The people behind this site are musicians — and out of our love for playing came the wish to bring musicians together. We built this place to put the most capable tools we could into the hands of the community: tools that encourage, support, and accompany your playing at every stage and every level. The practice tools are free for everyone, with no paywall and no sign-up — that is site policy, in the belief that music should be within everyone's reach.
We respect musicians and artists, and we are proud to support their work. To support artists is to support rock 'n' roll — and to help ensure that music never dies. Songs are how artists express themselves, but they are also how artists make a living: they earn through downloads, streaming, radio play, and use in video games, films, and television.
One of the oldest ways to license a song is, of all things, sheet music. Long before apps, the internet, CDs, records, and radio — even before there was a piano in every home — music lovers bought the sheet music of their favourite songs so they could play them themselves. More than a hundred years on, written music remains a beloved way to learn and to play; and alongside tab sites and apps, musicians have found yet another way to reach the songs they love.
The songs you can search and browse here are a new source of licensing revenue for artists. From an artist's point of view, viewing a tab is no different from hearing the song on the radio, in a film, on television, or in a video game — and so it is only fair that creators be compensated for this relatively new use of their work. It is a commitment we take seriously.
This is a commercial site, and we would rather say so plainly. Servers, licensing and translation cost money, and that money comes from two openly stated sources: advertising shown on some pages, and donations from users who choose to support the site. It does not come from charging for the tools, which stay open to anyone who arrives. We go into it at length in why the tools here are free, including what a donation does and does not buy.
We believe all of this will carry the community of music lovers to higher ground — and we are glad to contribute our humble part to the journey. Thank you for playing with us.