Jazz Guitarist, Publisher and Music Educator
Jazz Guitar Arpeggios
Arpeggios are an important resource for guitarists of any style, background or experience level. Not only will a solid knowledge of arpeggios allow you to improvise over every chord change, but they will also open up your neck and make it easy for you to visualize notes, chords and changes over the entire fretboard.
Arpeggios are basically the notes of a given chord, but instead of being plucked or strummed all at the same time, we simply play each note, one at a time, in order from the lowest to the highest. So in this case, we play the Root, then the 3rd, then 5th and finally the 7th of each chord. If we want to play a longer arpeggio, we just start on the next highest root and repeat the process.
There are a number of different fingerings for any arpeggios, and in the examples below I have included 3 different lengths, one, two and three octave, as well as three different positions, starting on the index finger, middle finger and pinky finger of the fretting hand.
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Jazz Guitar Arpeggio Fingerings
3 Responses to "Jazz Guitar Arpeggios"
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Hi Mark, I just found your site and this is what I’ve been studying for a while, but haven’t wrote out the octave or two octave patterns. I want to go further and understand what is the next step. Do you have the next arp patterns written out for guitar as far as where I should go from here. I really am having a hard time understanding where I should go next. I know of superimposing these over chords when with a band, but I am a solo musician and am not in a band. I would like to make the most out of my music without a band and be able to write. I don’t ever comment on websites or ask for help, but for the inquisitive guitarist if you are listening this IS the way to apply this to guitar as Mark has done. The best website I’ve found yet. Simple a gold mine. Thank you Mark
Sorry about that MATT thank’s again Chris
I hope my words express more than my lack of attention of your name.
Hey Chris,
no worries on the name! As far as what to do next, have you checked out extended arpeggios, up to the 13th? Or 3 to 9 arpeggios? Those would be two good options to look at next in your practicing. Check out these links for more info on those two techniques.
http://www.mattwarnockguitar.com/building-bebop-vocabulary-3-to-9-arpeggios
http://www.mattwarnockguitar.com/extending-arpeggios-with-chordal-pairing
Hope that helps!