| Since 1957 arpeggios have been gradually phased out | | | | -0---- |
| of guitar instructional material, if you are a newbie | | | | -2---- |
| guitar player you probably don't have the faintest idea | | | | -3---- |
| what I'm talking about. | | | | -x----standard version |
| However, there's a good possibility you already know | | | | C |
| how to play arpeggios, guitar players have invented all | | | | ---------0-------- |
| sorts of fancy names for their arpeggio techniques. | | | | -------1---1------ |
| If you have heard Eddie Van Halen's tapping technique, | | | | ----0--------0---- |
| or Vinne Moore's sweep picking style or maybe you | | | | -3----------------variation |
| already do some finger picking songs on acoustic | | | | C |
| guitar... if you have heard these players or play finger | | | | ------------0--------- |
| style guitar you already know what an arpeggio | | | | ----------1---1------- |
| sounds like! | | | | -------0]--------0---- |
| O.K., you know the sound but what exactly are | | | | ----[2---------------- |
| arpeggios and how can they help you improve your | | | | -3-------------------- |
| technique and ear? Arpeggios are simply the musical | | | | D |
| word musicians use for 'broken chords 'i.e., notes of a | | | | -2---- |
| chord played separately as opposed to all of the | | | | -3---- |
| notes being played at once. | | | | -2---- |
| Compare the normal way of playing a chord on the | | | | -0---- |
| guitar whereby your strumming hand action is similar to | | | | -x---- |
| that of flicking water off the back of your hand. | | | | -x----standard version |
| Whereas, if you played the same chord only this time | | | | D |
| taking your time across the strings so each note had | | | | ---------2-------- |
| time to sound (and have impact on your ear), the | | | | -------3---3------ |
| audible effect would be similar to putting a piece of | | | | ----2--------2---- |
| paper in the spokes of a bicycle wheel. | | | | -0----------------variation |
| Since wind instruments like the saxophone, clarinet and | | | | D |
| flute can only play one note at a time the students | | | | ------------2-------- |
| learn to 'hear' chords by playing arpeggios. | | | | ---------3----3------ |
| Here's a simple way to improve your guitar technique | | | | ------2]---------2--- |
| and develop your ear's ability to hear inside a chord. | | | | -0-[0---------------- |
| House Of The Rising Sun - song study | | | | F |
| Am | C | D | F | | | | | -1---- |
| Am | C | E7 | E7 | | | | | -1---- |
| Am | C | D | F | | | | | -2---- |
| Am | E7 | Am | E7 | | | | | -3---- |
| The House Of The Rising Sun is in 6/8 time, which | | | | -x---- |
| means six eighth notes to each bar, guitarists have | | | | -x----standard version |
| found an neat way to add interest to slow songs in 6 | | | | F |
| 8 by playing seven notes to the bar; the way this | | | | ---------1-------- |
| works is the second and third notes are played twice | | | | -------1---1------ |
| as fast as the other notes (these notes are | | | | ----2--------2---- |
| calledsixteenth notes), like this... | | | | --3---------------variation |
| Standard 6/8 time = 1 2 3 4 5 6 = 1 bar; notice how all | | | | F |
| the notes are evenly spaced. | | | | --------------1------- |
| 6/8 variation = 1 [2 3] 4 5 6 7; notes in [ ] as played | | | | -----------1-----1---- |
| twice as fast as the other notes. | | | | -------2]----------2-- |
| Try playing an Am chord both ways. | | | | -3--[3---------------- |
| Am | | | | E7 |
| -0---- | | | | -0---- |
| -1---- | | | | -0---- |
| -2---- | | | | -1---- |
| -2---- | | | | -0---- |
| -0---- | | | | -2---- |
| -x---standard version | | | | -0----standard version |
| Am | | | | E7 |
| ---------0-------- | | | | ----------0-------- |
| -------1---1------ | | | | -------0----0------ |
| ----2--------2---- | | | | ----1---------1---- |
| -0----------------variation | | | | -0-----------------variation |
| Am | | | | E7 |
| ------------0--------- | | | | -------------0-------- |
| ----------1---1------- | | | | ----------0-----0----- |
| -------2]--------2---- | | | | ------1]-----------1-- |
| ----[2---------------- | | | | ---[0----------------- |
| -0-------------------- | | | | -0-------------------- |
| C | | | | Try out these new ways of playing arpeggios next |
| -0---- | | | | time you practice the guitar. |
| -1---- | | | | |