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How To Read Tablature

Tab (short for tablature) is a quick way to sight read the guitar fingerboard.
Here's a quick 101 on how to read it.

-----------------The Tab Lines ---------------

There are 6 lines representing 6 strings on the guitar.
Looking at a right hand guitar as if you were holding it.
The top Line (1st String) is the skinniest string on the guitar.

E:--------------  >>> 1st string
B:--------------  >>> 2nd string
G:--------------  >>> 3rd string

Fig. 1
D:--------------  >>> 4th string
A:--------------  >>> 5th string
E:--------------  >>> 6th string

The Bottom Line (6th String) is the fattest string on the guitar.

This layout is used for all stringed instruments: Mandolin, Banjo, Bass, etc...

So here's the guitar layout:

E:-----1st string---- >>> Skinniest...highest sounding
B:-----2nd string----
G:-----3rd string----
D:-----4th string----
A:-----5th string----
E:-----6th string---- >>> Fattest...lowest sounding

----------Reading The Numbers On The Lines ---------

The numbers in or on the tab lines represent the frets where you will place your left hand fingers.

Example: 2 means the second fret. So you would press down the string just to the left of the 2nd fret bar. (See Fig.1)
A 0 (zero) would mean that you play that string open (not touching the string with your left hand).
3 means the third fret. So you would press down the string just to the left of the 3rd fret bar.

      2nd fret    open string
         ..|           .. |
E:-------2------------0---------- >>>1st String
B:-------------------------------
G:-------------3----------------- >>>3rd String
D:-------------------------------
A:-------------------------------
E:------------------------------- >>>6th String

-----------How It's Played ----------

Tablature is read from left to right. Play the notes in the order that you see them.
Here is how you would play the exercise below:

first you play the 5th string...3rd fret
then the 4th string...5th fret
then 4th string...3rd fret
then 3rd string...5th fret
then 4th string...7th fret

E:----------------------- -->1st string
B:-----------------------
G:--------------5--------
D:--------5--3-----7-----
A:-----3-----------------
E:----------------------- -->6th string

Hope this quick 101 will jump start you on your way to reading Tablature.

Below are some tablature products:

Music Sales The Tablature Writing Book This is the only music writing book specially designed for tablature. You can keep a complete record of your own songs and repertoire. Suitable for guitar, banjo, or any folk instrument.

Sibelius G7 Guitar Tab Notation Software With Sibelius G7 Guitar Tab Notation Software, you can write tab, chords, lyrics, and notation, learn songs and riffs with the on-screen fretboard even publish your music on the internet. You can play straight in from a MIDI keyboard or guitar, or write down the chords and create guitar tab instantly. You can even scan in printed sheet music. G7 makes it easy to capture your ideas almost as fast as they come to you. To learn riffs, just scan in sheet music or download from the internet. Then listen and view the interactive fretboard for fingerings. Choose any speed you like or step through a note at a time. With G7, you can also add lyrics, chord symbols, keyboards, and drums to create anything from lead sheets to complete rock scores. Once you've written a song, just save it as a Web page, ASCII tab, or MIDI file ready to email or post on the internet. You can even sell songs on the publishing site G7music.net from your dedicated Web page, free of charge.

eMedia Guitar Pro 5.1 Multitrack Tab Editor Guitar Pro 5.1 is the most powerful and intuitive tablature editor on the market. Advanced notation features add drum notation, vocal notation and tablature support for any stringed instruments with four to seven strings! You can create complete scores for a band in minutes. Guitar Pro is your total solution for creating lead sheets, scores, or lesson sheets for your students. Guitar Pro features the newest in playback technology including RSE-Realistic Sound Engine. RSE gives you real time playback of your scores with realistic sound samples taken from high quality guitars and real time effects such as wah-wah. Improved ASCII import/export and the newly enhanced speed trainer will show you why Guitar Pro is the dominant force in guitar music on the web.

Hal Leonard Standard Guitar Tablature Manuscript Paper 6 - 6-line staves on each page, 8 blank chord diagrams printed at the bottom of each page. Punched to fit ring binders. 64 pages. 8-1/2" x 11".

ProLine Bass Tab Manuscript Paper 64-page stitched book features 7 - 4-line staves on each page. 8 blank chord diagrams printed at the bottom of each page. Punched to fit all ring binders. Includes music tablature guide.