摇滚乐队演出时，经常会有吉他独奏环节，主唱会在一旁做出弹奏吉他的姿势，引爆全场。这样的姿势其实就是“空气吉他”表演。

Playing air guitar is a form of dance and movement in which the performer pretends to play rock or heavy metal-style electric guitar, including riffs, solos, etc. Playing an air guitar usually consists of exaggerated strumming and picking motions and is often coupled with loud singing or lip-synching.

弹奏空气吉他其实就是演奏者假装在用电吉他弹奏摇滚或重金属音乐，做出一些舞蹈和演奏动作，假装演奏部分可能是即兴重复段落或独奏。空气吉他弹奏多包含夸张的随意弹奏和拨片动作，同时伴有高声演唱或对嘴形表演。

Organized air guitar competitions are regularly held in many countries. The first on-off air guitar competitions were organized in the early 1980s in Sweden and in the United States. Since 1996 the annual Air Guitar World Championships have been a part of the Oulu Music Video Festival in Oulu, Finland.

很多国家都会定期组织举办空气吉他比赛。第一个空气吉他大赛于二十世纪八十年代初期在瑞典和美国举办。自1996年起，世界空气吉他锦标赛开始成为芬兰奥卢音乐影像节的一个部分。