Finger tapping. A technique of playing the guitar all its own. Since the Eddie Van Halen era, it’s really grown into one of those guitar techniques that every rock guitarist wants in their arsenal. The concept comes from treating each string of the guitar like a piano keyboard — using both hands on the fretboard to create fast, fluid lines that would be impossible with traditional picking alone.

The Famous Three-Note Move

The most famous finger tapping move is Eddie Van Halen’s triad from the A minor chord: A at the 5th fret, C at the 8th fret, and E at the 12th fret. That’s his signature sound right there. The motion is tap, pull off, pull off, ring. Tap the 12th fret with your picking hand, pull off to 8th fret, pull off to 5th fret, let it ring. E, C, A.

Here’s the key detail: while you’re holding down the 5th fret with your first finger and tapping at the 12th, your pinky needs to go down on the 8th fret so that when you pull off from the tap, you catch the next note in the sequence. The timing between those two hands is everything. For a related lesson, check out muting techniques.

By the way — this guitar is tuned to E flat in the video. Most of Eddie Van Halen’s stuff was in E flat. You can do this in any tuning, though. This pairs well with arpeggios if you want to expand your technique toolkit.

About “Eruption”

Here’s something interesting I found out from reading Eddie’s interviews: “Eruption” was never intended to be a song. It was just a scale warm-up. He never played it the same way twice. Ted Templeman, his producer, happened to capture it one time and put it on the record. So that legendary piece of guitar playing? Just a warm-up. That tells you something about the level Eddie was operating at.

Crossing Strings With the Pentatonic Scale

Once you’ve got that basic three-note move, the next step is learning to cross strings. Relate the tapping pattern to a pentatonic minor scale and you can move the concept across all six strings. This is where it starts sounding like real music instead of just one repeated lick.

As you cross strings, you’ll notice the timing feels different on the thicker strings. The lower strings require a bit more force and the response is slower, so start on the first string where it’s easiest and work your way down. You can also move the whole pattern up in scale — if you start with A, C, and E, try moving the tapped note up to F (the next note in the scale), then G, then higher. You’re using that A and C minor third as your base and creating different chord variations by changing the tapped note.

Pick Management and Muting

What do you do with your pick while you’re tapping? Most players tuck it between the second finger and palm. That way your index finger is free for tapping and the pick stays accessible when you need it. Some guys use their second finger to tap instead, but if you’ve got nails on that finger, it doesn’t work as well.

Eddie Van Halen actually played with his pick between his second finger and thumb, which left his first finger always ready for tapping. That’s one reason his transitions in and out of tapping were so seamless.

For muting the unwanted strings, use your right hand palm or forearm to rest against the strings you’re not playing. Some players use a hair scrunchie around the neck — slide it behind the nut when you’re tapping up high, and it dampens everything you’re not fretting. I’ve never done that personally, but it’s a legitimate technique and a lot of modern players swear by it.

Moving It Around the Fretboard

Everything you can do on the first string, you can do on the sixth string. And anything you play in one key, you can shift to any other position. That A minor tapping pattern? Move the whole thing down and you’ve got G. Slide it up and you’re in B. The shapes stay the same — only the position changes.

Tapping is all about the timing and making the notes clear. Be patient with it. Once those pull-offs and taps are even and confident, the speed comes on its own.