A Beginners Guide to Sweep Picking Arpeggios on Guitar

[mrcemetery]

Thank you for the concise instructions. Practice practice practice!

[9winters5]

when you talk about the different chord names and arpeggios i dont know exactly how to to figure them out and remeber them. i know all of my basic chords (C, D, G, A, E, Em, Am, Dm, Bm) and i memorized the major, minor, pentatonic major, and pentatonic minor scale patterns, i havnt worked with memorizing the scales all of the way across the fretboard. what would you recommend to help me learn things like arpeggios for moving chords, sweeping, etc., so it becomes almost natural?

[bequickx]

uhh?



[j0nnyb193]

Hi, thanks for the video it has been very helpful, I am still at a beginner sweep picking level and I am having problems synchronising my right and left hand. And when I do I find that when i pass over to the next string the string before rings out its open note almost as if i am pulling off every string I pass. Are there any tips you would recommend to fix these things or is the only solution doing it over and over until I suddenly don't do this anymore?

Cheers again

[1Blastarr]

will you be releasing your lessons to dvd?

[xLeGiTSniPeRx42]

i have a question so i hope someone can answer this, when you're sweep picking and you play a note do you have to lift that finger?

[FallenxEmersed]

@xLeGiTSniPeRx42 so it doesn't ring out, you should.

[BaptisedInAsh]

@xLeGiTSniPeRx42 Lifting your finger is one way to kill a ringing note (using the heel of your picking hand works better for me) , just don't pluck the string with your finger while you're lifting it... Or else you'll get a gnarly "BAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOHWWWWWWW­". XD

[yerfdog1935]

@BaptisedInAsh Whenever I try to do sweeps I lift my finger up too fast off the string and it does that. D:

[tomcaat1]

gotta love it when the ads pop up right in front of the guitar which the whole video is based on, thank God for the kill button

[TheyCallMeRaydeg]

Thank you!

[1chrisortiz]

can a brother gets some tabs for this vid? please and thank you 

[1chrisortiz]

can a brother gets some tabs for this vid? please and thank you

[marcushendriksen]

I know this is over a year old but do you have any tips for somebody that doesn't use a pick? I haven't used a pick in yonks, I find that I can play much better without one.

[tabber87]

I like how he goes from hours to months lol.

Good video though.

[bhaze9614]

hi, this is exactly what i needed! i have been playing guitar for about 4 years and now its time for me to learn argeggios and this is the song i want to learn this war is ours by escape the fate and its so hard i have to keep practising

[ontheprowlx56]

what are the tabs for the first sweep pattern you did for the up and down

[moneymoney220666]

great video. thanks alot but y does ur guitar sound like a church organ???

[JPOSS1]

At wht speed shud i get to before changing to the next excercise ???

[headnoker22]

well hmmm you said it could take months : / im trying to learn the arpeggio from two weeks by all that remains you probably havent heard of it but it a three string sweep and yea most of my problems are in my picking hand.... it would still take me a while to get all the speed there but any advice?

[legomanxd449]

How can you mute the strings properly?

[leonoff89]

how long should practice take like hours maybe

[hfish83]

exactlly. frank gambale does the most challenging things with sweep picking completely effortless and flawlessly.

[Entershikarifan99]

id just like to thank you as out of the 100s of sweep picking lessons i have cycled through i think your approach and step by steps have really helped

just one question though i seem to have the speed nearly sorted however when i put distortion on im having trouble muting whilst sweeping up

how do you do it?

[denisgiann]

@Entershikarifan99 every time you pick a note you just ease the pressure and the note is instantly muted while your finger is still hovering above the fret...check out my video for step by step instructions......

[yerfdog1935]

@Entershikarifan99 I would like to know this as well.

[marco136669]

7 ass wipes missed the like button

[usetheforce93]

I am trying to get into some faster stuff than the pentatonic scale, so I am looking at sweep picking and legato stuff. What should I start practicing?

[Blackjack030190]

Lol I spent so long (literally a few years now) trying too hard to sweep pick, trying to think about where both hands are going at the same time and so on - but when i heard you say it has to be very unconscious, I had never thought of that so I tried doing it on three strings without actually thinking much about where my pick hand is going and it actually improved things dramatically!

Thanks for all your lessons andrew you're the man 8D

[TSWfilms]

this has helped amazingly. You sir, are legitimate, and I subbed, man.

[bulldog1202017]

!:47 and nothing else matters,  by the way great lessons man

[OneLastFarewell69]

Thanks very much for this lesson man! I never could get the hang of practicing with a metronome with 3 string sweeping, and everyone says its such a crucial part of the development. After trying your pattern, I got the hang of it very quickly, and after just an hour of playing with the patterns all around the neck at different tempos using quarter. eighth and sixteenth notes, I can confidently say that my sweeping has improved. Thank you very much again!

[Chipwilliams77]

Your one of the only guitar teachers I trust on youtube.

[ShredGuitarAcademy]

@Chipwilliams77 You know I might have expected a comment like that from a Wilson or perhaps a Widgens, but a fellow Williams?! I'm a little insulted :(

[tnt420tnt]

do u have any tips on how 2 clean up the sweeps with the palm muteing

[varulv234]

@anarchyxxxguitar Why? 

[Skatebelledune]

Thats some dirty sweep Bo

[thehair616]

aaaa the fable major 7 arpeggio herman li would be proud

[f756t7t6]

You make it look easy :) So I tried it...turns out it's really hard :(

[Kardflow]

So when he was doing the a minor appregio at 5:18 and going up to G major F and E, the shape on each chord is all the same?

[lumaric01]

This didnt really help em :/ you cant really tell what your doing with your right hand.it would be better if it had close ups of your right hand -sighs but still I dont understand the sweep part

[Joenintey90]

you have really helped me out, you explained it very well! subscribed :)

[angelthecar]

thanks alot man it really helped me out . im beraly learning sweeps your vid by far the best ive seen.

[ryankuisti]

i started learning how to sweep pick by learning songs by the faceless. the song ancient covenant has some excellent sweep licks that really help

[MattHXIV]

@doritoman67

Do it slow enough that they can then youl naturally get faster

[RTE101]

I'd say I have sweep picking down well enough. (not that I care for "any certain popular genre associated with sweeping") But I thought it might be cool to expand my playing capabilities. And I've been playing that same few six-string patterns for a few years. It never just clicked. It comes very slowly, so slowly you won't notice for a long time, so don't be in any hurry.

[drjakim]

if u dont have a metronome is there another thing you can do or practice to help get better at this

[MirorsAndObfuscation]

@drjakim bestmetronome (dot) com

self explanatory lol

[P2GearsOfWar]

Whats that on the bottom of the guitar?

[MrFluffay]

it would be nice to see a sweep tapping lesson

[sugarraimz020]

did u hav a tab of dis kind of sweep excercise!?

[doritoman67]

i can do the picking but i can't get my fingers to match with it. please give me a tip.

[Musacation]

@doritoman67 same here

[doritoman67]

@Musacation i can get down the picking but the fingers wont match my speed that i pick in, any ideas?

[flip3213]

crazy dude u can do anything haha

[Hertsman50]

It's so fucking difficult, I just can't get it. I can shred the fuck out of my guitar but I just can't get a nice fluid motion with the sweep technique. I can just about handle 3 note sweep arps but anything beyond that is just not happening. Great lesson dude, so refreshing to see someone that is trying to teach and not show off.

[deeasheman]

you are the least pretentious guitar player/teacher i have had the pleasure of watching.....GREAT job

[panpeus]

This is a beginner's guide? O__O  Wow, I am not as good as I thought...

[venom1stas]

nice lesson! thanks

[gwuitoar]

Great video! It's good to mention the details of te right hand. They didn't mentioned that in other video's. Thanks, man!

[letsplaywiththunder]

ur jus sooo awesome! .... plz plz keep up the good work :) ...

[crankycactus]

i never think to use power chord shapes for sweeping... cool... honestly once you do learn to sweep... it is incredibly consuming ...i could have learned so much more in the tie that i have just been sitting here sweeping all day...too much fun...

[skyprop]

So r u sweeping in chord shapes or chords or are you  running scales? Or both? could one do both? Please clarifiy

Thanks!

[guitaristman23]

broken up chords except malmsteen has a weird way of sweeping

[CrazeSniper]

@guitaristman23 -------- you mean malmsteen AND Jason Becker

[pezilla123]

you molested that guitar. lol

[BerufsschulblockNY]

That is the first video i watched which is really helpfull for beginners. Wonderful, thanks for that!

[legoracerpenguin12]

finally right hand correct!

[cowboytonydee]

lol, the camera is too slow for his fingers.

[GuitarLoverX]

I don't get why you get so offensive.. I just told you what I thought was most important.. Don't get psyco at me for that.

[randomriffsrawsome]

I must say at first I'm like lol nerd...(no offence) but then u started playing and my mouth dropped xD thanks for the help!!!!

[Saimenism]

@randomriffsrawsome almost all guitargods are guitar 'nerds'. It means their life is just all about playing guitar. It's like the same as computer'nerd'

[GuitarLoverX]

I think the most important thing to practise is timing.. simply syncronising both hands is probably the most important thing about a Sweep.

[AlienV8]

I really like the way you described each individual part of the technique. Alot better than most videos!

[ThatGuy143]

Thank you so much!!!! I thought I would never learn to sweep pick.

[Matjex]

dude i love your videos so much, you help me quite alot!!!

[69erthx1138]

Solid lesson, you go through a lot sweep fundamentals.

[Tomkat1133]

good for people who know about the movements with the hands, what about the placement of the right hand during the sweep and the motion of the fingers pulling off the notes with the left, i can sit there and do that all day long but it doesnt sound like that, can you show the pre-technique, like super basic?

[manoftheband]

what were your return notes after that 2nd arpeggio you played, the maj 7th?

[kamidmen08]

the only problem with this video is he expects that everyone knows all the notes he is using

[robothenry]

there are beginning music theory video for that

[inesenthm]

Get your ear training up to par and you'll be able to recognize it too.

[bleach6bleach]

they're just chord shapes, you can look them up, you should probably learn those before sweeping

[joyourin08]

how do i train my right hand ? my upstroke is bad lol

[heroinbob420666]

Kickass lesson man!! ive been dying to figure out how to sweep and sure enough this video taught me..im getting the 3 string down pretty good.. thanks!

[Stealthmachin3]

I've been just doing the same sweeps over and over and i'd say that seeing this 3 string sweep will help me out dramatically if i keep practicing with it. Not to mention it sounds like a sweep thats easy to work with.

[KevinGuitarMan]

Ive been doing the first sweep he does on this vid for about 10 minutes straight for about 3 weeks and it helps a lot! You just gotta start out slow and easy then gradually youll get faster over time.

[Slasherrrrr]

I just have to say this....

THATS WHAT SHE SAID!!! lol

but yeah, its freaking hard to sweep pick...i got the right hand down, its just the notes...lol sounds wierd but yeah

[espmh1000]

Excellent guide. The thing people probably hate about it is the fact that you CAN'T become amazing at sweeping overnight, unless you're some kind of musical prodigy.

It takes a considerable amount of practicing, just like anything else with guitar.

[abakerdabra]

I spent all day yesterday trying to learn me some sweep picking and this video was very informative. Great teaching, keep up the good work! And more videos please :)

[CBKproductionz]

i have a question. i've been workin on sweep picking for a bout a week and i noticed that it's a lot easier to do with a thinner pick for me. i just don't know which has a better tone quality, thin or thick picks.

[creativeguitarstudio]

Hello CBKproductionz,

In the long run a thicker pick is what you may want to lean toward. The thicker picks will allow you to have more control over dynamics. The sweep technique has a lot to do with pick angle. Your hand will change on up and down sweeps. Watch the video here closely on how my picking hand changes it's angle.

I personally use a very thick pick. The Jim Dunlop Tortex Jazz H3's. The tone and attack from it produce an excellent sound.

Hope this helps,

Andrew W.

[CBKproductionz]

thanks. i was just at my friend's house actually and i was showing him how far i got with sweep picking and he gave me the same exact pick you recommended and it sounded great. i even asked him if i could have it lol. thanks for the advice!

[CBKProProto06]

ummm....why do we have similar names? lol

[CBKproductionz]

lol that's very interesting

[CBKProProto06]

HAHAHAHAHAHA good stuff

[notuern]

Hi!

I just wanted to think what you think about tortex as a material?

Im currently playing with regular Jazz 3's and think that they feel really good, but i really want to get more in contact with the instrument, which i have heard that tortex does.. so is it true? Does tortex make it feel like you are more in contact with the string/guitar then regular nylon picks?

[JurassicIce]

I use the exact same pick

[midget6mafia]

@creativeguitarstudio do you think you could do like a speed video, because im learning alot of yngwie and im having a tough time breaking through, like i can play alot of his stuff but some things just kinda restrain me

[L0GANTP]

@creativeguitarstudio what would you say is the minimal thickness in a pick to use when sweeping, i pretty much only use Dunlop Ultex .73s because of all the picks i had that was the most comfortable pick to play with, is that thick enough? or should i use thicker? and is it really the thickness that matters or is it how much the pick will bend when being used that matters?

[BaptisedInAsh]

@L0GANTP I like Dunlop Jazz III (I wanna say 1.18 mm thickness) because the pointy tip feels more accurate, the nylon is more flexible [even though1.18 has barely any give XD ] than regular picks and it has a mellow tone... but if the Rhino .73s are comfy for you i'd say stick with 'em. If I'm not mistaken I think Dave Mustaine uses a .73 gauge, but don't quote me on that. As long as your technique, timing and timbre are good then it doesn't matter what you use!

[jamesredfield]

@CBKproductionz get a Jazz III pick , they're thicker and small enough to do sweeps reeeaaaaly easy

[mulli37]

@CBKproductionz

I love the nylon pics

[mulli37]

@CBKproductionz

I love the nylon pics, both heavy and soft, you can get both out of a nylon, depending on how you hold it.

[ENDVash]

thanks for the video dude this will probably help a bunch

[fede1736]

Thanks for the videos and the device answer.

[fede1736]

May I ask something, what is that black device that your guitar has?

[cnmaster01]

its a midi pickup it needs that box to output the signal

[KGuitaristCopperHead]

Awesome Video, you seem to know your stuff, did you learn Music Theory, because i'm positive you did.

[nblax41]

he went to GIT

[chacojepas]

O.o

Andrew Angelo Batio

:D

[nblader]

Awesome, thank you very much! :)

I'm kinda stable with the 3-string-sweep (to be precise, i'm at 66 BPM atm). I'll practice it a few more days, and then move on to your 4-string-sweep.

Best instructional video on YouTube. ^^

[orrekorre]

5:22 is that the same shape as Steve vai uses in the crossroads duel at the end ?

[jipidibipity]

favorite that!

[Kallbrandzor]

great guide! thanks a lot man!

[SGVB22]

what kind of strat is that?

the pickup is diff

[creativeguitarstudio]

SGVB22,

It is a 1991 U.S.A. Stratocaster with a Seymour Duncan "Hot Rail" in the bridge pos. and another Duncan "Cool Rail" in the neck pos. The middle pick-up is the stock Strat single-coil. I also have a Roland GK-3 Divided Pickup installed for use in my GR-20 system.

- Andrew Wasson

[chadmbedwell]

Good Lesson for those for are starting off.Very well instructed!!!!!!!!!!

[Y9Y7Y7Y6]

great vid

could you possibly email me the tabs to the sweeps please

thanks

[paulthaddeus1974]

Very useful, concise and clear. You must be a joy to take a lesson from.

[sedativechunk]

I agree, nice video. Thanks for posting. I think the best way to gain speed at sweep picking is to use a metronome and practice the notes slowly like you say. I've been working on sweep picking consistently the past month.

[KuraiX]

I also recommend checking out and learning say, master sweeps

For example, there is some great sweeping on the start of the Crushing Day solo, by Joe Satriani. Another one that hepls is Michael Angelo Batio, around 1 min in the song No Boundaries. Killer sweeps, sound amazingly cool ^^

And the sweep master to me: Jason Becker. Look up his albums Perpetual Burn and with Cacophony. And also for a good listen (not much shred), my favourite album "Perspective", just too amazing

[roflgoodgame]

excellent videos, enjoyed your satriani vs coldplay video as well. did not want to go through the trouble to hearing the songs and that video was perfect for me. being a guitar player for only 2 years i will continue to watch your videos as i progress

[danenachtrieb]

ive found no matter what i play, the best guitar for sweeping is a strat.

[pbourget]

You should have your own DVD lessons on the market Andrew. Very clear instruction.

[j0ey3200]

Really good video.  Thanks!

[Draugoth]

Great lessons! I'll be practicing these shapes alot now.

[HugoDesMusic]

Great vid !

[saronix]

Awesome video, there wasn't very many on this particular technique -- especially not good ones.