Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange
Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [arpeggios]

For questions about playing broken chords, where each pitch of the chord is played successively. Arpeggios are often, but not always, played either ascending or descending. Many questions may also use the `technique` tag.

107 questions
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What's the proper piano notation for adding one note at a time to a chord and holding all the notes?

I came across a bar that sounds like this while transcribing a piece for keyboard. Is there a correct/better way to write this?
spider_gem
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1 answer

What does it mean to play in an 'arpeggiated' style on the guitar?

I sometimes hear a guitar player described as having an 'arpeggiated' style, such as Peter Buck of R.E.M. I know that an arpeggio is the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 8th of a scale, but exactly what does it mean to play this style on the guitar?
Ali
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15
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7 answers

Where should I press white keys - between black keys or below them?

I've been learning to play piano for couple of weeks, and I've faced a question that has some controversial answers on the internet: What is the correct position of 2-3-4 fingers on white keys (WK) when playing an arpeggio - between black keys (BK)…
AlexandrX
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11
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4 answers

Fingering C major arpeggio - Is fingering crucial when learning piano basics?

I am begginer piano player. I am using Piano Marvel internet course to grasp basics, I want to find teacher when I feel more confident with the instrument. What I am wondering about is fingerings on sheet music, see the image below: The arpeggio…
Wookie88
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11
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5 answers

Is there a reason instructors teach chords before arpeggios?

Some friends of mine have started picking up my spare guitars and practicing while I play bass. They don't play guitar and have been asking me for tips. Like me, they struggle with chords because they have to move multiple fingers to multiple…
Dedwards
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11
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8 answers

Struggling to switch chords when fingerstyle / arpeggio

So for the life of me I am struggling to switch chords with my left hand while picking a fingerstyle pattern. have been playing a bit over 6 months :( When I'm playing chords with a flatpick I can switch just about any chord easily, but when I am…
rakoff
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9
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1 answer

How do you write a continuous arpeggio in sheet music?

How would you write an arpeggio that never stops the notes that are played . . . they just keep on ringing. E.g, in the example below, when the E is played in measure 1 beat 1, it continues ringing all the way up to when it is struck again, and then…
Daniel Node.js
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8
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1 answer

Meaning of left parenthesis notation on chords

As an example, in the Joseffy edition of the Chopin Nocturne op.62 no.1, there are many instances where a "left parenthesis" is used in front of a chord. I have always assumed this means a rolled chord, but the usage is inconsistent as oftentimes…
MICHAEL WALTERS
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1 answer

How to notate an arpeggio that anticipates the beat

The last chord of a piece of music I wrote has an arpeggio in the right hand and not in the left. I want the top note in the right chord to fall on the beat so that it matches with the chord in the left hand. For that to happen, the other notes…
Timothy Smith
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7
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3 answers

What's the meaning of a half note with a flag?

In Carcassi's Arpeggio exercises (for guitar) there are passages like this: Do these half notes are connected with eighth notes? What does the half notes with flag means? BTW, how to include these in abc notation?
marcanuy
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7
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2 answers

arpeggiated chord and half bracket symbol - what does it mean? (piano)

I have a piano piece with arpeggiated chords and at first glance, I thought I would have to leave out the bottom note on one of them because my hands aren't long enough. Then I looked closer at the notes and symbols and I realized I hadn't noticed…
pianoandknitting
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What do these left arrows or angle brackets mean to the left of a chord?

I almost wonder if this is a weird way to draw an arpeggio, but they seem like distinct arrows or left angle brackets each on a line to the left of a chord in piano music on the left-hand bass clef. They span the entire chord's length and include…
snydergd
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6
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Chord structure and arppeggio study

This question is just to satisfy my own curiosity. I play mainly guitar, and some piano. Both are chording instruments so I study chord structure and arpeggios as part of my education process. I found myself wondering whether students who study on…
skinny peacock
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Techniques for playing large Arpeggios

I am learning the arpeggios to a song called Butterflies and Hurricanes by Muse (you can see them live here). The sheet music can be found here, with the arpeggios on Page 8. I don't plan to play them as quick as in the video, but I want to know…
Poben
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What is the musical function of broken chords?

I'm new to musical theory and interested in playing guitar. It seems to me that the broken chords are very often used in the music sheets arranged for guitar. I wonder if they are also usually used in piano. And moreover, could you please explain me…
InTheSearchForKnowledge
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