Position Playing: Arpeggios in Vth Position

Learning the different positions of the guitar takes time and patience. Eventually, the familiar patterns repeat, fragments of learned patterns stitch together, and the notes on the fretboard are fully memorized.

One way to speed up this process is to study a few of the more important positions in a careful and measured manner. For example, for the V^th position, one could study the notes in that position, practice the scales that can be played in that position, and then create arpeggios to match the position. Reading music will also help you to learn the notes. In fact, the more you study in a complementary and focused manner, the faster you will learn.

Doing this will help you to gain mastery of the position. And mastering just this one position is plenty for playing lead guitar and improvising. As is often the case, it is better to master one small piece than to haphazardly practice them all.

Although the arpeggios for the V^th position will be presented here, think of this page as an answer key more than a practice guide. Because as you begin to study each position of the guitar deeper, you will need to rely on your own knowledge to practice the notes, create the scales, construct the chords and link them together with the arpeggios. You should seek to be independent of pictures and diagrams of the guitar, and seek the underlying knowledge used to create them.

The Arpeggios

C^maj7 Arpeggio

D^-7 Arpeggio

E^-7 Arpeggio

F^maj7 Arpeggio

G⁷ Arpeggio

A^-7 Arpeggio

B^{-7♭5(♭13)} Arpeggio

Put it Into Practice

• Use the arpeggios for improvisation in the key of C major or A minor.
• Pick another position and learn all of the C major arpeggios there (such as position VIII).