Part 5: Understand the chords you already hold · Lesson 037 / 117
A chord and an arpeggio share ingredients
Hear a set of notes together and then one at a time.
Play C, E and G together. They form a chord. Play those same notes one at a time and you are outlining the chord as an arpeggio. The ingredients did not change; their presentation did.
This distinction connects rhythm and lead guitar. A strummed accompaniment and a melody can draw from the same chord notes. A lead line is not automatically using an unrelated world of scale shapes.
For today's task, use a small C chord on the top three strings: G-string fret 5, B-string fret 5, high E fret 3. These sound C, E and G. Pick them separately, then together. Use any comfortable fingering and avoid striking the lower strings.
A larger guitar chord grip may repeat some note names in different octaves. We will inspect that shortly. For now, three clearly heard ingredients are enough.
Hear it
C Arpeggio
Audio fileFour-beat count-in · 60 BPM · Warm sampled electric guitar. Listen once before playing along.
A concrete example
Top-three-string C: G5=C, B5=E, high E3=G. Together: chord. One after another: arpeggio.
Try it, slowly
- Find and name the three addresses.
- Play each note separately at an even pace.
- Play them together, then alternate one strum with one arpeggio.
Check one idea
Did the chord change when you played its notes separately?
Show the explanation
No. The notes still outline C major. Arpeggiation describes playing the chord tones in succession rather than only sounding them together.
A good place to stop
You can recognise the same ingredients in a chord and its arpeggio.
Return to the example after a short break. A clear explanation matters more than speed.