Skip to content
DelcoGuitarAcademy@Gmail.com484-442-0773
 0

View CartCheckout

  • No products in the cart.

Subtotal: $0.00

View CartCheckout

My Account

Login or Register
Delco Guitar Academy
Delaware County’s School for Online Guitar Lessons
Delco Guitar Academy
  • How Lessons Work
  • Lesson Plans
  • Free Lessons
    • Video LessonsFree video guitar lessons! Examining the great licks from players of all genres, focusing on 10 or more licks per video. Examples, shown at full speed, 75% speed, and 50% speed. These are not just ‘performance’ videos. Tabs are included, as well as variations on each example shown.
    • Teaching
    • Practice Better
    • Beginner Guitar
    • Chords
    • Scales
    • Improvisation
    • Songwriting
    • Lead Guitar
  • Shop
    • Merch
    • E books
  • About Us
    • Testimonials
    • FAQs
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
Schedule A Lesson
  • How Lessons Work
  • Lesson Plans
  • Free Lessons
    • Video LessonsFree video guitar lessons! Examining the great licks from players of all genres, focusing on 10 or more licks per video. Examples, shown at full speed, 75% speed, and 50% speed. These are not just ‘performance’ videos. Tabs are included, as well as variations on each example shown.
    • Teaching
    • Practice Better
    • Beginner Guitar
    • Chords
    • Scales
    • Improvisation
    • Songwriting
    • Lead Guitar
  • Shop
    • Merch
    • E books
  • About Us
    • Testimonials
    • FAQs
    • Careers
    • Contact Us

Sweep Picking – Easy Variations

You are here:
  1. Home
  2. Classic Solos
  3. Sweep Picking – Easy Variations
May112018
Classic SolosEar TrainingEssential SkillsIntermediate MethodLead GuitarPractice BetterQuick TipsRockTechnique

Sweep Picking – Easy Variations

Sweep Picking! This article will discuss basic ways to get more out of basic sweep picking, particularly 3 string arpeggios. All examples shown are based on the A minor arpeggio and are usually the first sweep picking exercise a student learns. Pay careful attention to the pick direction, as notated in each exercise.

 

Here we have the first example. Usually this is the first example someone learns when studying lead guitar, arpeggios, especially shred based metal guitarists. A straightforward A minor arpeggio, using the notes A, C, and E. The first three strings are all downstrokes, hence the term “sweep”. The highest note, A, is an upstroke pulling off to E, then back down the scale until you return to the same note you started with.

 

Here we have the same pattern, only the pull off from A to E is the first part of the phrase. In the earlier example that part of the lick didn’t happen until beat 2. What we essentially did was re-arrange the lick. Using the same notes, but displacing exactly where we play them in time. Playing this to a metronome or a backing track will really help how different these two phrases are (although the notes are the same, the order is not)

 

We have the same idea with this example, although this one is harder. We start halfway through the “sweep” part of the lick, on C, which means the pull off from A to E will end up feeling earlier, as the note E now strikes on a downbeat. As before, playing this with a backing track or metronome will be extremely helpful. It would be tough to mentally internalize this lick without it, as you’re really playing the same lick, but your sense of where the strong beats are changes.

 

Here we have the final lick for these examples. Once again, the notes presented are rearranged in time. Meaning, certain notes will have more authority over others based on where they fall in the measure. Here, E and C fall on the strongest beats. The pull off that was originally on a strong beat is now on a very weak beat. It will feel quite different doing this than the first example.

 

As you can see, rearranging simple examples can really add alot to ideas you may already know. We’ll add more examples of this in upcoming articles. Try it out with licks you already know!

Author: Michael Campanile

Post navigation

PreviousPrevious post:Major Scale ExerciseNextNext post:Dominate Your Scales!

Related Posts

11 questions about modes answered
11 Questions About Modes Answered!
February 13, 2021
5 Practice Room Musts
5 Practice Room Musts
December 1, 2020
How to play “Take the A Train” on Guitar
March 17, 2020
How to create lots of material for improvisation
October 15, 2019
How to Improve Your Left Hand Technique pt. 6
July 25, 2019
How to Improve your Left Hand Technique pt. 5
July 24, 2019

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

We want to hear from you!

    Your favorite Styles of Music:
    RockBluesJazzMetalCountryPunkGarage

    Recent Free Lesson Blog Posts
    • 11 questions about modes answered
      11 Questions About Modes Answered!
      February 13, 2021
    • Understand Major 7th Chords
      January 14, 2021
    • DGA ONLINE RECITAL 2020
      DGA 2020 Online Recital
      January 12, 2021
    Categories
    Archives
    Quick Links
    • Home
    • Lesson Plans
    • Free Lessons
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    Contact Us
    For inquiries about our guitar lessons or if you have a questions / comments for us, please send a message or give us a call and we'll be in reply ASAP.
    • Email
      DelcoGuitarAcademy@Gmail.com
    • Phone
      484-442-0773

    Find us on:

    Facebook page opens in new window
    Subscribe to our mailing list


    Delco Guitar Academy
    © 2018 Delco Guitar Academy | All Rights Reserved
    • My Account
    • Careers
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Refund Policy
    • FAQ’s
    Resources