Sweep Picking and Arpeggio > Sweep picking exercises on major and minor arpeggio
The following four exercises are an excellent way to understand the movements
that both the hands have to do to perform the first position of the major
arpeggio.
Example 1
------------
The chord progression is performed with descending picking (n):
G A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A G
3 5 7 etc... 17 15 13 etc... 3
G A B etc...
n n n n n n v n n n n n n v n n n n n n v
[----------|-----3-7-|---------|-----5-9-|---------|-----7-11-|-
[----------|---3-----|---------|---5-----|---------|---7------|-
[----------|-4-------|---------|-6-------|---------|-8--------|-
[--------5-|---------|-------7-|---------|-------9-|----------|-
[----2h5---|---------|---4h7---|---------|---6h9---|----------|-
[--3-------|---------|-5-------|---------|-7-------|----------|-
2 1 3 3 2 1 1 4 2 1 3 3 2 1 1 4 2 1 3 3 2 1 1 4
Got to the A over the 17th key, come back always with the descending picking
(n).
UP
Example 2
------------
The chord progression is performed with ascending picking (v):
G A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A G
3 5 7 etc... 17 15 13 etc... 3
G A B etc...
v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v
[--7p3-----|---------|-9p5-----|---------|-11p7-----|---------|-
[------3---|---------|-----5---|---------|------7---|---------|-
[--------4-|---------|-------6-|---------|--------8-|---------|-
[----------|-5-------|---------|-7-------|----------|-9-------|-
[----------|---5p2---|---------|---7p4---|----------|---9p6---|-
[----------|-------3-|---------|-------5-|----------|-------7-|-
4 1 1 2 3 3 1 2 4 1 1 2 3 3 1 2 4 1 1 2 3 3 1 2
Got to the A over the 17th key, come back always with the ascending picking
(v).
UP
Example 3
------------
The chord progression is performed with descending picking (n) and then
ascending (v):
G A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A G
3 5 7 etc... 17 15 13 etc... 3
G A B etc...
n n n n n n v n v v v v v v n n n n n n v n v v v
[----------|-----3-7-|-9-5-----|---------|---------|-----7-11-|-12-8-----|-
[----------|---3-----|-----5---|---------|---------|---7------|------8---|-
[----------|-4-------|-------6-|---------|---------|-8--------|--------9-|-
[--------5-|---------|---------|-7-------|-------9-|----------|----------|-
[----2h5---|---------|---------|---7p4---|---6h9---|----------|----------|-
[--3-------|---------|---------|-------5-|-7-------|----------|----------|-
2 1 3 3 2 1 1 4 4 1 1 2 3 3 1 2 2 1 3 3 2 1 1 4 4 1 1 2
Got to the A over the 17th key, come back going on to alternate the two
picking directions which now, starting from the G over the 15th key, will be
ascending (v) and descending (n).
UP
Example 4
------------
The chord progression is performed with ascending picking (v) and then
descending (n):
G A B C D E F G A G F E D C B A G
3 5 7 etc... 17 15 13 etc... 3
G A B etc...
n v v v v v v n n n n n n v n v v v v v v n n n
[--7-3-----|---------|---------|-----5-9-|-11-7-----|---------|-----------|-
[------3---|---------|---------|---5-----|------7---|---------|-----------|-
[--------4-|---------|---------|-6-------|--------8-|---------|-----------|-
[----------|-5-------|-------7-|---------|----------|-9-------|--------10-|-
[----------|---5p2---|---4h7---|---------|----------|---9p6---|---7h10----|-
[----------|-------3-|-5-------|---------|----------|-------7-|-8---------|-
4 1 1 2 3 3 1 2 2 1 3 3 2 1 1 4 4 1 1 2 3 3 1 2 2 1 3 3
Got to the A over the 17th key, come back going on to alternate the two
picking directions which now, starting from the G over the 15th key will be
descending (n) and ascending (v).
UP
Other 20 exercises
--------------------
The four exercises just proposed allow to learn the first position of the
major arpeggio. They're an excellent method to take familiarity with any other
positions and arpeggio.
Personally, I've repeated the 4 progressions for each one of the position 1,
3, 4 of the major and minor arpeggio, for a whole of 24 exercises that I
generally used to repeat two times on end for each one.
Allow me to not write them !!!
However I VERY WARMLY suggest to perform tham; it's a lot of work to organize
and share in the time (3 or 4 months). The willing ones will find out,
after long time of hard work, to be in possession of a good smoothness in the
performance of the sweep "basic positions" and of a sudden knowledge of the
notes on the fingerboard.
UP
Sweep arpeggio 25
--------------------
This sweep picking is based on the chord turn Bm G A Bm.
Bm G
n n n n n n t v v v v v n n
[-------------|-------10h14-t-19p14p10----|------------|---------------|-
[-------------|----12-------|----------12-|------------|---------------|-
[-------------|-11----------|-------------|-11---------|---------------|-
[----------12-|-------------|-------------|----12------|-------------9-|-
[-----9h14----|-------------|-------------|-------14p9-|--------5h10---|-
[--10---------|-------------|-------------|------------|-(10)\7--------|-
2 1 4 2 1 2 1 4 M 4 1 2 1 2 4 1 2 2 1 4 3
A
n n n t v v v v v n n n n n t v
-|-----7h10-t-15p10p7---|----------|---------------|------9h12-t-17p12p9----|-
-|---8------|---------8-|----------|---------------|---10------|---------10-|-
-|-7--------|-----------|-7--------|---------------|-9---------|------------|-
-|----------|-----------|---9------|------------11-|-----------|------------|-
-|----------|-----------|-----10p5-|-------7h12----|-----------|------------|-
-|----------|-----------|----------|-(7)/9---------|-----------|------------|-
1 2 1 4 M 4 1 2 1 3 4 1 2 2 1 4 3 1 2 1 4 M 4 1 2
Bm
v v v v n n n n n v n v v v v v
-|-----------|----------------|-------10-14-|-19p14-------|-------------|-
-|-----------|----------------|----12-------|-------15----|-------------|-
-|-9---------|----------------|-11----------|----------16-|-------------|-
-|---11------|-------------12-|-------------|-------------|-16p12-------|-
-|------12p7-|--------9h14----|-------------|-------------|-------14----|-
-|-----------|-(9)/10---------|-------------|-------------|----------14-|-
1 3 4 1 2 2 1 4 2 1 2 1 4 4 1 2 3 3 1 2 2
n n v v v
-| |-------------|------------|-----]
-| repeat |-------------|------------|-----]
-| then |-------------|------------|-----]
-| go |----12h16p12-|------------|-----]
-| ---> |-14----------|-14---------|-----]
-| |-------------|----14\9h10-|-7~~-]
2 1 3 1 2 2 2 3 1
UP
Sweep arpeggio 26
-
----------------
To perform this sweep picking is necessary to "see on the fretboard" the whole
position of arpeggio because we're bound to jump immediately from the three
upper strings to the three lower ones.
Em B D F# Em
n n n v v n n n v v n n n v v n n n v v n n
[---------|-7-----|-------|-------|-------|-5-----|-------|-------|--------|-
[---------|---8---|-------|-7-----|-------|---7---|-------|-2-----|--------|-
[---------|-----9-|-------|---8---|-------|-----7-|-------|---3---|--------|-
[-------9-|-------|-----9-|-----9-|-----7-|-------|-----4-|-----4-|------9-|-
[--7h10---|-------|-6h9---|-------|-5h9---|-------|-1h4---|-------|-7h10---|-
[---------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|--------|-
1 4 3 1 2 3 1 3 3 1 2 3 1 4 2 1 2 2 1 3 3 1 2 3 1 4 3
Bdim7 Am D G
n v v v n v v v v v v n n n n v v n v
-|-7-----|---7---|------12-p-8------|---------|----------|--------|--------|-
-|---8---|-----9-|---------|---10---|---------|-------10-|-12p8---|-10p8---|-
-|-----9-|-------|-10p7----|------9-|---------|----11----|--------|--------|-
-|-------|-------|---------|--------|---------|-12-------|------9-|------9-|-
-|-------|-------|---------|--------|----9h12-|----------|--------|--------|-
-|-------|-7-----|---------|--------|-10------|----------|--------|--------|-
1 2 3 1 1 3 4 1 4 1 2 1 2 1 3 3 2 1 4 1 2 3 1 2
E
n v n v n v n n v n v n v n v
[--------|-------|-------|-------|-------|------]
[--7-----|-------|-------|---5-4-|-7-5-8-|-7~~--]
[--------|-------|-----5-|-4-----|-------|------]
[----7-9-|-5-7-4-|-5p4---|-------|-------|------]
[--------|-------|-------|-------|-------|------]
[--------|-------|-------|-------|-------|------]
1 2 4 1 3 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 4 2 4 3
It's hard to make the exercise faster because of the change of the picking
direction between the upper strings and the lower ones of every single
position.
It's very useful for the left hand if you play it slowly, it has to accustom
itself until it'll be ready to perform the whole arpeggio.
UP
Arpeggio Sweep 27
--------------------
This example reproposes the very spread idea to play a chord progression
performing an arpeggio just over the first three strings.
For a "good" performance of the piece, it's necessary to take care of the
passage between one position and the next one, in fact if we want to play
like the light-velocity we'll end to neglect the first note of each bar.
Bdim7 Am A
n v n n v v v n n v v v n n v v v n n
[-----------7-|-10p7--------7-|-12p8---------8-|-12p9---------9-|-
[---------9---|------9----9---|------10---10---|------10---10---|-
[----7h10-----|--------10-----|---------9------|---------9------|-
[--9----------|---------------|----------------|----------------|-
[-------------|---------------|----------------|----------------|-
[-------------|---------------|----------------|----------------|-
3 1 4 3 1 4 1 3 4 3 1 4 1 2 1 2 1 4 1 2 1 2 1
D C F
v v v n n v v v n n v v v n n
-|--13p10----------10-|-15p12----------12-|-17p13----------13-|-
-|--------10----10----|-------13----13----|-------13----13----|-
-|-----------10-------|----------12-------|----------14-------|-
-|--------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-
-|--------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-
-|--------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-
4 1 1 1 1 1 4 1 2 1 2 1 4 1 1 2 1 1
Adim7
v v v n n n v v v n
-|-17P14----------17-|-(17)b19r17p14----|-------------|-------]
-|-------16----16----|---------------16-|-------------|-------]
-|----------17-------|------------------|-17p14----14-/-16~~~-]
-|-------------------|------------------|-------16----|-------]
-|-------------------|------------------|-------------|-------]
-|-------------------|------------------|-------------|-------]
4 1 3 4 3 1 4 1 3 4 1 3 1 1
UP
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