Guitar music has it's own form of notation, called a tab, or tablature. Tabs are different from standard musical notation because they do not use staffs, ledger lines, key signatures, or notes. For this reason, acoustic guitar tabs are beneficial because they allow you to learn how to play the instrument without also having to learn to read music. Tabs may also be used as notation for other stringed instruments.



"Tabs" is short for tablature. Acoustic guitar tabs arelike a little picture of your guitar strings. The first row is the top string and the sixth row is the bottom one. On each of the rows, or lines, the numbers indicate the fret youre supposed to be playing. A 0 (zero) is used to indicate an open string, while an X indicates a muffled string.

If you're not sure what a fret is, it's the area between the metal bars on the neck, or the fingerboard of your guitar. Usually there will be somewhere between 21 to 24 frets on the acoustic guitar. The dots you see on the frets are simply a visual guide to let you see where you are.

While looking at acoustic guitar tabs, first you should note if the numbers are listed one after another on each of the lines. If they are arranged in this manner, the numbers are indicating to you which fret to use on that string, and you pluck that one string alone. On the other hand, if you notice that the numbers are stacked one on top of the other (in a vertical manner) on the individual line, the acoustic guitar tab is instructing you to play these notes simultaneously, strumming all six strings at the same time.

When researching acoustic guitar tabs you will find things like hammer-ons, pull-offs, bends and slides. The letter "h" notates hammer-ons. This might be noted on a line as 7h9. Pull-offs are noted in the same way by the letter "p". Bends are notated by "b"s and slides, "/" (slash).

When you're able to read acoustic guitar tabs, look for simple guitar tabs online. Find a melody that you recognize, and experiment with it. Though it might take a while for you to feel fully comfortable reading and playing acoustic guitar tabs, you'll feel a great sense of accomplishment when everything falls into place.

It is best that you hear the song you are trying to learn as it makes the learning easier. While you can remember how a song goes, listening to it while you practice can help you with the rhythm and detail. It can be tremendously fun to learn how to play a guitar when you utilize acoustic guitar tabs. Before you realize it, you have many songs in your repertoire that you can play at parties to impress friends, or for your sole pleasure.