How To Read The Guitar Tab For Beginners: A Step-By-Step Guide

The Guitar tab is a super-fun way of learning songs without reading traditional sheets. But what are the Guitar tabs, and how do they help beginners? If you are wondering how to understand these lines and numbers, this guide will break it down for you step by step.

Towards the end you will have a solid understanding of Guitar strings name, Guitar Keys, Guitar string notes, and how to play songs easily using the Guitar Tabs. Ready? so Buckle up, put on your learning hat, grab a pen, paper and your Guitar and let’s get started!

What are guitar tabs and why are they important?

For beginners, the Guitar tab (or Tableau) offers an easy way to play songs without having to read the music sheets or commonly known as staff notation. Unlike the traditional way of reading music sheets, which use symbols and characters, the Guitar tabs for beginners  show Guitar string names with numbers to make playing super easy and fun.

The best part? Even if you do not know how to read music, you can still pick up your Guitar and start playing with the tab!

How does guitar tabs work?

Before we start and explain to you on how to read tabs, we want you to memorise the name of all the Guitar strings. Starting from the 1st to 6th string- e, B, G, D, A, E. Understanding Guitar string names allows you to tune your instrument, play with accuracy and examine Guitar tabs for beginners easily.

Further, if you play together with other musicians, understanding the string names and positions allows you to speak efficiently and follow commands.

Guitar tab basic understanding

Before we jump into your favourite easy Guitar song tabs, let’s first understand how tabs work. A Guitar tab consists of six horizontal lines representing six strings of the Guitar. The number on these lines tells you where to place your fingers on the fretboard.

Each line in a Guitar tab matches a Guitar string name:

e – 1st string (thin)

B – 2nd string

G – 3rd string

D – 4th string

A – 5th string

E  – 6th string (thick)

A number represents the fret you are supposed to press and play on that particular string. A “0” means an open string (when you only play the string without pressing any fret) while “3” means pressing the third fret.

Plays from left to right – Tabs are read as a book, for the sequence to the song moves from left to right, just like how you are reading this blog.

Guitar string name and number

Are you often confused about the name and number of the Guitar strings? 

A rookie’s problem every Guitar beginner faces, remembering Guitar string names can help you read the tab faster. Here’s an easy way to remember Guitar 6 string names:

Every Boy Girl Demands Apple Everyday (e-B-G-D-A-E)

This simple trick helps you to remember the Guitar wire name and their sequence. You can make up any phrase that you like which can help you remember the Guitar string’s name easily.

Why is this important? Knowing Guitar string names helps you learn your Guitar properly, understand the string positions and read the tab without confusion.

Guitar keys and notes: what do they mean?

Each song follows a certain Guitar key and notes, which determines the scale and the chords. As a beginner Guitarist, you should start with simple music notes such as C, G and D, as they appear in most songs.

How to find guitar key notes?

Each song is in a key, which means it is a set of specific notes. The most common Guitar keys for beginners are:

C Major (C – D – E -F – G – A – B)

G Major (G – A – B – C – D – E -F#)

D Major (D – E -F# – G – A – B – C#)

When you recognise the key to a song, it becomes very easy to play using a tab or chord, because then you know which notes/chords to play and which to avoid.

General symbols in the guitar tab

In addition to numbers, the Guitar tabs use symbols to represent different techniques. Let’s learn some symbols often used by musicians: 

H- hammer-on

P- pull-off

/  – slip up/ down

B – swing

X – mute note

Advanced guitar tab symbols

Tr – Trill (a rapid hammer-on and pull-off combination)

PM – Palm Muting

v – Vibrato

T – Tapping

Using these techniques in the easy Guitar song category can help make your game more expressive.

While playing Guitar tabs for beginners, always be aware of the rhythm and mobility. Many beginners focus only on nailing the right frets, but the music is all about expression! Try to play with different intensity levels, add dynamics in your playing and adjust your choice and emphasize notes to bring the song into life.

Are you still wondering how to master the first Guitar song and read the Guitar tabs fluently? Here are some top tips:

Start slowly – Start with simple Guitar tab songs before going to complex songs.

Use a Metronome – It helps maintain rhythm while playing.

Break it – If a tab looks very difficult, focus on a paragraph at a time.

Watch videos for training – Visual guides help you understand time and finger placement better.

Playing with songs – practicing with real songs improves time and accuracy.

Record yourself – listening to recordings help you identify areas of improvement.

Maybe before playing Guitar tabs for any songs start with the scales, as they are much easier to play and learn and you can use scales to get familiar with reading tabs. After that, you can move on to songs with easy melodies and which do not use a lot of notes or else it can be rather difficult to learn in the beginning.

Start with One Octave – Practice the scale inside a single octave before expanding it. 

Use Alternate Picking – Helps in speed and performance.

Play with a Backing Track – Helps broaden your timing and improvisation competencies. 

Incorporate Hammer-ons and Pull-offs – Adds smoothness to your gambling.

Expanding your guitar skills

Once you get good at reading Guitar tabs, start exploring unique and new playing techniques. Strumming, Finger picking, Palm muting, Legato and Economy picking are some of the critical competencies in order to enhance your playing. 

• Exploring different Guitar technique
• Strumming Patterns: Develop rhythmic accuracy and smooth transitions between chords. 
• Finger Picking: Helps create melodic depth, often used in folk and classical music.
• Palm Muting: Adds a percussive impact and enables manipulation of dynamics.
• Legato Playing: Makes playing smoother by connecting notes seamlessly.

The more strategies you contain, the richer your Guitar playing becomes.                                          

Bonus: best easy guitar song for beginners

Do you want to test the Guitar tab for your reading skills? Here are some super-viable Guitar song tabs that you can try today.

• Smoke on the water – Deep Purple
• Wonderwall – Oasis
• Knocking on Heaven’s Door – Bob Dylan
• Perfect – Ed Sheeran
• Sweet child o ‘mine – Guns n’ rose
• Let It Be – The Beatles
• Hey Jude – The Beatles
• Nothing Else Matters – Metallica

These songs are beginner-friendly and are great to practice the Guitar staff notation and Guitar music notes.

Conclusion

It is easy for beginners to read the Guitar tab as much as you think! With the right exercise and knowledge of Guitar string names, Guitar keys and Guitar string notes, you will play your favourite songs in no time. The more time you spend in practice, the more natural you will feel, and soon you will be able to learn new songs just by looking at the tabs.

Remember that learning Guitar is a journey. It is important to enjoy the process instead of just focusing on speed or complexity. Take a break, celebrate a little winning and challenge yourself with new songs. Whether you play for fun or aim to be a professional musician, the Guitar tab is an invaluable tool to help you along the way.

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Related Blog: Fingerstyle Guitar