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→Power Chords and Riffs
The "x"s are <u>muted strums</u>. This means to mute the strings by lightly pressing against them with your left-hand fingers and pluck the strings with your right hand. This creates a percussive, (basically) pitch-less sound, which is useful for filling time between notes. Now you are strumming on every half-beat (eighth note), which means there's less need to count and try to time your playing between beats. Now it should be easy to play the tab and discover the song.
Many rock songs are based around a small , repeating part called a "<u>riff"</u>, like the one above. Riffs may incorporate some harmonychords or intervals, but are generally single notes or power chords. Sometimes a chord is thrown in or some different intervals, but their main Their function is both melodicand harmonic. They usually have limited melodic movement, not harmonicand the notes chosen can outline a certain harmony. The Also, the interaction of the riff with some other instrument(s) may create a more harmonic effect. They tend to repeat every 1, 2, or 4 measures. They can take focus as the lead part or serve as accompaniment for a melody or solo. Often they shift in and out of focus with a vocal melody. That's exactly what happens here. That's one of the reasons they are so successful and a primary usage of guitar in rock music - it creates a point-counterpoint interplay between instruments, which also creates harmony that feels less rigid and more subtle than simply strumming chords. And they're generally quite fun to play.
Riffs tend to repeat every 1, 2, or 4 measures. They can take focus as the lead part or serve as accompaniment for a melody or solo. Often they shift in and out of focus with a vocal melody. That's exactly what happens here. That's one of the reasons they are so successful and a primary usage of guitar in rock music - it creates a point-counterpoint interplay between instruments, which also creates harmony that feels less rigid and more subtle than simply strumming chords. And they're quite fun to play. There's something new in the tab above you may not have initially noticed. The double dots right after the bar that begins the first measure and before the final bar of the last measure. This That's a <u>repeat symbol</u> and indicates to ...repeat. When reading music, you ignore the initial "|:" and play until you hit the ":|". That means go back to the "|:" and repeat that part. Notice the "x3" above the tab. This means repeat 3 additional times (so 4 total). If there is no indication of how many times to repeat, it implies a single repeat.
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