Talk:Arpeggio

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I agree this article really is poorly written and is lacking. Arpeggiation is complex and warrants more description. Symbology/notation is not even discussed as there are wavy arpeggio lines for example that can be played differently on different instruments. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:1700:24D0:E00:2DA2:1E5:1174:A9BF (talk) 21:52, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

this article nmeeds serious help... the description of an arpeggio is very hazy.

actually a picture of a chord?

I agree, it is a chord. Does anyone have any information on the sound sample (e.g. its creator/origin)? (Adam B 20:27, 6 February 2007 (UTC))[reply]

I made the sound sample (it reads on the description page). ›mysid (☎∆✎) 10:36, 22 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, the example consists of a chord, but in addition has the arpeggio symbol preceding it. And below is one possible interpretation written out. There is some confusion regarding arpeggios because they can be written out with specific note durations, or indicated with the curly, vertical line, which is imprecise as to the duration that each note should receive. Often, the curly vertical symbol will have an arrow indicating if the arpeggio should be played upward or downward. And that points out another liimitation of the arpeggio symbol; that it can only indicate a strictly uni-directional arpeggio. Yamex5 23:40, 2 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I think this article deserves stub-status 85.165.225.33 20:06, 30 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Of course. Very few Wikipedians are experienced musicians.

But the answer to the squiggly line thing is "rolled chord", I think. --Uncle Ed (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 00:40, 30 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

This article has copied some bad definitions from elsewhere on the web. It needs to clarify why an arpeggio is not the same as a broken chord. Both involve sounding the constituent notes sequentially instead of at the same time (as in a normal chord) but I think there is a further difference involved. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.9.114.210 (talk) 11:50, 24 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A broken chord is not necessarily an arpeggio. In the context of playing the violin, breaking a chord means to separate the double stops, which is different than playing each note individually in an arpeggio. So why does broken chord redirect to Arpeggio?

--Heero Kirashami (talk) 23:32, 14 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Can you explain what double stops are? Please write your explanation in a way that makes sense to someone who is getting sort of hard of hearing, like me. For instance, I can hear drums (say, snare drums, bongo drums, and castanets), and have noticed that different drums have different kinds of frequencies associated with them. Since the main article indicates they must be struck separately, and not simultaneously, when is it done in an arpeggio, and when is it not done that way? The main article leaves me mystified as to what a broken chord is. 216.99.201.43 (talk) 03:34, 23 April 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I think what he means is that you would play the first and second note simultaneously and then the third and fourth note simultaneously when playing a four-voiced chord on the violin, since it's not possible to play all four strings at once on the violin. If you play it like that, you play a "broken chord", if you play every note separated from the other, you play an arpeggio. John M. Snow (talk) 16:22, 28 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

can we give some examples? for guitar arpeggio we could use the opening of the animals version of house of the rising sun. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.196.241.194 (talk) 14:44, 31 December 2008 (UTC)[reply]

A large section in the middle of the Chaconne, BWV 1004 for solo violin by J. S. Bach consists of arpeggios John M. Snow (talk) 16:24, 28 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Hmm, I think I can tell what this means. But it's incredibly unclear and might just need to be pruned. Huw Powell (talk) 22:52, 25 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I just took it out. It does make a certain vague sense, but needs clarification and better integration into the existing text. __ Just plain Bill (talk) 21:10, 27 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

- Sorry, but why is a C major arpeggio over two octaves C-E-G-C-G-E-C and not C-E-G-C-E-G-(c)? Below, the article says that playing notes of the chord out of sequence isn't an arpeggio, but that's exactly whats written in this example. I also don't think that this definition is correct, since on the guitar you have most chords with the tones "out of sequence" and you still call it arpeggios.John M. Snow (talk) 16:37, 28 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

- The statement "arpeggios are most often used in harp and piano music" seems quite arbitrary. Arpeggios are used extensively in the standard literature for bowed string instruments (e.g. Bach suites for violin and cello) and for guitar too, so I think this should be removed. Especially, since in the following section "Instruments", the harp isn't even mentioned as an instrument where arpeggios are used "most often".John M. Snow (talk) 16:37, 28 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

- The list of instruments where arpeggios are used "most often" is completely arbitrary (see comment above).

- The guitar section only focuses on electric guitars and leaves out the complete classical literature.

- A synthesizer is (most often) a keyboard instrument, yet it gets an own subitem. John M. Snow (talk) 16:37, 28 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I am an musician (oboe) and I have been playing for about four years. This article contradicts almost everything I know about arpeggios. To me, an arpeggio is a sequence of notes in a scale played in a certain, but not sequential. However, this article's definition (which I have seen elsewhere on the internet) defines it as a broken chord, and I am confused. Does anyone know why this is? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Hiku-me (talk • contribs) 23:55, 8 May 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Defining arpeggio as sequential implies strict ascending or descending order when sounding chord tones. In fact these are the only two sequential alternatives given in the article. However these alternatives do not cover all cases as other ordered patterns can satisfy the description of an arpeggiated accompaniment (arpeggio), such as the Alberti bass or batterie. The definitions of this article are over-restrictive. RichardJ Christie (talk) 11:09, 9 June 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This section is very poor. Arpeggio is a natural consequence using of a harmonic language in musical accompaniment and within a musical texture. It is therefore obvious that instruments commonly undertaking such a role (accompaniment) or providing supporting harmonic texture, (notably those capable of polyphony such as keyboards and fretted instruments), should be heard executing arpeggios more often than other instruments. One or two sentences could state this observation to good effect rather than provision of a lame list. I see little good justification for the section or list. RichardJ Christie (talk) 11:09, 9 June 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The link to the first sound example takes me to a secondary page instead of play. The second sound example works okay, so it's probably not my computer. The path looks different also.--2605:E000:864C:E900:30B8:4E98:40DE:3DAE (talk) 05:46, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

For some reason, the song in "Explanation" is Undefined. No idea how to fix it.

-FavoritoHJS (talk) 20:16, 16 June 2020 (UTC)[reply]

What song? I see only a sound file illustrating an ascending arpeggio. What is "undefined" about it?—Jerome Kohl (talk) 20:20, 16 June 2020 (UTC)[reply]

The chord in "Explanation". -FavoritoHJS (talk) 18:15, 24 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Right, that's the one I see. What is "undefined" about it?—Jerome Kohl (talk) 18:55, 24 July 2020 (UTC)[reply]