Day at the Beach
Let's take a look at what's going on in this chordal tapping excerpt and break it down into bite-size, manageable pieces.
 | All the notes are diatonic to the key of A major.
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| The progression goes from I to VIm to V.
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| The same rhythmic pattern is used throughout.
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| The same pattern between the right and left hand is used throughout. |
In essence this means that once you've mastered the first measure, the rest should fall into place rather quickly.
The right hand
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Put your thumb and index finger together like this:
Now you are ready to tackle the double-stops with improved accuracy.
In terms of note choice all the tapped right hand notes come directly from the standard F# minor pentatonic scale shape. (F# minor is the relative minor of A major and consists of the same notes.)
<insert diagram of scale at 14th fret with colored selections>
The left hand
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The left hand hammers-on! parts of standard chords.
<insert pics of A C#mi7 F#mi E chord shapes with circled selected notes>
This might feel unusual and/or uncomfortable at first, but stick to it and you'll develop the necessary strength and co-ordination.
Be careful, don't get carried away and strain your hands.
Naturally any new technique will feel strange and even uncomfortable at first. This is to be expected. However, you have to develop the skill to differentiate between uncomfortableness and pain. Pain always is a warning sign. You feel pain - you STOP playing, simple as that.
