Jump to content


Please note: You can easily log in to MPN using your Facebook account!

Anyone here know how to write tab?


Recommended Posts



  • Replies 17
  • Created
  • Last Reply
Sorry, I know how to read music instead. You should too, if for no other reason than staff paper is easier to find than tab paper.

"I had to have something, and it wasn't there. I couldn't go down the street and buy it, so I built it."

 

Les Paul

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ayatollah,

I don't know what that sounds like without getting out a bass...and I still don't know the rhythm.

 

However, if it's written music, I know what it sounds like just by looking at it (as any good reader, no matter what instrument they play, would be able to do.)

 

But of course we have debated tab vs. music endlessly and will probably continue to do so, even after the sun cools down to a cold, dead star. :D

 

Good luck at finding someone to do transcriptions for you! :wave: (and of course, if you do them yourself you will learn tons and tons). ;)

 

http://home.jps.net/~jeremy/daytripper.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Originally posted by jeremyc:

http://home.jps.net/~jeremy/daytripper.jpg

Jeremy, what are all those strange markings on that sheet of paper? :D

 

I'm totally working on this MAd PhaT TaB for this one song that all goes "douh doou doou doud dou douh dou dooooh"!!! It burninates all across the land.

 

It starts something like this:

 

G---5--------------

D------10--------

A----------15------

E--------------20---

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Originally posted by Ayatollah Watts:

If so, do you take request?

Just say No ... :D

RobT

 

Famous Musical Quotes: "I would rather play Chiquita Banana and have my swimming pool than play Bach and starve" - Xavier Cugat

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm totally working on this MAd PhaT TaB for this one song that all goes "douh doou doou doud dou douh dou dooooh"!!! It burninates all across the land.

 

It starts something like this:

 

G---5--------------

D------10--------

A----------15------

E--------------20---

The next part's even harder:

 

G---1--------------

D------1-----------

A----------2------5

E--------------3---

 

Eureka!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Originally posted by Bumpcity:

I'm totally working on this MAd PhaT TaB for this one song that all goes "douh doou doou doud dou douh dou dooooh"!!! It burninates all across the land.

 

It starts something like this:

 

G---5--------------

D------10--------

A----------15------

E--------------20---

Hey, isn't that the theme song from the Tragodor video game?

 

Maury Spadoto

Hoboken, NJ

 

PS - apologies to all for the inside joke

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey Ayatollah,

 

(You're joking, right?)

 

Okay, assuming that you're not joking, here's a perspective from a novice bass player.

 

Before I learned to read music, I used tab when I was in a big hurry to play some specific song. Now that I have a rudimentary understanding of music theory and basic music-reading skills, I only occasionally have a look at tablature to see possible positions to play some piece. The cool thing is that I can play things many different ways; I'm not stuck with the tab. Also, I can now jam with friends - making up things as I go, and this is REALLY fun! If I only understood tab, I couldn't do this.

 

Learning to "play" via tab is like having someone teach you to drive by telling you which pedal to push, exactly how far to turn the steering wheel, which levers to switch, etc. - and exactly when and and how much to do each of these things. It would work, but if things go wrong or you want to drive somewhere you've never been before, you're in big trouble.

 

I'm 42 years old, I've never had any previous musical training whatsoever, and I started to play the bass only about 6 months ago. It took me about 3 months to get the basics of reading "regular" music mastered, and, although it will take me years to get really proficient at this, it was worth every minute of study.

 

I think that once one learns a little music theory, it's not very difficult to figure out lots of simple basslines. However, once someone has taken the trouble to learn the theory, they might as well use standard musical notation. The bottom line is that I don't think you'll find many (or any?) people who can transcribe something to paper and are willing to then further transcribe this to tab.

 

I could ramble on and on in a semi-coherant fashion (and perhaps already have), but I think you get my point. Use tab to learn some songs (this can help you maintain enthusiasm), but spend the majority of your time learning music. Get a book or two, a good teacher, and devote a little time to practice and study each day; it will pay off very quickly.

 

Good luck.

C.V.: Snowboarder (1983-), Bass Owner (1996-), Chemistry Teacher (1997-) & Serious Bass Student (2003-)
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Originally posted by BenLoy:

I'm totally working on this MAd PhaT TaB for this one song that all goes "douh doou doou doud dou douh dou dooooh"!!! It burninates all across the land.

 

It starts something like this:

 

G---5--------------

D------10--------

A----------15------

E--------------20---

The next part's even harder:

 

G---1--------------

D------1-----------

A----------2------5

E--------------3---

 

Eureka!

I know what you mean, man. I've been working on that bit for something like 4 weeks now.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll bet my hero and the star of my new avatar, Floyd Pepper, doesn't screw with tab. I just wish I had a pic of him with that superfly custom P-bass he played on The Muppet Show.

"I had to have something, and it wasn't there. I couldn't go down the street and buy it, so I built it."

 

Les Paul

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Never mind. Apparently Floyd is too cool to be displayed in such a way.

"I had to have something, and it wasn't there. I couldn't go down the street and buy it, so I built it."

 

Les Paul

Link to comment
Share on other sites

tab.... hmm tab.. i dunno, i can read tab and i can write tab... only when im writing tho, just because i find it quicker than writing it out on a sheet music.. otherwise i read proper music...

 

tab is simple. goto mxtabs that has shit loads of tabs and loadsa info on how to read + write it

my belief is that funk is the be all and end all..
Link to comment
Share on other sites

When I started playing I used to downloads tabs to learn songs and until about 30 seconds ago I thought that tab has its place as a rough guide to help beginner bassists learn new songs. However, I've just visited mxtabs and have realised how awful tab on its own is.

 

Over the past few years I've learnt a lot of material from Bass Player magazine which has both tab and traditional notation and although I often use the tab for the pitches (must get quicker at reading conventional notation) I need the traditional notation for the rhythms. And as without rhythm, melody and harmony do not really exist, tab on its own is extremely lacking. Looking through tabs of songs I know, I've realised that tab just doesn't tell me what's going on in the song.

 

We're bassists, the rhythm is far too important to be ignored.

 

Alex

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Originally posted by jeremyc:

One small step for a man.....one giant step for bassplayers!

G---11--------------------

D-------12----9-------8--

A------------------10------

E---------------------------

I've always wondered how tab works. Can you imagine doing that on the solo? it would be 300 pages long and you wouldn't even have a clue to the rhythm.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...