 7th (m7)

1

Am7
1 2

minor 7th (m7)

2 3

Barre Chord Practice

Before you begin practicing barre chords, its helpful to practice playing just the barre to build up your finger strength.
AM7
1 2 3 3 2 4

major 7th (M7)

Emin

E7

Emin7
1 2 3

A
1 2

A7

1. Place the index finger of your left hand directly across all six strings at the 1st fret, parallel and as close to the 1st fret as possible. 2. Press down the six strings all at once to create a barre across the fretboard. 3. Keep your index finger as flat as possible to prevent the strings from buzzing when played. 4. Pick the six strings one by one to test your barre. Each note should sound clearly, without buzzing (though the notes shouldnt yet sound like a harmonious chord, since youre just playing the barre, not a real chord).

How to Play Barre Chords at Any Fret

Whenever you play a barre chord, the 1st finger of your left hand acts as a replacement for the guitars nut (see Parts of a Guitar). When you play a barre chord at the 1st fret, your finger effectively shifts the nut up by one fret, which also shifts every note in the chord you play up by one half-step. An E-form chord barred at the 1st fret, for instance, becomes an F chord. This means that you can move your barre to any fret between the 1st and the 12th to play an entirely different chord. (Playing barre chords beyond the 12th fret is impractical because the frets become too narrow.)

2 3

The Two Forms of Barre Chords

All barre chords are either E-form or A-form chords: E-form barre chords: Based on the fingering of the open-position E chord. E-form barre chords are played by sounding all six strings. A-form barre chords: Based on the fingering of the open-position A chord. A-form barre chords are played by sounding five strings: the 5th through 1st. Once youve gotten all six barred strings to sound clearly without buzzing, youre ready to try a full barre chord.

Why Does an E Become an F?

Like open-position chords, the first component of a barre chords name is its root note, while the second is either major, minor, 7th, minor 7th, or major 7th. The root note of every barre chord is the lowest note played in the chord: For E-form barre chords: The root is the note you play on the 6th string. For A-form barre chords: The root is the note you play on the 5th string. If you play an E-form barre chord at the 1st fret, the root note is an F (the 6th string played at the 1st fret). So all E-form barre chords played at the 1st fret are F chords.

Amin
1 2 3

Amin7
1 2 3

D
1 2

How to Play E-form Barre Chords

D7
1 2 3 3 2 4 3

Dmin
1

Dmin7

There are four types of E-form barre chords: major, minor, 7th, and minor 7th. To play them, do as follows: 1. At the 1st fret, lay the 1st finger of your left hand across all six strings to form a barre. 2. Form the open-position E chord with fingers 2, 3, and 4, at the 2nd fret, immediately to the right (from the players perspective) of your barre at the 1st fret. This may feel wrong at first, since youre used to playing open-position E with fingers 1, 2, and 3.

Which Root Notes Occur at Which Frets?

The following charts indicate which root notes occur at each of the first 12 frets on the 6th string (for E-form barre chords) and the 5th string (for A-form barre chords).

C7

Cmaj7

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Root Notes on the 6th String (for E-Form Barre Chords)
Fret 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Chord F F# G G# A A# B C C# D D# E

Guitar
Practice Combining E-Form and A-Form Barre Chords
One effective way to practice combining barre chords is to alternate between playing the two chord types at the same fret: 1. Play the E-form barre chord at the 3rd fret (a G major chord). 2. Switch to the A-form chord at the 3rd fret (a C major chord) without moving your barred index finger. 3. Remember to strum just the first five strings when playing the A-form barre chord. As you practice, switch more and more quickly until the transition becomes completely natural. For E-form barre chords: Drop the barre entirely and use fingers 1, 3, and 4 to fret the bottom three notes of the original barre chord. For A-form barre chords: Follow the same method as for E-form barre chords but be careful not to play the 6th string. Power-chord versions of barre chords have a few important properties: Like regular barre chords, they can be played at any fret from the 1st to the 12th. The root notes are the same as those of regular barre chords. They create a somewhat raw, flat sound thats neither major, minor, or 7th. Though the diagram indicates that these chords should be played with three fingers, with practice youll be able to play them with just two fingers. Simply form a barre with your 3rd finger to fret both notes played by your 3rd and 4th fingers in the diagram.

Root Notes on the 5th String (for A-Form Barre Chords)

Fret 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Chord A# B C C# D D# E F F# G G# A

Power Chords
Popular in hard rock, power chords get their name from the full blast of sound you can achieve when playing them on an electric guitar with distortion. Distortion is one of dozens of guitar effectsdevices that alter the sound of a pure guitar signal, often referred to as a clean tone. Though most guitar effects can be achieved only through the use of separate electronic devices, nearly all amps include a distortion option that turns the clean tone of a guitar into a loud, crunchy roar. The sound of most modern rockfrom Nirvana to Green Day to many othersderives from playing power chords on an electric guitar with distortion. Like regular chords, power chords come in two major types: open-position chords and barre chords. All power chords require that you play just 2-3 notes, which makes power chords a great transition step for beginning guitarists who have mastered open-position chords but are having trouble with full barre chords.

When to Play Which Type of Chords

How can you tell when to play power chords, open-position chords, or regular barre chords? The best way to answer this is to listen closely to how the guitar sounds in recordings of the type of music youre trying to play. Play power chords: If the guitar sounds loud and crunchy, as in most hard rock music Play open-position chords: If the guitar sounds bright and ringing, as in folk and other acoustic music Play barre chords: If the guitar sound is somewhere in between, as in most rock and pop music Keep in mind that mixing two, or even all three, of these chord types is possible within the same song.

How to Play 108 Different Barre Chords

Once youve learned to play the four types of E-form barre chords and the five types of A-form barre chords, youll instantly know how to play all 108 barre chords that exist between the 1st and 12th frets. A chord such as A#m7 might sound difficult to play, but you actually now know two ways to play it: For the fret and For the fret and E-form barre chord version: Barre at the 6th use the minor 7th fingering. A-form barre chord version: Barre at the 1st use the minor 7th fingering.

Open-Position Power Chords

There are three open-position power chords, each of which is a variation on its standard open-position chord: E, A, and D. One good thing about open-position power chords is that you dont need to use many fingers to play them. E and A open-position power chords: Require one finger D open-position power chord: Requires two fingers

How to Play Songs with Tablature

Chord diagrams help you play chords almost instantly. But tablature makes it possible to play chords and melodies on the guitar within minutes. (Melodies are the tunes that define a songthe part that you can hum or whistle.) Once youve mastered chord diagrams and tablature, youll be able to play the chords and the melody of almost any song without ever having to learn to read music.

Combining E- and A-Form Barre Chords

Knowing how to play any barre chord in two places is helpful because it allows you to play a series of chords in a row without jumping all around the neck of the guitar. Example 1: Shows where to play the chords C, A#, D#, and F using just the E-form barre chords. This requires several leaps across the neck, making it almost impossible to move seamlessly from chord to chord.

What is Tablature?
Tablature, or simply tab, is a system of notation built around a diagram of six parallel lines that represent the six strings of the guitar. Tab notation contains the following: Also, power chords require you to strum just two or three strings. The combination of needing at most two fingers and two or three strings makes playing power chords relatively easy. It also makes switching between chords a breeze compared to shifting between barre chords and regular open-position chords. Numbers: A number written on a particular string indicates which fret you should play on that string. Zeros: A zero written on a string indicates a string that should be played open. Stacked numbers or zeros: When numbers or zeros are stacked, you play the notes they represent at the same time.
play 2nd string open (unfretted) play 4th fret of 2nd string

frets

8 C

6 A
#

11 D
#

1 F

Example 2: Shows where to play those chords using just the A-form barre chords. Better, but still requires moving around a lot.

frets

3 C

1 A
#

6 D
#

8 F

Power Chord Versions of Barre Chords

Barre chords can be converted easily to power chords.

E-form barre chord

1 2

A-form barre chord

1

1 2

Example 3: Shows why its easier to use a combination of E- and A-form barre chords: now all the chords are close to one another on the neck, which makes them easy to play in quick succession.

3 4

3 4 5 6
play these five notes together

frets

8 C

6 A
#

6 D
#

8 F
1

becomes

becomes

E-form power chord

A-form power chord

1

The hard part about this technique is switching from E-form barre chord fingerings to A-form barre chord fingerings on the fly. It may seem impossible to do smoothly at first, but with practice youll find that it allows you to switch between certain chords far more easily than you could otherwise.

3 4

3 4

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Advantages and Limitations of Tab
Tab is much easier to learn than standard musical notation, the conventional system for writing music used by pianists, violinists, and most other musicians. Beginners can pick up tab in minutes, whereas standard notation can take months to learn. Despite that one big advantage, tab has three major limitations: No tempo: Unlike standard notation, tab doesnt indicate the duration (length) or tempo (speed) of the notes you play. That makes tab useful if you already know the basic melody or tempo of a particular song but somewhat useless if youre trying to learn a new song you dont know well. No specific fingerings: Tab doesnt show which fingers to use to play each note, which can lead you to develop incorrect fingering habits if youre a beginner. Its a play-by-numbers system: Tab shows you only where to put your fingers. As you develop as a musician, you may want to know more about how music really works and how musicians approach the compositions they play and write. To do this, youll need to learn basic music theory and how to read standard notation.

Guitar
The letter above each bar indicates the chord you need to play, while the horizontal slashes clustered together represent the number of beats for which each chord should be played. Beats, also called counts, are a way of measuring the duration of each note or chord played in a piece of music. Each slash represents one beat. The lines separating each of the four beats are called bar lines. Everything contained between two bar lines is called a bar, or measure. The two 4s stacked one atop the other at the beginning of each line indicate the progressions time signature, the number of beats per measure (in this case, four). Since this progression contains 12 bars and is most often used to play blues-rock songs, its called a 12-bar blues.

Chord Progressions in Tab

Chord progressions in tab can look confusing. This example demonstrates how all those numbers simply show a series of chords in a row, just as tab shows notes in a melody one by one.
chords =

How to Read Tablature

To play a simple melody from tablature: 1. First identify the fret and string indicated by the numbers in the tab. For example, if the first number is a 0 on the top line of the tab, play the high E string open. If the next number is a 3 on the bottom line of the tab, play the 6th string at the 3rd fret. 2. Play the notes in the order in which they appear in the tab, from left to right. The sample tab below is for one of one very famous melody: the Ode to Joy from Beethovens Symphony No. 9.
high E string (top line of tab)

T A B

T A B

T A B
low E string (bottom line of tab)

How to Play Chord Progressions

To play a chord progression, you need to count beats and strum in a particular style.

Counting Beats
You can measure out a beat by tapping your foot or by playing along to a metronome, an electronic device that emits audible beats according to the overall tempo (speed) you set.

T A B
Notice how its impossible to tell how long to play each note and which finger to use to fret each note based just on the tab. Unless you know the melody already, theres no way to tell how it should sound when played properly.

Chord Charts and Strumming Style

The strumming stylethe way you bring your finger or guitar pick across the stringshas a dramatic impact on how the progression or song youre playing will sound. Here are the three most common strumming styles, indicated by the up and down arrows: One per beat: Strum one chord per beat.
A

Chord Progressions
A chord progression is a series of chords played in a particular order. Most popular songs are composed using a simple chord progression that repeats. The melody, usually sung by the lead singer, is played over the chords as they progress from chord to chord. The first step toward playing entire songs on the guitar is to learn to play chord progressions. You can learn to play chord progressions from chord charts or from tab.

3 4

3 4

3 4

3 4

One down, one up: Strum down and then up during each beat. This technique, called double timing, makes the chord progression sound much livelier.
A

Chord Charts
Chord charts are used to map out chord progressions to make them easy to play. The chord progression that beginners tend to learn first is called a 12-bar blues and goes like this:

1 2

3 4

3 4

3 4

3 4

Bass note, then chord: Play the bass note (low note) with a pick or your thumb on the 1st and 3rd beats, then strum the chord on the 2nd and 4th beats.
A

bass bass note note strum strum

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