Basic Technique

• Two-handed tapping involves using the fingers of both hands to fret and sound notes by pushing them hard or tapping them against the fingerboard. The simplest execution of a typical two-handed tapping lick is the triad: tap the G string with the index finger of the right hand at the 12th fret. As you pull the right finger off the 12th fret, pluck the string that you will be holding down at the fifth fret with the index finger of your left hand. Finally, hammer onto the eighth fret with the third finger of your left hand. With practice, you can build up speed and dexterity that will enable you to use this technique all over the fret board.
  
  

History of Tapping

• The technique has its origins in Turkish folk music, although early 20th century exponents of the banjo, ukulele and guitar used the technique as a novelty to entertain audiences. An early pioneer of the technique was ukulele master Roy Smeck -- the Wizard of the Strings -- who appeared in many 1930s films showing off his remarkable technique. Jimmy Webster used it to great effect in the 1950s and produced the first instruction book on tapping. In the contemporary world of classic rock music, Ritchie Blackmore refers to Harvey Mandel as one of the early innovators of the technique in the late 1960s. However, it was Eddie Van Halen who popularized tapping when he burst onto the rock scene.
  
  

Advanced Tapping

• Two-handed tapping has become synonymous with virtuoso rock performances. Many notable players since Van Halen have pushed the technique to extremes. It seems that no heavy metal guitar solo is complete these days without a fast tapped segment. Away from the rock world, two-handed tapping has become highly sophisticated, with several players using all their fingers on both hands to tap out the chords of rhythm parts with their left hand, and melody lines or percussive accompaniments with their right hand. The effect is to make one guitar sound like a whole orchestra.
  
  

Influential Two-Handed Tapping Masters

• Beyond Van Halen, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and Paul Gilbert are masters of the two-handed tapping technique in the rock world. Jazz musician Stanley Jordon has a remarkable technique that uses all the fingers on both hands. One of his most extraordinary pieces is a beautiful arrangement of the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby." Of the current crop of two-handed masters, though, Preston Reed is notable for his combination of tapping and percussive rhythm.