The guitar tabs

WHAT IS A GUITAR TABLATURE?

A tablature is a special musical notation form which only reflects the position in which we should press to interpret a particular piece in a specified instrument, and not the heights nor the durations of the notes.

As we have said before the tablatures only indicate the position necessary to produce each note or chord in a particular instrument, not indicating the note in question, therefore the tablature only serves for the instrument for which they have been written. Another advantage of the tablature is that in the transcribed pieces with changes in the tuning of the strings it is not necessary to learn to read and to interpret the modification.

Partitura tradicional.
Tradicional music sheet.

This simplicity of tablature and the fact that they are easy to transcribe and copy have converted it in the most system used through the Internet. On the Internet is common to find tabs with the tab name.

The tablature only serves for the instrument for which they have been written.

The origin of the tabs may be traced back to the Renaissance since lute music at that time was written by this mechanism. The tablature has always been related to the popular music and to the folklore due to its simplicity while being interpreted.

Foto Laúd
Lute.

The composition of a tablature consists of horizontal lines representing the strings of the instrument, and on these lines (strings) numbers and symbols that indicate the position where we should press, the fret in the case of the guitar.

The tablature has always been related to the popular music and to the folklore due to its simplicity while being interpreted.

The composition of a tab is basically this, for example:

E | ———————– 3 —– 7 —————— ———
B | 8 ————— 0-1 —— 1-1 —– 5 ——– 8–7-5 -7 —-
G | -5 —- 7 ————- 2 —– 2 ———- 5 ———- (I.e.
D | —- 9 —- 7-9 —- 2 ——————————- (I.e.
A | 7 —- 10 ——– 0 ———– 0 ——————— ——-
E | -5 —- 7 ———————————– 8-7 — ———