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GUITAR TECHNIQUE TIP OF THE MONTH Your Personal Guitar Lesson |
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| BE SURE TO VISIT DOUG'S "SECRET VAULT" It contains many of Doug's Previous Guitar Technique Tips of the Month |
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It's SO much easier to read a printed article than to read it from the computer screen.
Arpeggio Exercises--There's A Better Way
By Douglas Niedt
Copyright Douglas Niedt, All Rights Reserved. This article may be reprinted, but please be
considerate and give credit to Douglas Niedt.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
Want to DRAMATICALLY improve your right-hand arpeggio technique? Forget the Giuliani 120
studies or the Carlevaro 230—they're for people who enjoy root canals and filling out income
tax forms. There is a much better way.
Now don't get riled out there. There is nothing wrong with practicing the Giuliani or Carlevaro
right-hand arpeggio studies. Of the two, I think the Carlevaro is far better because it is more
thorough. The downside of the Giuliani and Carlevaro books is that they require a tremendous
amount of time to practice properly.
But if you develop speed and evenness with just the four patterns illustrated here (instead of all
230 Carlevaro patterns), you will be able to play almost any arpeggio pattern with great
precision and speed. There are only about twenty additional patterns in the Carlevaro book
that you will need to master separately from these four to have a complete, well-developed
right-hand arpeggio technique.
The four patterns may be practiced on open strings as shown here, on any chord progression
of your choice, or for a little more fun, on a piece titled El Abejorro (The Bumblebee) by Emilio
Pujol.
Start everyday at an easy, relaxed speed at which you can play all four patterns absolutely
evenly and effortlessly. There should be no tension in the right hand. If you begin at too fast a
tempo tension will be triggered in the right hand. As you try to speed up, the tension will
increase. This will prevent you from reaching your top speeds. So start slowly.
Using a metronome, increase your speed notch by notch (or by five's if your metronome "dial"
is digital) over a thirty-minute period. Play each pattern at least ten to twenty seconds and play
all four patterns at each speed setting. Pay particular attention to the two patterns using
"m" and "a." The natural lack of independence between those two fingers is the
major cause of uneven arpeggios and arpeggios that fail at high speed.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
Play at varying volume levels especially very quiet and very loud. Be sure to accent the third
note of each pattern. This helps keep the arpeggio rhythmically even. If the downbeat and
upbeat are placed rhythmically precisely, the entire arpeggio will usually be even. Think of the
thumb as the downbeat and the accented note as the upbeat. Instead of having the metronome
only tick on the thumb strokes, you may want to have it tick on the thumb and the accented
note.
I also recommend that you practice the patterns in the order given. Practicing the "im" patterns
between the "ma" patterns helps the "m" and "a" fingers to "recover," preventing any kind of
overuse problems.
As your top speed increases over time, increase your starting speed so you are not practicing
more than thirty minutes on these arpeggios. Keep track of your speeds each day. Write them
down! I start at MM=100 every day (tick on each thumb stroke). My top speed is MM=192 for all
four patterns.
Here are the four "magical" patterns:
As you can see, there is nothing magical about them! They are very basic. But that is why they
are effective. These are the movements that are used in one way or another in almost any
other arpeggio pattern except for some patterns where a finger plucks simultaneously with the
thumb.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
If you practice El Abejorro with these patterns, note that you must change the order of the
written notes for the "pama" and "pmim" patterns:
Although El Abejorro (The Bumblebee) takes the drudgery out of practicing these patterns, it
also can be used as a fun concert piece or encore. The pattern I use for performance is "piam."
Have fun with this. This is another one of those exercises that needs to be practiced absolutely
every day for three to six weeks to see results. Stick with it and soon your arpeggio speed,
evenness, control, and right-hand finger independence will increase dramatically.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
By Douglas Niedt
Copyright Douglas Niedt, All Rights Reserved. This article may be reprinted, but please be
considerate and give credit to Douglas Niedt.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
Want to DRAMATICALLY improve your right-hand arpeggio technique? Forget the Giuliani 120
studies or the Carlevaro 230—they're for people who enjoy root canals and filling out income
tax forms. There is a much better way.
Now don't get riled out there. There is nothing wrong with practicing the Giuliani or Carlevaro
right-hand arpeggio studies. Of the two, I think the Carlevaro is far better because it is more
thorough. The downside of the Giuliani and Carlevaro books is that they require a tremendous
amount of time to practice properly.
But if you develop speed and evenness with just the four patterns illustrated here (instead of all
230 Carlevaro patterns), you will be able to play almost any arpeggio pattern with great
precision and speed. There are only about twenty additional patterns in the Carlevaro book
that you will need to master separately from these four to have a complete, well-developed
right-hand arpeggio technique.
The four patterns may be practiced on open strings as shown here, on any chord progression
of your choice, or for a little more fun, on a piece titled El Abejorro (The Bumblebee) by Emilio
Pujol.
- Listen to me play El Abejorro. (A separate window will open that you can minimize in
order to still see the written musical example as you listen.)
Start everyday at an easy, relaxed speed at which you can play all four patterns absolutely
evenly and effortlessly. There should be no tension in the right hand. If you begin at too fast a
tempo tension will be triggered in the right hand. As you try to speed up, the tension will
increase. This will prevent you from reaching your top speeds. So start slowly.
Using a metronome, increase your speed notch by notch (or by five's if your metronome "dial"
is digital) over a thirty-minute period. Play each pattern at least ten to twenty seconds and play
all four patterns at each speed setting. Pay particular attention to the two patterns using
"m" and "a." The natural lack of independence between those two fingers is the
major cause of uneven arpeggios and arpeggios that fail at high speed.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
Play at varying volume levels especially very quiet and very loud. Be sure to accent the third
note of each pattern. This helps keep the arpeggio rhythmically even. If the downbeat and
upbeat are placed rhythmically precisely, the entire arpeggio will usually be even. Think of the
thumb as the downbeat and the accented note as the upbeat. Instead of having the metronome
only tick on the thumb strokes, you may want to have it tick on the thumb and the accented
note.
I also recommend that you practice the patterns in the order given. Practicing the "im" patterns
between the "ma" patterns helps the "m" and "a" fingers to "recover," preventing any kind of
overuse problems.
As your top speed increases over time, increase your starting speed so you are not practicing
more than thirty minutes on these arpeggios. Keep track of your speeds each day. Write them
down! I start at MM=100 every day (tick on each thumb stroke). My top speed is MM=192 for all
four patterns.
Here are the four "magical" patterns:
As you can see, there is nothing magical about them! They are very basic. But that is why they
are effective. These are the movements that are used in one way or another in almost any
other arpeggio pattern except for some patterns where a finger plucks simultaneously with the
thumb.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
If you practice El Abejorro with these patterns, note that you must change the order of the
written notes for the "pama" and "pmim" patterns:
Although El Abejorro (The Bumblebee) takes the drudgery out of practicing these patterns, it
also can be used as a fun concert piece or encore. The pattern I use for performance is "piam."
- Listen to it again. (A separate window will open that you can minimize in order to still see
the written musical example as you listen.)
Have fun with this. This is another one of those exercises that needs to be practiced absolutely
every day for three to six weeks to see results. Stick with it and soon your arpeggio speed,
evenness, control, and right-hand finger independence will increase dramatically.
You are on DouglasNiedt.com
BE SURE TO VISIT DOUG'S "SECRET VAULT"
It contains many of Doug's Previous
Guitar Technique Tips of the Month
It contains many of Doug's Previous
Guitar Technique Tips of the Month
Have a comment?
Question?
Suggestion for the website?
We would love to hear from you.
Question?
Suggestion for the website?
We would love to hear from you.
We have a Printer Friendlier (PDF) version of this article that's also easier on the eyes.
It's SO much easier to read a printed article than to read it from the computer screen.
It's SO much easier to read a printed article than to read it from the computer screen.
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| These are my very detailed, in-depth articles and high-def videos on how to play the classical guitar. It's like getting your own private guitar lesson every month. Need info on classical guitar right hand technique? Guitar scales? How to play bar chords? Harmonics? Looking for a classical guitar practicing routine? Tips on performing onstage? How to tune a guitar? Looking for easy Christmas guitar arrangements? Chances are, I have covered it, or will soon. The tips are by subscription only. |
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Doug's Guitar Technique Tip of the Month will be sent to you monthly. These are the best on the
Internet. No one else's technique articles and videos even come close. Most of the written tips run
over 20 pages. Most of the videos run from 15-30 minutes. The tips are thorough and the
production is excellent. Check out the free tips in Doug's Vault for a sampling.
A one-year subscription (12 tips) is only $24. That is only $2 per tip.
Purchase a ONE-YEAR SUBSCRIPTION to:
DOUGLAS NIEDT'S GUITAR TECHNIQUE TIP OF THE MONTH
Doug's Guitar Technique Tip of the Month will be sent to you monthly. These are the best on the
Internet. No one else's technique articles and videos even come close. Most of the written tips run
over 20 pages. Most of the videos run from 15-30 minutes. The tips are thorough and the
production is excellent. Check out the free tips in Doug's Vault for a sampling.
A one-year subscription (12 tips) is only $24. That is only $2 per tip.
Be a better guitar player or teacher. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
Purchase a ONE-YEAR SUBSCRIPTION to:
DOUGLAS NIEDT'S GUITAR TECHNIQUE TIP OF THE MONTH
Doug's Guitar Technique Tip of the Month will be sent to you monthly. These are the best on the
Internet. No one else's technique articles and videos even come close. Most of the written tips
run over 20 pages. Most of the videos run from 15-30 minutes. The tips are thorough and the
production is excellent. Check out the free tips in Doug's Vault for a sampling.
A one-year subscription (12 tips) is only $24. That is only $2 per tip.
Purchase a ONE-YEAR SUBSCRIPTION to:
DOUGLAS NIEDT'S GUITAR TECHNIQUE TIP OF THE MONTH
Doug's Guitar Technique Tip of the Month will be sent to you monthly. These are the best on the
Internet. No one else's technique articles and videos even come close. Most of the written tips
run over 20 pages. Most of the videos run from 15-30 minutes. The tips are thorough and the
production is excellent. Check out the free tips in Doug's Vault for a sampling.
A one-year subscription (12 tips) is only $24. That is only $2 per tip.