7/24/2019 Lee Ritenour, Understanding Arpeggios

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/lee-ritenour-understanding-arpeggios 1/2

➧CHOPS   ➧

96 GUITAR PLAYER NOVEMBER 2002

LET’S FACE it,

“ a r p e g g i os ”

sounds like a

pretty heady 

subject. What’s

it got to do with

playing in

bands, doing recording sessions,

and being a versatile player? The

point is that most guitarists who skip

over this subject have a blind spot

in their playing that will show up

eventually. This article’s focus is not

to introduce you to the many differ-

ent arpeggios—your teacher or any 

of several books can do that. What

I would like to make you aware of 

is the fact that scales and arpeggios

are essentially the same thing.

First, a small lesson in theory.

Take a C major diatonic scale—C , D ,

E , F  , G , A ,and B . Seven notes, right?

On each degree, you can build a

chord simply by adding thirds on top

of each other. If, for example, you

continually add thirds on top of C ,

 you would build fromC toE , E toG ,

G to B , B to D , D to F  , and F to A , all

of which are intervals of major or mi-

nor thirds. The resulting chord, C -

E -G -B -D -F  - A , contains all seven

tones of the C major scale simply 

arranged in a different sequence.

Now, apply this same “stacking 

thirds” approach to the 5th degree

of the C major scale, G . The end re-

sult will be a G13 chord spelled G -

B -D -F  - A -C -E . Again, it’s simply a

C major scale in a different se-

quence. Let’s see where this G13 

arpeggio leads us. From the root

position, play the thirds melodically 

UnderstandingArpeggiosB Y L E E R I T E N O U R

  

TAB

Root position

44             

G13

32 5

32 5

55 2

35 2

3

21

42

13 4

Ex. 1

  

TAB

First inversion

44             

G13

2 553

2 55

5 25

5 23

1

Ex. 2

  

TAB

Second inversion

44             

G13

553

2 4 55

5 4 25

53

4

Ex. 3

  

TAB

Third inversion

44G13

            

3 552 4

3 355 4 2

5 3

2

Ex. 4

“I don’t care if

you’re a rock, jazz,

classical, or country gui-

tarist—practice the hell out

of arpeggios.”

 —Ritenour, aka Captain

Fingers, in 1979.

C L A S S I C C O L U M N

RITENOUR PHOTO: NEIL ZLOZOWER

7/24/2019 Lee Ritenour, Understanding Arpeggios

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/lee-ritenour-understanding-arpeggios 2/2

  

T

AB

Up an octave

44G13

            

109 12

1010

8 81210

1012 9

10

2

22

1

4

Ex. 5

ascending and descending, as in E x.

1. For the first inversion (E x . 2), start

on the 3 of the scale (B ) and invert

the root (G ) up one octave, placing 

it in correct sequence within the

arpeggio. For the second inversion

(E x . 3), start on the 5 of the scale (D )

and invert the 3 and the root up one

octave. To play the third inversion

(Ex . 4), start the arpeggio on the 7

(F  ) and invert the root, 3, and 5, up

one octave. Notice that the third-

inversion arpeggio is the C major

scale starting on the note F  (this is

also called the F  Lydian mode).

Still with me? Try playing arpeg-

gios elsewhere on the neck or adding 

altered tones. E x . 5 is the G13 arpeg-

gio from Ex. 1 up an octave. E x . 6

adds a lowered 5 and raised 9.

 Arpeg gios are probably the

hardest exercises to play well on the

guitar. A piano player or horn player

can whip off arpeggios like guitarists

could never dream of. If you prac-

tice building arpeggios on all the di-

atonic tones of major and minor

scales, and also make sure they’re

played over the entire neck of the

guitar, you will guarantee  yourself 

huge musical—and probably finan-

cial—dividends. Good luck!

This column ran in the July ’79 

GP. Lee Ritenour’s latest album is 

Rit’s House [GRP]. g

  

T

AB

Adding altered tones

44G7 5( 9,13)    

           2

109 11

1110

8 81211

10

1011 9

Ex. 6

IF THERE WERE SUCH THING AS MAGICAL WIND CHIMES THAT

could play lyrical melodies over an E - A7 -B7 progression, Ron Koop of 

 Vancouver, British Columbia, knows exactly 

 what they would sound like. “This lick is a great

 jumping-off point for anyone wanting to learn

cascades,” says Koop. “Once you get the hang 

of arching your fingers and mixing open strings

 with fretted notes, the possibilities are endless.”

Tip: For increased sparkle, try these moveshigher on the neck using a capo. g

 Want to help the world play better guitar? Submit your candidate for Read-

er’s Challenge (preferably notated and on cassette or CD), along with a brief 

explanation of why it’s cool and how to play it, to Guitar Player Reader’s 

Challenge , 2800 Campus Dr., San Mateo, CA 94403. Include your name, ad-

dress, e-mail, and phone number. Materials won’t be returned, but we will listen to all submissions. You’ll hear from us if your lick is chosen.

guitarplayer.com NOVEMBER 2002 GUITAR PLAYER 97

T

A

B

       441                  

                     E A7

14

3

3

1

4

let ring throughout

47

0

60 0

66

00

0

66

37

0

60 0

76 6

00

0

7

= 120-184

THIS MONTH’S PRIZE:

 A custom

electric guitar from

Route101guitars.com.

READER’S CHALLENGE • WIND WALKER

T

A

B

     5                            1

B7 E

70

46

0 0

76

46

0

7

40

0 00

66

6 6

    

00

0

66