I’m doing the Justin guitar practical theory course and recently came across major and minor arpeggios with R,3,5 for major and R,3b,5 for minor. I’m struggling to understand when or why I would use them. Can someone help explain?
Arpeggios are just a different way to play the notes of a chord.
In a song, one guitar might be strumming a chord progression. If you’re the second guitar, you can outline those same chords by playing arpeggios in a higher register.
That’s just one of many ways to use them.
@Cedar
Would this be more useful for bass?
Mikel said:
@Cedar
Would this be more useful for bass?
Full chords don’t sound too good on bass, especially on the lower end. They can sound a bit muddy. So, bass players often use arpeggios to outline chords.
Arpeggios are useful on any instrument though. They’re like the building blocks of music.
Many instruments that can only play one note at a time, like horns, rely on arpeggios all the time.
Can you explain more about what’s confusing? Justin is really good at breaking things down. Maybe there’s something you’re missing?
Jori said:
Can you explain more about what’s confusing? Justin is really good at breaking things down. Maybe there’s something you’re missing?
I know an arpeggio is a series of notes played individually. He talks about playing R,3,5 R,3,5 across all six strings, but I just don’t get why. I think it’s probably me, but I’m not sure.
@Mikel
Well, the R, or root note, is just the starting note of the arpeggio. For a C major arpeggio, find all the C notes on the fretboard. Then find the 3rd (E) and the 5th (G).
It’s all about knowing where the strong notes of any chord are, across the fretboard. Justin has a lot of videos explaining this. But if you can, it would help a lot to get a teacher to guide you through these early stages.
@Mikel
An arpeggio is basically a chord, but the notes are played one by one, like a scale. The R, 3 (or b3), and 5 are intervals relative to the chord’s root. For example, a C major arpeggio uses C (root), E (major 3rd), and G (perfect 5th). If you play C, Eb, and G, that’s a C minor arpeggio.
Learning intervals will really help make this clearer.
@Mikel
Chords are made up of the root, the major 3rd (or flat 3rd for minor), and the 5th of the root’s scale. Arpeggios are just those notes played one at a time. They help you build triads, create your own chord combinations, and are a useful tool for improvisation.
@Mikel
It’s just the notes of the chord played one after another. A C major arpeggio is basically a C major chord played note by note.
Arpeggios can be great for adding melody to solos or even replacing chords at the right time.
Remy said:
Arpeggios can be great for adding melody to solos or even replacing chords at the right time.
How do you know when to use them?
Remy said:
Arpeggios can be great for adding melody to solos or even replacing chords at the right time.
How do you know when to use them?
It’s trial and error. Use your ear. I forgot to mention, arpeggios are great exercises for improving finger dexterity, and they help you learn the root, third, and fifth notes. Chords are basically arpeggios played together. Though not all chords will have all three notes.
Remy said:
Arpeggios can be great for adding melody to solos or even replacing chords at the right time.
How do you know when to use them?
Listen to songs you like. That will show you good examples of how arpeggios are used.
Arpeggios are used a lot in guitar solos. For example, the outro in Hotel California is a famous one.
I use a program called Daily Guitar System. It might help you out. Learning arpeggios helps you understand the chord tones. They can be used to highlight the underlying chord in solos or melodies. If you add a couple more notes to the basic chord tones, you get the pentatonic scale, which is used in many solos. Add a couple more notes, and you get the major scale. These extra notes can be used for embellishments.
Arpeggios basically break down a chord or scale to its simplest and most important parts. They’re like the foundation of a melody. Many 80s metal players, for example, could play them super fast because they practiced arpeggios over and over. Bass players are often just playing arpeggios. Think about how a piano player uses their right hand. Arpeggios can also make scales sound more musical. In improv, it’s always good to just repeat a few arpeggios if you’re stuck for ideas.