Part 1: Start with the sounds and the names · Lesson 005 / 117
One fret is one semitone
Measure a small pitch movement rather than memorising a shape.
On a normally fretted guitar, moving one fret along the same string changes the pitch by one semitone. “Half step” means the same thing. This is a distance, not a duration: the word step tells us nothing about how quickly to play.
Start on the B string at fret 1. Move to fret 2. You travelled one fret, so the pitch rose one semitone. Returning from fret 2 to fret 1 lowers it one semitone. The starting fret counts as zero distance; it is your departure point.
Play the two notes slowly enough to compare them. You do not need the second note's name yet. Being able to measure the movement is today's achievement.
This relationship works anywhere along one string. The physical gap between fret wires becomes smaller nearer the body, but each neighbouring-fret movement still represents one semitone. Measure fret steps rather than centimetres.
Hear it
Semitones
Audio fileFour-beat count-in · 60 BPM · Warm sampled electric guitar. Listen once before playing along.
A concrete example
Fret 5 to fret 6 is one semitone. Fret 5 to fret 7 is two semitones: 5→6, then 6→7. Fret 5 to fret 5 is zero movement.
Fretboard view
Tap a labelled note to hear it. High E/string 1 is at the top, matching tablature.
Use this as a note map, not a speed test. Once the relationships make sense, play them without looking.
Try it, slowly
- Play neighbouring frets on string 2.
- Repeat the same one-fret move on string 3.
- From fret 5, count three upward fret moves and stop. Check the destination rather than rushing.
Check one idea
How many semitones separate frets 5 and 8 on one string?
Show the explanation
Three: 5→6, 6→7, 7→8. Do not count the starting fret as the first movement.
A good place to stop
You can measure an upward or downward one-string move without an off-by-one error.
Return to the example after a short break. A clear explanation matters more than speed.