Today your fretting hand learns to speak for itself, friend. One pick stroke, two notes. The little 'h' in your tab has been waiting for this.
A hammer-on goes like this: pick a note, and while it still rings, snap another fingertip down onto a higher fret. The string keeps sounding, now at the new pitch. No second pick stroke. The ringing string does most of the work, which is why it's the gentlest intro to lead guitar there is.
🔑 KEY IDEA
Fast, not hard
On the thin E string, mid-neck:
- 1Put your index finger on the 5th fret and pick the note.
- 2While it rings, snap your ring finger down on the 7th fret, fingertip, close behind the fret wire.
- 3Keep BOTH fingers pressed down. The index is the anchor; lift it early and the note dies.
- 4Aim for the hammered note to ring as loud as the picked one. That's the whole exercise.
Three placement details carry most of the volume. Land on the very tip of the finger, not the pad. Land close behind the fret wire, where the least force is needed. And strike from close to the string with no big windup; the snap comes from the finger's base knuckle, quick and small, like knocking on a door you're not angry at.
Picking every note gives you a row of separate attacks; hammer-ons pour notes into each other with nothing between. That smooth, connected sound is what players call legato, and it's the texture of nearly every guitar melody that ever made you feel something. This is also half of a matched pair: the hammer-on climbs up, and its mirror twin, the pull-off, climbs back down. Learn them together and lines flow both directions.
🔥 PRO TIP
Sore fingertips, quiet acoustics
The first time that second note rings without the pick, it feels like a magic trick you performed on yourself. Small win, friend. They stack.
Your turn ⭐
Hammer time
Question 1 of 3
In tab, what does '5h7' tell you to do?
The cheat sheet
- Pick once; the fretting finger's fast snap sounds the second note.
- Fast, not hard. Fingertip, close behind the fret, no windup.
- The first finger stays planted. It anchors the ringing note the hammer feeds on.
- Target: hammered note as loud as the picked one. Slow reps, even volume.
Common questions
Do I pick the second note too?
No, and that's the entire point. The 'h' means the fretting hand sounds the second note by itself while the string still rings from the first pick. If you're picking both, you're playing two notes, not a hammer-on.
Why is this harder on my acoustic?
Heavier strings and usually higher action mean the string needs more energy to keep speaking, so acoustic hammer-ons run quieter and less forgiving. Your technique isn't broken. Practice the same drill, expect a softer result, and if it's hard everywhere on the neck, have the setup checked.
Which fingers should I practice with?
Start index-to-ring, the strongest pair. Then rotate: index-middle, middle-pinky, index-pinky. The weak pairs feel clumsy for everyone and improve on reps, not on willpower. A few slow minutes per pair beats an hour of your favorite one.