Learn to Read Tab for Mandolin
Mandolin tablature is written on a four-line staff as shown below:
Each of these lines represent a pair of strings on the mandolin. The bottom line represents the G string. The top line is the E strings. The image below shows each of the lines labeled with the string that corresponds to each line:
Numbers are placed on the lines to indicate a fret. A '0' indicates that the open string should be played.
Any numbers that are stacked indicate that the notes should be played at the same time. For example, the tab below shows an open G major chord:
