Hammer-ons & Pull-offs
h, p, / and \ — notes you never pick.
In a tab, 2h4 is a hammer-on, 4p2 a pull-off and 4/7 a slide: three ways to sound a note without picking it. They make lines smoother and faster, and this lesson plays them in G major pentatonic, G A B D E.
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Pick once, play two notes
A h between two frets is a hammer-on: pick the first note, then bring a finger down hard on the second. A p is a pull-off: both fingers down, pick, and flick the top finger off so the lower note rings. Some tabs just draw an arc over the notes — same thing, called legato.
- h = hammer-on, always to a higher fret.
- p = pull-off, always to a lower fret.
- An arc over two notes means the same: only the first is picked.
Slides: / up, \ down
A / is a slide up and a \ a slide down: 4/7 means play the 4th fret and slide to the 7th without lifting. On the G string that is 2h4 (A to B), 4p2 (B to A) and 4/7 (B to D) — all notes of G major pentatonic, so every one of them sounds right.
- / = slide up, \ = slide down; s also means slide.
- Keep pressure on the string while you slide.
- A slide with no start fret means slide in from a few frets away.
Even volume is the goal
The test of good legato is that the hammered note is as loud as the picked one. Practice slowly with a metronome and listen for the second note dropping out. In More Than Modes a Guitar Pro tab plays its hammer-ons, pull-offs and slides on the fretboard, so you can hear how the line is supposed to flow.
- Hammer from close to the fret, not from high above.
- Pull off slightly downward, like a small pluck.
- If the second note is quieter, slow down.
h, p, / and \ are notes you play with the fretting hand. Make them as loud as the picked ones and your lines start to flow.
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