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Technique · Advanced · 8 min

Three Notes a String, G Major

Pick once per string and hammer the next two, up four strings and back.

How to play it
  1. Fret 3, 5 and 7 on string 6 with fingers 1, 2 and 4. Pick the first note, hammer the other two.
  2. Repeat the pattern on strings 5, 4 and 3 (frets 4, 5, 7 on strings 4 and 3), then come back down using pull-offs.
  3. Keep every note the same volume. If the hammered notes fade, slow the tempo before adding force.

What the coach checks: Pitch of each note in order. It cannot hear whether you picked or hammered, so keep that honest yourself.

Goal100 BPM · 80% accuracy
Your bestNo result yet
Rating–

Tab player

Hear the line

eBGDAE123

Tap any number to hear it. Four clicks count you in.

100% is the goal tempo, 100 BPM. The speed presets climb from Learn to Goal about 10% at a time, and the practice slider below uses the same scale. Build a full ladder to your goal

Your practice room

Find each note

Single-note pitch feedback. Practice waits for each note; Play checks the sequence at your chosen tempo. This does not assess chord quality or fret buzz.

This checkpoint needs 100 BPM or faster and the required accuracy. Slower Play attempts still produce practice scores.

Exercise map · 23 targets
  1. 1. G2Bar 1 · beat 1 · string 6 · fret 3
  2. 2. A2Bar 1 · beat 1.5 · string 6 · fret 5
  3. 3. B2Bar 1 · beat 2 · string 6 · fret 7
  4. 4. C3Bar 1 · beat 2.5 · string 5 · fret 3
  5. 5. D3Bar 1 · beat 3 · string 5 · fret 5
  6. 6. E3Bar 1 · beat 3.5 · string 5 · fret 7
  7. 7. F♯3Bar 1 · beat 4 · string 4 · fret 4
  8. 8. G3Bar 1 · beat 4.5 · string 4 · fret 5
  9. 9. A3Bar 2 · beat 1 · string 4 · fret 7
  10. 10. B3Bar 2 · beat 1.5 · string 3 · fret 4
  11. 11. C4Bar 2 · beat 2 · string 3 · fret 5
  12. 12. D4Bar 2 · beat 2.5 · string 3 · fret 7
  13. 13. C4Bar 2 · beat 3 · string 3 · fret 5
  14. 14. B3Bar 2 · beat 3.5 · string 3 · fret 4
  15. 15. A3Bar 2 · beat 4 · string 4 · fret 7
  16. 16. G3Bar 2 · beat 4.5 · string 4 · fret 5
  17. 17. F♯3Bar 3 · beat 1 · string 4 · fret 4
  18. 18. E3Bar 3 · beat 1.5 · string 5 · fret 7
  19. 19. D3Bar 3 · beat 2 · string 5 · fret 5
  20. 20. C3Bar 3 · beat 2.5 · string 5 · fret 3
  21. 21. B2Bar 3 · beat 3 · string 6 · fret 7
  22. 22. A2Bar 3 · beat 3.5 · string 6 · fret 5
  23. 23. G2Bar 3 · beat 4 · string 6 · fret 3

Chord names and stroke directions are visual guidance. Rhythm scoring measures attack timing.

Target 1 of 23G2String 6 · fret 3

Play one note at a time.

Tune first. Audio stays on this device.

Why this drill

Three notes per string covers the neck in fast, even runs without stretching the fretting hand or picking every note. The spot to watch is the third note on each string: it is the second hammer-on or pull-off in a row, so it is where the volume tends to drop.

Common mistakes

  1. The third note on each string fades

    Fix: Hammer from just above the string with the fingertip and land right behind the fret wire. Play B on string 6 fret 7 and D on string 3 fret 7 on their own, then make the hammered version match the picked note's volume.

  2. The picked note at each string change lands early

    Fix: After two legato notes the picking hand has been idle, so it tends to jump in. Count the eighths out loud and loop one crossing, B on string 6 fret 7 into C on string 5 fret 3, until the pick lands squarely on the count.

  3. Pull-offs drag the string sideways on the way down

    Fix: Pull slightly down toward the floor so the string snaps off cleanly instead of bending sharp. Plant fingers 1 and 2 at frets 4 and 5 on string 3 before the pinky lets go of D, so C and B are already waiting.

Tempo plan

100% is the goal tempo, 100 BPM. Each rung sits about 10% above the one before it, so every step up is one you can hold. The speed presets in the player above use the same rungs.

  1. Learn 75 BPM · 75%Set the fingering: 1, 2 and 4 on every string, one pick stroke per string, and say "pick, hammer, hammer" as you go.
  2. Build 83 BPM · 83%Loop the turnaround on string 3, where the line peaks on D and starts pulling off, until the climb and the descent sound like one phrase.
  3. Push 91 BPM · 91%Switch to Play · full check here. Two clean passes in a row earn the next rung.
  4. Goal 100 BPM · 100%All 23 notes at one volume. If the hammered notes thin out, drop to Push for two passes and come back. A pass at 80% accuracy or better clears the drill.
  5. Stretch 110 BPM · 110%Run a few passes here, then return to the goal. Time above the goal makes the goal feel settled.

Build a full ladder to your goal with holds and back-off sessions, starting from the tempo you can play today.

Make it music

Three-notes-per-string runs are how rock and fusion players cover a scale at speed. Every note in this pattern belongs to G major, which shares its notes with E minor, so the same run works as a fast fill over an Em chord as well as over G.

Variation

Move the whole pattern up two frets and it becomes A major: A, B and C sharp on string 6, D, E and F sharp on string 5. Then phrase it in groups of four so the picked note lands on a different part of the beat on every string.

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