Guitar Tablature: Learn To Play Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
With Guitar Tab
Even if you haven't played guitar tablature before you can
impress or maybe shock your friends by playing Twinkle, Twinkle,
Little Star. Let's start playing guitar tab!
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star is a popular English nursery rhyme
with the French melody Ah! Vous dirais-je, Maman. You can play
this song on the first three strings on the guitar.
The text is from a poem, "The Star", by Jane Taylor. It was
first published in 1806. Here you have the English lyrics:
Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are! Up
above the world so high, Like a diamond in the sky. Twinkle,
twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are!
We will use guitar tablature so you will not need to read sheet
music. You will only use the thinnest strings on the guitar. The
string with the highest pitch is called the first string or
E-string. Look at the following guitar tab:
1. 0-0-0-0----------------- 2. --------1-1-1-1--------- 3.
----------------2-2-2-2-
This is a tablature staff and the four number 0 indicate that
you play the first string four times without pressing down any
finger on your right hand. This is called to play on an open
string.
The four number 1 coming after is played on the second string
pressing down your first finger on the first fret. Then you will
play the third string four times pressing down the string on the
second fret. This is what the previous guitar tablature notation
is telling you.
Let's play the first notes of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star with
guitar tablature:
1. ------------0--0-------------------------- 2.
------3--3-------3----1--1--0--0---------- 3.
0--0-----------------------------2--2--0--
If you want to use your left hand in a professional way you can
play the guitar tab notes on the first fret with your first
finger, notes on the second fret with your middle finger and the
notes on the third fret with your ring finger.
Now it's only one guitar tablature part left:
1. 3--3--1--1--0--0----- 2. ------------------3-- 3.
---------------------
After having played this part twice, go back and play the first
guitar tablature part and the melody is complete.
Now when you understand guitar tablature notation you can find
many songs written this way on the internet. Search for guitar
tab or guitar tablature. A complete guitar tablature staff has
six lines representing the six strings.
If you have an ukulele hanging somewhere you can use the
previous tablature too. The first three strings on an ukulele is
tuned the same way as on the guitar.
Just one more thing for you to do. Play the song for your
friends! Good luck!