Major 7th Arpeggios Are More Versatile Than You Think

Patreon: / fretjam
In this lesson we explore major 7th arpeggios on guitar. But as you'll discover, maj7 arpeggios are far more versatile than many realise.
After covering the basics, I take you through the concept of playing arpeggios in relative positions.
That means playing the arp on a root other than the chord root.
For example, we can play a Cmaj7 arpeggio over Am. Plus many other relative positions.
I'll explain how and why this works.
For more help with maj7 arps, take a look at the lesson page and go at your own pace...
www.fretjam.co...

[@dougp2917]

Riffs, licks, "how to sound like", or "play in the style of".......all well covered elsewhere. Here, you learn how music works to help you become a better musician. Kudos once again to Mike at Fretjam for another awesome lesson.

[@juanignacio3305]

This is the best guitar channel in KZbin. Period.

[@CS-yj8sd]

Completely agree!

[@MyTube4Utoo]

Agree 100%! I watch most of the videos many times over. I can't believe the guy doesn't have millions of subscribers, but he will.

[@TancheapMcFatass]

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[@noahrubio2939]

couldnt agree more, although there is so great teachers out there Mikes approach with layout and theoretical explanations far transcends the others in my opinion. This channel is God sent

[@thearkuhtekt]

Yea mam, I concur. This channel is the truth!

[@TancheapMcFatass]

By the way, yes this is the best and most informative guitar channel on KZbin, period. I agree with the dude below

[@aeksinsang932]

25 years of playing and 18 years of teaching- you still learn for a lifetime: your various approaches I adapted into my teaching and of course students benefit from it and also love your information. It is good for searching and finding your own voice and style

[@michaelaldrid]

Out all the guitar instructions I've seen these have been the most tutorial and inspiring and absolutely full of knowledge. Unabashedly good and good.

[@stephengregory7838]

I've been playing music for 30 years, and it's a rare day that someone can show me something that blows my mind. You just blew my mind.

[@fretjamguitar]

I'm humbled! Thanks for your time.

[@Stevacek]

This has helped me in soloing more than any other video I've seen. Thanks for the amazing tip!

[@Dismoeyy]

Wonderful, I cant believe how effectively you improved my playing. Thank you very much for all your effort!

[@MyTube4Utoo]

Yay!! Another Fretjam video. Another enlightening one, too. Thank You!

[@robertmogavero4596]

Thank you for your channel the diagrams are so extremely helpful unlike many of these KZbin channels where you have someone who is just playing and then you have to stop pause the video and figure out things while you break them down your channel makes it very clear I think it is a gift to all those that love guitar

[@fretjamguitar]

Thank you for your time. I definitely wanted to minimise the pause. I agree that fingers moving across the neck can be hard to follow. I also created a lesson page (link in description) to take things more slowly.

[@rogerweafer2179]

I love these mind expanding videos. One of the smartest channels on the net!

[@TheBongEntertainment007]

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[@Thomas-cw9ej]

Hands down one of the best educational channels on yt. Always great content. Thank you

[@gitsurfer27]

It always blows my mind that you don't have millions more subscribers. These are hands down the best guitar lessons on youtube!

[@jimmyc5498]

Amen. Extremely important topic just as modal retasking helps with this approach( playing C Lydian over an F#m7b5 into B7alt to Em.) Always enjoy your channel.

[@JukeboyJoeAxford]

Much new info for me here, very concise and easy to understand explanations and graphics, thanks a lot! I'll need to look into more from this man.

[@mastertimb]

Can't wait to get home and mess around with these concepts. Thank you so much for the wonderful lesson!

[@superfit60]

OMG this is a killer lesson... i couldn't figure out why how some major 7 chords fit with chords that were not the tonic major 7... you cleared that up for me brilliantly... WOW! the lydian scale and Ionian patterns mode work great! for those little runs between the "landing tones" as you call it...thank you so so much!!! You explained it so well and your calm tone of voice is very pleasing especially since guitar can be a frustrating experience at times.. You have improved my soloing tons! and in a very short period of time too!!... THE BEST GUITAR CHANNEL THERE IS! BTW your tone is magnificently tasteful and melodic... is that a 335? or Les Paul?

[@minimoogle3335]

i watched this then i was able to visualize the pattern rick graham was explaining.. very informative for those who want to understand the guitar even further..

[@handyman4209]

That groove at the end left me with goosebumps!

[@maikay1403]

Thank you very much for this wonderful lesson. The light just on in my head. Have a wonderful day.

[@PanzonVilla]

Amazing video! Absolutely inspiring.

[@hearpalhere]

Really enjoying many of your videos! Thank you for your excellent lessons and instruction - they are very eye/ear opening.

[@rocksolid46]

Thank you Mike, perfect lesson, 4ths, 5ths, etc. etc.

[@frmcf]

This is just what I needed in my life! Do you have a course covering more of this sort of stuff? If so... take my money!

[@fretjamguitar]

I want to keep the bulk of my content free and there will be more like this to come. Donations appreciated! bit.ly/2rFaTLE

[@burakyy4907]

Is this the best practically harmony teaching channel for guitar addicts, or what! Thank you for your efforts. I will support you as i find a job and make money. Good day mister..

[@SimonFreston]

Mind blown, great lesson

[@Yusufmasron]

Thank you so much for all your videos. Very beneficial, love the way u do the video. Definitely much better than most,

[@Just4you2010]

Truly versatile.. Super simplify method

[@DovidM]

The way I play a major 7th arpeggio into a scale is by incorporating the 9th of the chord. In Cmaj7 this results in playing arpeggios that include the note D. The runs then consists mostly or wholly of a pentatonic scale of C-D-E-G-B.

[@syn1607]

Thank you so much this video help me a lot...thanks!!

[@santana2420]

Great lessons, man. Many thanks for share and teach all this material

[@BuckwheatPlatypus]

You earned my sub with this video!

[@thebutton7932]

thank you once again , Capt Fretjam . . . . . this is, I must agree, a very good resource for anyone that wants 'the real deal" . . i.e. - playing the changes melodicaly. Fast playing is ok, I guess, but the audience is lost in a flash . . I'd rather take them with me, and this is the way, (or the start of it, anyway)

[@timesnepal8108]

it's good lesson for me since it feels more logical and simple to understand

[@downhill240]

Excellent lesson!! I will be adding this to my practice routine.

[@johnstrange880]

Very helpful thanks.

[@vicentesalvadorpitrelli2092]

Gracias fretjam ,excelente,saludos desde Argentina !!!

[@JazzSurgeon]

Excellent lesson, thank you for the insight

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FretJam is THE standard for advanced guitar lessons. Period.

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[@jps9508]

Simple and effective. Thank you !

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Thank u so much Sir

[@mehboobyaqoob473]

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[@DonBarthelme]

thank you

[@martysradioshow5979]

thank you fretjam

[@TheFullbend]

I will repeat it. This shouldn't be free! :) Just awesome!!!

[@krudler406]

Great stuff, thank you!

[@frankiediamantelarosa1822]

thanks

[@avskeeters]

Wow, very interesting video. I was actually able to sit down and make music after watching this! I’m assuming that using other arpeggios instead of M7 would just bring out different color tones, for better or for worse. Do you have any other arpeggios that you like to apply in this context? If so, what are your favorites, and in what contexts?

[@johndavy8973]

very good

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He accepts and appreciates donations ;)

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More magic from Mike the Wizard

[@Jerre2Jerre]

Mind, Blown!

[@cjbarrosocarlos]

I love you man. Thank you.

[@karcarah]

Amazing Thank u

[@avvvqvvv99]

that was brilliant

[@mikejna]

Dude! Thanks!!

[@dhuncho6050]

I’d rather learn this than scales sounds more melodic. Well from a begginer view that is

[@seamanjive]

Brilliant!

[@MRGRILLOPRODUCCIONES]

Exelente

[@noahrubio2939]

time to bust out my notebook for another addition.

[@erolgermannemmanuel5637]

Excellent info....(!)

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amazing!

[@The1stMrJohn]

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Ugh. Too long for this old fart 😊

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Excelente!!

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Ou man I love u!

[@Enndibeatboxer99]

i want to know about the sus9 composition that you've explained in the video for example csus9 or asus9

[@_alexey007_]

Спасибо

[@joegarcia2323]

Hey does this also mean that any 7th chord in the key of C Major can be played over any triad in the key? For example G7 can be played over Dm, Em or Fmaj because the notes of G7 would fall into these chords corresponding modes: D Dorian, E Phrygian and F Lydian… idk

[@fretjamguitar]

I'm tempted to say try it out and hear it for yourself as this would be a great ear training exercise. Part of the aim of this lesson was to introduce the general concept of trying arpeggios over related chords in the key. Personally, I find none of the other 7th arpeggios from the key are quite as versatile as the maj7 of the tonic, but you can pick out some gems. They will work musically over some chords in the key, but others will sound a little awkward or forced. For example, the Dm7 arpeggio over C would create the sus4, so if C was being played as major, it would clash somewhat. But over F, it creates some natural colour (6 1 3 5, or an F6 sound). Specifically over G, Dm7 would create a suspended 4th/9th sound. So if the V was voiced as a 9sus4 (e.g. G9sus4) a Dm7 arpeggio would colour it nicely (5 b7 9 4). I can certainly do a lesson exploring all the most usable options. I'll be sure to add it to the upcoming Patreon poll for the next lesson!

[@joegarcia2323]

@@fretjamguitar Wow, how awesome of you to reply with more gems. I thought I’d just throw the question out into the fretjam community because to be honest, I’m playing along in my head without an instrument currently lol. But it’s channels like yours that are such a blessing for keeping me engaged. I’ll see you on your Patreon very soon. Thank you sir!

[@fretjamguitar]

@@joegarcia2323 Really appreciate your input, Joe. Questions like yours help in giving me ideas for new content that I'm sure would help many others.

[@triad5766]

1:02 final fantasy prelude

[@jiffey_faux]

Woah!

[@TancheapMcFatass]

The V chord confuses me, what relationship does the Cmaj7 arpeggio have when it comes to G7? Because the V chord is naturally dominant isn't it?

[@fretjamguitar]

Conveniently, it works over both G7 and Gsus. Both are common variants of V.

[@yudatomo8660]

Am play Cmaj7? Is it dorian with 7th?

[@fretjamguitar]

There's no 6th but it makes a nice outline for Dorian based licks.

[@yudatomo8660]

@@fretjamguitar thank you, I am still on going to learn modes and how to use them with a chord changing..can you give me recommendation video for me Sir ?

[@scottrubin84]

So can we extend this logic to triads and say that Cmaj works over any of its diatonic triads?

[@fretjamguitar]

Yes, but let your ears be the judge.

[@keefly2632]

1:00 sounded like the opening of Stranger Things

[@badurskiroffli176]

Say Cmaj7.. is the "maj" refering to C or to 7.. like in Cmin7.. is the "min" refering to C or 7 ?

[@fretjamguitar]

Both and both :) In Cmaj7, the triad is major and the 7th is major (1 3 5 7) In Cm7, the triad is minor and the 7th is minor (1 b3 5 b7) If there's just a 7 after the root (e.g. C7) then the triad is major and the 7th is minor (1 3 5 b7)

[@10000rajaram]

@@fretjamguitar Thanks !

[@ericschwartz9982]

The point he makes at 6:45 is key. Extending the chord color tones......

[@TmanWdaPlan]

I get why a M7 works off the 3rd of a m7. But I don’t get why a Root M7 works off a M7 4 chord. Why doesn’t the #4 clash horribly. I think I’m missing something fundamental. 5:27.

[@fretjamguitar]

The #4 (or #11) is a natural colour tone of IV and can be related to the Lydian mode - the natural mode of IV. To be honest, I've never considered the #4 as a clash over M7 in any position, and it actually sounds quite sweet to my ears. Of course it is subjective, but it's standard to apply the #4 over the IV and this is within the diatonic function of IV. In scale terms, playing the tonic/root major scale over the IV (e.g. C major over Fmaj7) gives us: 1 2 3 #4 5 6 7 (i.e. Lydian). So think of this tonic M7 arp over IV as a cut down expression of Lydian (2 #4 5 7).

[@davidberkowatz3933]

Why did you play a Gsus instead of a G? the Cmaj7 contains the major third of the V chord anyway so was this this just a voicing choice?

[@fretjamguitar]

Cmaj7 contains both the 3 and 4 of G, so again this highlights its versatility, as you can hear it as the 4 resolving to 3 (G or G7) or the 3 leading to 4 (Gsus). I just thought it had a particularly nice effect over Gsus (Gsus9 to be exact) which is a common V voicing.

[@davidberkowatz3933]

I see thank you for the quick response, as a side note I've been learning about the use of borrowed chords from Parallel modes recently and while I feel I have a decent grasp on the options available have you considered addressing this topic in a video? I'm sure you would cover some things that I've likely missed. Keep up the great work.

[@fretjamguitar]

Yeh, I've had a few requests for something on modal interchange/borrowed chords. I touched on the concept of modes in parallel in this lesson: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6HUko2AZ5yVn7M but there are a number of ways to approach it, so I will certainly revisit it.

[@fretjamguitar]

First lesson on borrowed chords: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHuzloGPgJucfc0

[@ontune1715]

It works like chord to scale relationships right?

[@fretjamguitar]

It depends on where the comparison is made but in general it's a similar concept.

[@juno7893]

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@basti_marr]

1:44 and The Smiths comes to mind...

[@fretjamguitar]

I just saw this comment and laughed at how true it is. You have good ears. Johnny Marr was not shy about using maj7. I bet your ears are even better after 3 years!

[@Starhartdeer]

Ff6 floating continent plays

[@ericjohnston6035]

Does any one else watch his videos and relies you know nothing at all about guitar lmao

[@lukzriffs1564]

Final fantasy 7 chords

[@jesusfollower9]

So complicating for me

[@elementsofphysicalreality]

These patterns don’t make a lot of sense to me. Coming from a pianist point of view, inversions should be more straightforward. I feel like your method for deciding what note goes on what string is rather arbitrary.

[@fretjamguitar]

They're standard maj7 patterns for guitar, though there are additional options on the lesson page. Nothing arbitrary about them.

[@elementsofphysicalreality]

fretjam there’s 64 ways to play a 2 octave triad arpeggio. It’s 100% arbitrary and it’s not correct. There’s better ways to do this. And if they’re standard then why make a video about it?

[@fretjamguitar]

Of course there are more ways to play it, but I didn't want to go through every single variation, especially when it's the general sound and function I'm trying to familiarise people with. The patterns I chose are a good enough place to begin. Also, this video was about more than just patterns, it was about the situations in which they can be applied. I appreciate your input man, but you have to accept that in a 10 minute summary video there's going to be some compromise. People can always go more in depth and that's what the site is for.

[@ryanburch3092]

We know there's 12 possible triads for any major / minor chord within a span of 12 frets: Regular voicing, 1st inversion, 2nd inversion on the strings e B G Regular voicing, 1st inversion, 2nd inversion on the strings B G D Regular voicing, 1st inversion, 2nd inversion on the strings G D A Regular voicing, 1st inversion, 2nd inversion on the strings D A E There are actually three arpeggios that contain all 12 triad shapes. Each arpeggio contains four complete but different triads. These three are the most valuable because 1) They contain all 12 triads and 2) You can use them as a roadmap to create any number of triads by combining two or more. One arpeggio contains: The regular voicing on the strings e B G The 2nd inversion on the strings B G D The 1st inversion on the strings G D A The Regular voicing on the strings D A E The next arpeggio contains: The 2nd inversion on the strings e B G The 1st inversion on the strings B G D The regular voicing on the strings G D A The 2nd inversion voicing on the strings D A E And the last arpeggio: The 1st inversion on the strings e B G The regular voicing on the strings B G D The 2nd inversion on the strings G D A The 1st inversion voicing on the strings D A E Like I said above, between these three separate arpeggios, you cover all twelve possible unique triad shapes. If this doesn't make sense I can create a picture.

[@firdauszainudin7118]

Stranger Things

[@jake2355]

Haha finger

[@SimonFreston]

Mind blown, great lesson

[@cjbarrosocarlos]

I love you man. Thank you.