Bluegrass Tablature

For all you flatpickers out there who are looking to seriously start wood shedding your guitar chops, bluegrass tablature will help ensure that you have plenty of songs to practice. The Internet is rich with free guitar and bass tablature for all genres of music, and bluegrass is no exception. In fact, the resent resurgence of bluegrass music fuelled by the commercial success of the soundtrack to the 2000 film O Brother, Where Art Thou? has exposed this great music to a new generation of guitar players who are helping to support the exchange of bluegrass tablature on the World Wide Web. The following article will help you find great web resources for both guitar and bass bluegrass guitar tablature.

Jokingly referred to as "jazz music for the harmonically challenged", bluegrass is a purely American art form that combines elements of country music, ragtime, jazz, Irish reels, and English ballads. Like jazz music, bluegrass music features repeating melodic choruses interspersed with instrumental improvisation on various instruments. However, unlike jazz, bluegrass is typically structured around simple chord progressions that don't modulate. The instrumentation of bluegrass typically consists of acoustic stringed instruments like the guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin and upright bass. While a significant percentage of bluegrass music is instrumental, much of it is vocal music that combines the folksy storytelling of country music with multiple part harmonies. The result is a music that is deceptively simple, with a truly timeless sound and an honesty that appeals to all music lovers.

The following sites are great places to begin your search for bluegrass tablature. Sites that specialize in both guitar and bass tablature can be found.

• All Tabs – All Tabs has a very powerful database where musicians can search for songs by instrument, category or artist. Just set your search parameters for guitar and traditional bluegrass to see the available songs. Basic Midi files are also available so you can hear the song you are trying to play to see if you're on the right track.

• Bluegrass Guitar – If you're a bluegrass guitar picker, this is a web site you can't live without. A significant collection of classic bluegrass songs can be found here including Whiskey Before Breakfast, Wildwood Flower, Beaumont Rag, Cripple Creek and many more. The songs are published using Scorch, a tab viewing application that is available for a free download. Using Scorch gives the user some powerful viewing options and displays the tabs in a very clear, professional manner that makes them easy to read.

• 16 Tracks – The website 16 Tracks features a handful of bluegrass guitar tabs including No Mother or Dad, Old Home Place and Will the Oceans Bloom.

• Free Guitar Videos – This great site has free flatpicking guitar videos that help you with basic bluegrass rhythm, improvising and scales. The following songs are also available in instructional videos: Nine Pound Hammer, John Hardy, Old John Clark, Sally Goodin and Salt River.

• Flatpicking Tabs – Dan Geib hosts a great website that celebrates bluegrass guitar playing. He has tabs for songs like Blue is the Color, Carolina in the Pines, Bend in the River, Rose of Ole Kentucky and several more.

• Bluegrass Bass Place – This excellent site has some great instructional materials and tabs for learning how to play bluegrass bass guitar.

• Active Bass - Active bass has over 20 lessons in their bluegrass directory for bass players looking to develop their chops.

Like all folk music, bluegrass is best enjoyed when played with friends. Download a few of your favorite tunes, learn them, and then find some other bluegrass musicians to jam with. You'll quickly see how much better your playing gets when you begin playing the classics with other musicians.

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