An arpeggio is a chord in which the notes that compose that chord are played in a rising or descending order. An arpeggio may span more than one octave.
The order in which the notes are played can be in differing sequences but for our purposes in this blog, 7th arpeggios are the notes of a 7th chord played in numerical order, either ascending &/or descending.
There are 5 types of 7th arpeggios that correspond to the 5 types of 7th chords. We will be dealing with the Major 7 chord type only.
The circled numbers refer to fingering. These fingerings are for the ascending form. Sometimes I'll finger them differently when descending. If you come up with a fingering that's more comfortable for you and you can make it work, be my guest.
There are several other possible patterns for these but, commensurate with the "Quick & Dirty" blog category, these will be the only ones we deal with.
The 6th string roots contain 2 octaves plus 2 notes in the 3rd octave: 1-3-5-7-1-3-5-7-1-3
The 5th string roots contain 2 octaves: 1-3-5-7-1-3-5-7
These patterns should be practiced ascending and descending around the Circle of 4ths, reciting the names of the keys.
If you don't know what I mean by, "Circle of 4ths" you shouldn't be on this lesson! The Circle of 4ths, also known as the "Key Circle," and its application to the guitar, is taught in my 5-Lesson Foundational Series. Almost every lesson I teach presupposes the 5-Lesson Foundational Series.
Here is a demonstration video of Major 7 arpeggios around the Key Circle:
All the above is but one part of a lesson that includes the arpeggios of all 5 types of 7th chords: Major, Dominant, Minor, Half-Diminished and Full-Diminished.
That lesson is only the first of 17 lessons in the Advanced Soloing section of the Free Lessons page at Master Guitar School. The Free Lessons page can be accessed by Site Members only.
Sign up as a Master Guitar School site member - it's free! - and get access to dozens of free site-based lessons, a monthly newsletter that contains a brand-new free lesson, and DEEP discounts on lesson series downloads - plus more!
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