Arpeggios are, essentially, chords that are broken out into single note patterns. For example, instead of playing a four note C Major 7 (C, E, G, B) chord where you strum all the notes at once, a C Major 7 arpeggio would have you play C, E, G, B as single notes in a four note pattern. Arpeggios are a great improvisation tool, and understanding arpeggios is vital to realizing how to construct solos that sound more emotive and unique. To that end, triad arpeggios also exist, are equally useful, and are constructed in the same way — they just have one less note.
Play several different One-Octave Triad and Four-Part Arpeggios from Root position at 60bpm, eighth notes.
Move through chord changes and anticipate harmonic ideas with this visual backing track.
Follow the chords to outline them using arpeggios derived from the diatonic chords of Melodic Minor.
Use the video to anticipate upcoming chords in the progression and utilize your knowledge of the Harmonic Minor Scale to target chord tones among the harmony.
Learn the reasoning for arpeggios in your guitar playing–what they can offer and what they really are.
These tactics will help you get a feel for where to implement diminished sounds in your playing in a bluesy context.
Arpeggios are every guitar player's favorite flashy tool. Here's how you can get started with implementing them into your playing.