This is my first post, so I'll quickly get some basic info. about myself out of the way.
Instruments and Experience
4 Guitars - 2 E, 2 A/E - 6 Years.
1 Keyboard - 1 Year.
1 Harmonica - Noodle off/on 1 Year.
1 Ukulele - Noodle off/on 1 Year.
Theory & Education
Mostly self-taught, 3 teachers over last 2 years.
Collection of music theory & science books to the ceiling.
6 glorious days at GIT with the Summer Shot program.
Non-Music Related Interests
Reading.
Sequential Movement Puzzles (Rubik's - Meffert's).
Math & Science.
Alright, now that all of that is known, here's my inquiry as related to playing guitar:
Arpeggios. Not what they are, but perhaps some suggestions or insight on applications
or different techniques useful for improvisation.
Unfortunately my first few years of playing were all spent working on trying to play too fast
and a bad habit of aimlessly noodling developed and it is really starting to get under my skin,
particularly after being surrounded by noodlers at GIT. Harmony & Melody are now my main concerns.
Hopefully this post will stir up some good ideas or suggestions, I've been browsing this
forum for a while and finally decided it was worth taking the time to register and post
now and again, mostly because I'm broke and can't afford to hang w/ expensive
theory teachers anymore, but also because I just dig the atmosphere.
Thanks for reading/responding.
John
"Farewell, profit, and be indulgent"
Johann Joseph Fux
Gradus ad Parnassum
Hey John, it seems like that if you know what arpeggios are then you are simply stuck on the APPLICATION of arpeggios. In my experience, your best bet would be to study players that you like and that use arpeggios in their guitar playing.
Of course, if you choose not to do that a good way to use arpeggios is over chords. For example, if you want to improv solo over a chord progression of: C major, A minor and G major, you would use the C major, A minor and G major arpeggios over those chords. That is a very basic technique really, many guitarists combine arpeggios and scales in their solos.
Steve-0
Playing arpeggio's and following it with a four note descent down the scale is very common.. ie (Child In Time - Blackmore)
[A C E] [A C E] [A C E] [D C B] [A C E] [A C E] [D C B] [A]
Also what some people do is use inversions, i mean, if chords in inversions sound different to chords in root position, then arpeggio's will too, you can come up with a chord progression that you like and use arpeggio's in it..
Lets not stick with anything common like Ic V I, or iib V I.
IVc vib VII iic Vb iiic iib Ic
ok lets pick a key..
D.. bit different from usual C major.
IVc = G/D
vib = B/F#
VII = C#
iic = E/B
Vb = A/C
iiic = F#/C#
iib = E/G
Ic = D/F
and play arpeggio's of this chord progression.
You can figure them out in similar fingerings, or you can work out the notes and connect them together to disguise the fact they are arpeggio's, for example:
say you wanted the vib, F# B D
11th on G (F#)
12th on B (B)
10th on E (D)
then the VII, C# E G
11th on D (C#)
9th on G (E)
8th on B (G)
which shows they are arpeggio's, but you can also do it by linking arpeggio's with scales or basic scale tunes, and playing the arpeggip's and half the speed of the other notes accents that it is an arpeggio, but if you dont want to make it obvious, keep it at the same speed.
you dont always have to go root, third, fifth, or bass note to highest note, as long as the bass note is the lowest sounding, you can have the other two in any order.
But also watch out, when linking chords it can be seen as an extension of the previous chord IE..
a tonic chord, followed by a dominant, C E G -> G B D... might be interpreted as Cmajor9, or C E G -> E G B, as C major 7th etc.
arpeggios are basically going really fast up/down/confuzedly through a scale, right?
Well, if I'm correct, use them as you'd use a chord over a chord. I wish I could send you a clip of our song "cathartic" where we use both guitars as chord strummers, where two different chords are used that sound good together. Well, power chords.
to tell the truth, i dont use arpeggios, or rather I do, but as I do with modes. WITHOUT THINKING TOO HARD ABOUT IT.
but if you're more tenacious than me, yngwie malmsteen is the most prodominant player of arpeggios, as far as I know. Studying him will give you an idea of how they could be applied. A good classical influence, too (even though he rips melodies right out of pre-existing clasical songs, he does gel them together nicely with some of his own original stuff)
EDIT: ARPEGGIOS ARE NOT PLAYED FAST ALL THE TIME.
an arpeggio is a broken chord. Application of an arpeggio is purely subjective. in laymans terms, do whatever the hell you want with them. They sound nice practically anywhere. theres another thread around here about this.
