Arpeggios for the Evolving Guitarist (book/Audio Online)

Mel Bay Publications
Level: Beginning-Intermediate


Arpeggios are chord notes played one at a time rather than strummed or plucked all together. They are an essential part of great improvising and melody writing because playing chord notes in the right places creates solid melody lines. Chord notes sound more resolved than notes that are chromatic (out of the key). Practicing arpeggios will improve your ability to learn melodies, make reading music easier, and develop your tone and picking accuracy.

The first part of this book focuses on the basic fingerings of the folliowing six arpeggios: major 7th, major 7th (#5), dominant 7th, minor 7th, minor 7th (b5), and diminished 7th.

This book along with its accompanying audio represents a comprehensive guide to all things arpeggio. It delves into traditional applications of arpeggios, as well as how they relate to slash chords, modal music and more. The student will learn about how arpeggios fall over standard chord progressions, as well as how to embellish arpeggios to make them more musical in performance situations.

Chapter 1 – Learning the basic arpeggio fingering patterns
Chapter 2 – Using 7th chords over alternate chord roots
Chapter 3 – Combining Arpeggios
Chapter 4 – A modal approach to using arpeggios
Chapter 5 – Two-five-one
Chapter 6 – Adding embellishments to arpeggios
Chapter 7 – Pat Kelley’s minor blues

• Pat Kelley - Melodic Minor Guitar
• Guitar Arpeggio Studies on Jazz Standards
• Paolo Patrignani - Oltre l'arpeggio
• Hal Leonard Guitar Method - Arpeggio Finder