What is Tablature?

TAB, also known as tablature, is probably the most common way of writing out music that is written for the guitar. It is different from normal classical music notation in that it uses ordinary numbers and keyboard characters instead of standard music notation which uses a combination of symbols. The best thing about this format for guitarists is that anyone with a computer can write or read TAB making it a very user friendly way of reading and communicating guitar music. This is especially helpful when sending music information across the internet because it can be easily shared with no special software requirements. Learning to play guitar tab is also much simpler than trying to read classical music for the guitar because it is directly related to the fret board of your guitar. This means you can easily see where to place your fingers on the fret board. It is important to at least understand and be able to read classical music notation when needed. However, most things can be done using tablature as long as it is readily available for the song that you are working on. Tablature is easily learned with just a few short minutes of reading. TAB does have some weaknesses.For one thing, rhythm is not easily indicated with guitar tab. The rhythm can, however, be indicated using strum indicators.

Alright, when you learn to play guitar tab you should first take a look at the guitar. You should clearly see that it has six strings going from thickest to thinnest. On a TAB diagram, the thinnest string (or 1st string as its most commonly called) is at the top - the thickest (or 6th string) is located at the bottom. This is shown in the diagram below.This diagram shows you how tablature is related to the guitar fret board: