There are several different ways of doing tabs so this may not be the same everywhere. Generally there are positive and negative numbers. The negative numbers represent a draw (suck in) on a particular hole and a positive number represents a blow into a particular hole. Those are standard pretty much everywhere. The thing I see different, depending on who does the tab, is what a bend looks like. When I do a bend I use the ~ sign. I use one ~ to represent how far you need to bend each note.



Post Edited (11-29-04 18:09)

The plus and minus signs make sence. most of the tabs I have seen just use the minus sign like this -4 for a draw note and nothing like this 4 foe a blow note.

Using the ~ sign for a bend note could becom confusing (at least to me) as it looks very much like a minus sign ~ - Would it not be better to use something like say this 4) or 4> JMO

That is a very good point. I never thought about that. I picked up using the ~ sign a while ago from a tab website I use to go to. It would be nice if there was some sort of Tab standard that everyone would agree to use so things are easier on the new players.

Hi,
Yes, I agree, cause I'm a beginner and I know what it is to try to read different sort of tabs when you don't know it
LOL
I think 4) or 4> would be good ideas for "bending"...
You can use {4} or 4/ too...
I think that the signs should be fast for the writer to write, and easy for the reader to read...
Milamber

I avoid specialsigns.
Plain numbers are blown, like 4 5 6
To draw i make it -4 -5 -6
To bend I write -4B
And if needed I put a short explanation down under the tab..
One example if you are to play in more than one hole..
Then I write like this:
(456) or (-4-5-6)
So I do what I can to make it as understandable as possible.

I have to agree with Jamtharp's system. Its easy to read, easy to write, and most of all easy to understand.

Blow Notes= plane numbers 4 6 4
Draw Notes= numbers with the minus sign. -4 -6 -4
Bend Notes= -4B -3BB (one B= ½ bend, two BB = full bend)
Cord Notes= (456)

For Chromatics= Nothing is the button out, > is the button in.

Any other signs one wants to use to show other things like the "wah-wah ~ should be kept to ones personal tabbing.

Just my opinion.....................

Jamthart's system looks the easiest to understand to me, as ever only my opinion(I don't know that much)

Yes I agree Jamtharp does seem to have the best method.

When reading Chromatic tabs a < means press the button.

<-3 means hold the button and draw on the 3 hole.

I've been using the above examples in all my tabs and they work just fine but now I need something different.

How would I tab a warble? Play a note and moving your right hand back and forth to warble the sound of the note.

How about adding a "w" to the tab?

6 -5 -4b -4w 4 3 -3dw -3w 3

Does that make sense?

I would suggest that if you do something different, first place a discription on the top of the tab so that the reader can understand it.

I was thinking about that also.

Just something else to add to the "Submit new tab" feature. Some basic instructions at the top on how best to write a tab. We already have the basics but stuff like this can always be added later.

Some people write tabs a differently than you and I do. Their method is not better or worse than ours, but if they do anything that is not immediately understandable I hope that they include a little bit of a description so that we all understand them.

That's the easy way, what I'm still confused on is how to read the sheet music. I can read sheet music with A,B,C,D,E,F, and G, but where the heck do you put 1-10?! THEN where do you put 1-10 with DRAWS?!?!

Jasonasauraus wrote:

> That's the easy way, what I'm still confused on is how to read
> the sheet music. I can read sheet music with A,B,C,D,E,F, and
> G, but where the heck do you put 1-10?! THEN where do you put
> 1-10 with DRAWS?!?!

That's not quite as complicated as you might think. You just have to know which notes are played when you blow each hole. To help you with that, you can use either this harp layout ([www.harptabs.com]) or these tab rulers ([www.harmonicacountry.com] & [www.harmonicacountry.com]).

(I haven't forgotten that I said I'd make some other rulers for here, but life has been getting in the way of quite a bit lately.)

Hopefully that will help.

I too like Jamtharp's B and BB for bends. I also see no problems with using W for warbbles.

The more uniform and uncomplicated a 'language' becomes the more beneficial it is to all.

For those who might not know it the ~ symbol is called a tilde. I have no idea why... Something I learned in another life as a programmer.

And I also have not yet mastered the art of bending. More like squeaking. But it's getting better.

Jim

As we used to say in the Boy Scouts, KISS....Keep It Simple Stupid. When things become more complicated it makes it easier for them to be messed up or for something to go wrong. Keep working on those bends startingat53 you will get them soon, it sounds like you are almost there.

Hello all,

I am about as new as one can be with a harp, so bare with me.

I'm having trouble with a sign I saw on a tab off this page. The song was Sitting on The Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding, I can't remember who submitted the tab for it though. The author uses a / and sometimes a // in this song. I believe it was rated for beginners, so it couldn't be bending could it? Any ideas?

K!LOS

Yes, 1/ is a single bend and 2// is a double.

I use lower-case b's for flats. If it's a half-tone lower, I use one "b"; a whole
tone lower, it's two "b's". I do the same thing for sharps (#).
I might have to place this in a new topic, but all songs can be played in all
keys. I had questions about that. Would a tab in G work out in C or Eb?

A topic on transposing the lettered notes, could be discussed, may it?