Notes on the Fifth String
A Note
To play the note A, pick the open 5th string.
B Note
Play the note B with the second finger of your left hand just behind the second fret of the 5th string.
C Note
Play the note C with the third finger of your left hand just behind the third fret of the 5th string.
Ledger Lines
A short line placed beneath the staff is called a Ledger Line.
This example makes use of the notes A, B and C on the fifth string. It begins the same as the previous example but moves between different octaves of the A note instead of D. As before, name the notes out loud until you are totally comfortable with them.
Notice how the low notes alternate with the higher octave of the A note in bars 3 and 4. The 2nd finger should remain on the high A note throughout these two bars, while the notes B and C are played by the 1st and 3rd fingers. Take care with the picking in these bars also. The low notes are all downstrokes, while the high A notes are all upstrokes.
