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Questions on writing Arpeggios
- Thread starter Jasper199
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Hello,
Lot of good and clear answers given.
I’d add one thing :
Le goal of arpeggios is not of of the scholar / university type, it’s of the animal / spontaneous one, it’s the kind of thing you must be able to play without thinking... at the fingers level.
Understanding is good, it’s even good well beyond the practice, it’s always good to understand what we do (we are not machines are we ?)
But in the arpeggio case, considering the bass is as a very simple and regular interface, the best tool to check is… the neck
Grab your instrument, grab a text like Jeff Berlin excellent (but not always easy to find) “A Comprehensive Chord Tone System For Mastering The Bass” (or Jerry Coker and al “Patterns for Jazz ins bass clef”).
You have a doubt about a Bm arpeggio ? The theory has an answer, a lot of books have an answer… but you neck has a easier one.
Luc
The real clues are in the key signatures...
Key signature for Bm has 2#, same as relative major, in this case D. So in Bm, all F and C are # by default.
@Mushroo is correct in that intervals are always reckoned by the number of letter names inclosed in the interval - a perfect 5th from B will always be notated as F#, never the enharmonic equivalent Gb. A chromatic b5 will have a natural accidental, a chromatic raised 4th might be seen notated E#(!), even though they sound the same. Remember accidentals are automatically cancelled at the end of the measure unless tied across bar lines.
Key signature for Bm has 2#, same as relative major, in this case D. So in Bm, all F and C are # by default.
@Mushroo is correct in that intervals are always reckoned by the number of letter names inclosed in the interval - a perfect 5th from B will always be notated as F#, never the enharmonic equivalent Gb. A chromatic b5 will have a natural accidental, a chromatic raised 4th might be seen notated E#(!), even though they sound the same. Remember accidentals are automatically cancelled at the end of the measure unless tied across bar lines.
You simply play what the formula dictates.
A minor 7 chord is made of the root, a flat third, perfect fifth, and a flat seven. That's the bare bones structure of a minor 7 chord.
The pattern is moveable and fixed, like a stencil. You can plug in any note you want to be the root.
Wow. This is really a great tool for me. Although I've been a lifelong wind instrument player, it's only been about two years since I took up the bass and had to really seriously pay attention to chords. Thank you for sharing this excellent resource!
I found when starting out on bass that remembering patterns worked best for me when it comes to scales and arpeggios. As long as you know the notes on the fret board so as to be able to hit the root note of a chord then there is no need to know every note for every chord. As time goes on you'll know where the major 3rd, minor 3rd, five, maj7, dom7 (b7) etc are in relation to the root.
Thanks BAG, I do my best learning not only from hands on but also writing out what I need to know. I'll rewrite these patterns a few times.
I initially started on pattern one for root notes on the E string and pattern 4 for root notes on the A string. Once you know those you've got basically every chord possible at your fingertips. Pattern 2, 3 and 5 allows you to minimise position shifting and also using some of them as inversions once you're comfortable with the others.
Once again, let's visit that web-site from my posting - Musical Chords and Scales
and check all the available chords for your m7b5.
Looks good.
Another way of understanding m7b5 chords is thinking of the arpeggio built on the 7th note in the major scale. For example, A is the 7th note in the Bb major scale, which has two flats, Bb and Eb. Your Am7b5 of A C Eb G fits right in. In root position on a staff, this fills up all the spaces in bass clef.
Sorry, but this list is fundamentally flawed. Cm7b5 is C, Eb, Gb, Bb (D# in Cm would be an augmented 2nd, never a m3).
Likewise for Fm7b5, the 3rd is Ab, not G#, and the b5 is Cb not B as shown
For Gm7b5 the 3rd is Bb and the b5 is Db not C#.
I know this might seem pedantic to some but there it is...
Yes, you are correct.
I've decided to dig deeper into that web-site, and here is what I found out.
In the drop-down button menu, "Show notes / scales with root:", I've entered C (root), and in the Accidental drop-down button menu, I've entered, "Only show flat versions".
I think I got it correct this time.
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But I've been known to be be wrong on several occasions according to my wife, lol
Yes. The problem was that I choose the "Show Only Flat Versions" button.
Here is what we get with "Show Flat and Sharp Versions".
In short about that excellent web-site.
The PITCHES are correct but finding the CORRECT notation requires some Music Theory knowledge.
Let's check with the web-site ("Show only Flat Versions"!)
I think you've passed the test.
