# AI Wiki - Music - Fingerstyle Arranging ## Concept A fingerstyle (solo guitar) arrangement turns a song into a piece one guitar can play alone: the **melody** that a singer would sing, the **bass** that a bass player would play, and enough **harmony** in between to imply the chords. Wikipedia's definition of fingerstyle already contains the idea: the fingers can play "bass, chords, and melody at the same time". Patterns ([[AI Wiki - Music - Fingerpicking Patterns]]) accompany a melody; an arrangement contains it. Arranging for a band (who plays what, when) is a wider subject covered in [[AI Wiki - Music - Arranging Songs]]. Here the band is one guitar and ten fingers. ## The three layers Steve Krenze's method (Gibson's Learn & Master Guitar) is the standard three-step recipe: 1. **Melody on top.** "Our ears generally hear the highest notes in any music as the melody." If the melody sits below the accompaniment it gets lost, and the arrangement "is going to sound muddy." Fingers i, m, a usually play it, mostly on strings 1-3. 2. **Bass on the bottom.** "Put the bass notes, or the roots of the chords, on the bottom." The thumb plays them. 3. **Harmony in the middle.** "Put the rest of the harmony between the bass notes and the melody": inner [[AI Wiki - Music - Chord Tones and Improvisation|chord tones]], [[AI Wiki - Music - Arpeggios|arpeggios]] or a moving line, as much as the hands allow. The order matters: melody first (it's the song), bass second (it's the harmony's foundation and the groove), fill last (it's optional). A melody over a bass note on each chord change already sounds like a complete piece; the fill is decoration. ## Step 1: pick the song and learn the melody - **Choose a strong, simple tune** with a clear [[AI Wiki - Music - Common Chord Progressions|chord progression]]; [[AI Wiki - Music - Folk Music|folk songs]], hymns, lullabies and slow [[AI Wiki - Music - Pop Music|pop]] ballads arrange well. Fast, wordy melodies (rap, patter songs) don't. - **Learn to sing or hum the melody** and work it out on the guitar by ear ([[AI Wiki - Music - Transcription and Playing by Ear]]). Write it down in tab. - **Know the chords**, and where in the bar they change. A [[AI Wiki - Music - Playing from Lead Sheets|lead sheet]] (melody plus chord symbols) is the ideal starting document. ## Step 2: choose the key The key decides whether an arrangement is playable. Krenze: "It's easiest to stick to guitar friendly keys like G, C, D, or A." Add E and A minor, E minor and D minor. Those keys work because: - **Their roots are open bass strings** (E, A, D) or close to them (G, C), so the thumb can play a bass note while the left hand frets the melody higher up. - **Their chords are [[AI Wiki - Music - Guitar Open Chords|open chords]]** whose top notes can be swapped for melody notes without changing the whole shape. - **The melody can sit in first position on strings 1-3**, where open strings help. Test a key by placing the melody's highest and lowest notes: the top note should be playable on the high E string (ideally below fret 8) and the lowest note no lower than the open G string, or the melody runs into the bass. In G, a melody between the open G string and fret 5 of the high E string covers a full octave plus: ```fretboard scale: G major tuning: G3 B3 E4 frets: 0-5 labels: degrees title: Melody zone in G: strings 3-1, frets 0-5 ``` If the original key is awkward (B flat, E flat), arrange in a friendly key and use a capo to get back to the original pitch, or to fit a singer ([[AI Wiki - Music - Capo and Transposition]]). ## Step 3: harmonize the melody For each melody note, find a chord shape that contains it on top, or that leaves the melody string free: - **Melody note in the chord**: play it as the top note of that chord's shape. - **Melody note not in the chord** (a passing note): play it alone over the sustained bass, or over a held chord tone. - **Melody too high for the open shape**: use a smaller chord fragment higher up: only the bass note plus the melody, or a [[AI Wiki - Music - Triads|triad]] shape on strings 1-3 ([[AI Wiki - Music - Triads on the Fretboard]]). It's normal to change the voicing every beat or two. You don't need full six-string chords: two or three notes (bass, melody, maybe one inner note) are enough. ## Worked example: "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" in G A public-domain tune in G with only G, C and D, three of Sébastien's open chords. Melody: G G D D | E E D | C C B B | A A G. ```chord columns: 3 --- symbol: G frets: 320003 fingers: 210003 title: G --- symbol: C frets: x32010 fingers: x32010 title: C --- symbol: D frets: xx0232 fingers: xx0132 title: D ``` Layer 1, the melody alone, all on strings 1-3 in first position: ```chords {title: Layer 1: the melody alone (key of G)} {time: 4/4} {comment: G G D D | E E D - | C C B B | A A G -, all on the top three strings in first position.} {start_of_tab} e|-------------|-0--0--------|-------------|-------------| B|-------3--3--|-------3-----|-1--1--0--0--|-------------| G|-0--0--------|-------------|-------------|-2--2--0-----| D|-------------|-------------|-------------|-------------| A|-------------|-------------|-------------|-------------| E|-------------|-------------|-------------|-------------| 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 {end_of_tab} ``` Layer 2: add the chord's root with the thumb on beats 1 and 3, pinched together with the melody note. Already a recognisable arrangement. ```chords {title: Layer 2: melody plus the root on beats 1 and 3} {time: 4/4} {start_of_tab} e|-------------|-0--0--------|-------------|-------------| B|-------3--3--|-------3-----|-1--1--0--0--|-------------| G|-0--0--------|-------------|-------------|-2--2--0-----| D|-------------|-------------|-------------|-0-----------| A|-------------|-3-----------|-3-----------|-------------| E|-3-----3-----|-------3-----|-------3-----|-------3-----| G C G C G D G 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 {end_of_tab} ``` Layer 3: the thumb plays every beat, alternating the root with a second chord tone (G-D, C-E, D-A), as in [[AI Wiki - Music - Travis Picking]]. The melody stays on top. Every note in this tab comes from the G, C and D shapes above, so hold each shape for its beats and let the notes ring. ```chords {title: Layer 3: melody over an alternating bass} {time: 4/4} {comment: The thumb plays every beat (root, then a second chord tone); the fingers play the melody on top. Hold each chord shape for its beats so the notes ring.} {start_of_tab} e|-------------|-0--0--------|-------------|-------------| B|-------3--3--|-------3-----|-1--1--0--0--|-------------| G|-0--0--------|-------------|-------------|-2--2--0-----| D|----0-----0--|----2-----0--|----2-----0--|-0--------0--| A|-------------|-3-----------|-3-----------|----0--------| E|-3-----3-----|-------3-----|-------3-----|-------3-----| G C G C G D G 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 {end_of_tab} ``` The next layers: put eighth-note fills on the "ands" (inner chord tones on the G or B string) where the melody holds a long note, as at the end of bars 2 and 4; then vary the bass with walking notes into the next chord (B to C, for example). ## Tunings that help - **Drop D** (low E down to D): songs in D get a low D root on the open 6th string, so the thumb can drone a deep bass while the melody moves freely above. Persinger's strummed example in D uses this tuning. A D chord in Drop D uses all six strings: ```chord symbol: D frets: 000232 fingers: 000132 tuning: Drop D title: D in Drop D (all six strings) ``` - **DADGAD and open tunings** (open D, open G): many open strings ring as drones, so a melody fretted on one or two strings sounds full; favoured for Celtic and modern acoustic arrangements. See [[AI Wiki - Music - Alternate Tunings]]. - **Capo**: keeps the arrangement's shapes while moving the key; also brightens the sound. ## Arranging styles Shawn Persinger (Premier Guitar, "Three Sides to Solo Guitar") arranges the same tune, "When the Saints Go Marching In", three ways: 1. **Strummed**: melody and chords strummed together, with open strings and harmonics droning (key of D, 6th string tuned to D). 2. **Travis picking**: thumb on roots and fifths, melody on the higher strings (key of C). "If it's difficult, practice the top and bottom lines separately." 3. **[[AI Wiki - Music - Jazz Music|Jazz]] bass line**: a walking eighth-note bass under the melody, which "often avoids the root on the downbeat" (key of A). His advice applies to any song: "strip it down to the bare melody and harmony, and then put it back together." Further reading for richer harmony: [[AI Wiki - Music - Reharmonization]] (substitute chords under the same melody) and [[AI Wiki - Music - Harmonics]] (bell-like melody notes). ## How to practise - **Each layer alone first**: melody alone, bass alone, then together, as Persinger recommends. - **Slow enough to keep the melody singing**: the melody should be louder than the rest; practise accenting the top note of each pinch. - **Record and compare with the original melody**: if a listener can't hum the song from your recording, the melody is buried ([[AI Wiki - Music - Recording Yourself]]). - **Start with tunes you can sing**: Monda's advice for Travis picking is to apply it to songs you already know, "from simple [[AI Wiki - Music - Country Music|country]] tunes to jazz standards". - **Write the arrangement down** in tab as you go; arrangements made by ear are easily forgotten. ## Common mistakes - **Too many notes**: a dense fill that hides the melody. Fewer notes, louder melody. - **Melody below the accompaniment**: the ear follows the top line, whatever you meant. - **Ignoring the key**: an arrangement in the original key may need impossible stretches; transpose first. - **Changing the melody's rhythm to fit the fingers**: the tune's rhythm is part of what makes it recognisable ([[AI Wiki - Music - Melody and Phrasing]]). ## Key Points - Three layers: melody on top (fingers), bass on the bottom (thumb), harmony filled in between, in that order of importance. - Guitar-friendly keys (G, C, D, A, E, Am, Em) put roots on open bass strings and the melody on strings 1-3. - Harmonize each melody note with a shape that has it on top; two or three notes are enough. - Drop D, DADGAD and open tunings add drones and low roots; a capo restores the original key. - Practise layers separately, keep the melody loudest, and write the arrangement down. ## Open Questions - Which song from Sébastien's list makes a good first arrangement after "Twinkle"? - At what point does arranging by ear beat working from a lead sheet? ## References - Steve Krenze, "Creating a Simple Fingerstyle Guitar Arrangement", Gibson's Learn & Master Guitar blog (2010): https://www.learnandmaster.com/guitar-blog/gibsons-learn-master-guitar/creating-a-simple-fingerstyle-guitar-arrangement - Shawn Persinger, "Three Sides to Solo Guitar", Premier Guitar (2017): https://www.premierguitar.com/lessons/three-sides-to-solo-guitar - Tom Monda, "Twang 101: Travis Picking Essentials", Premier Guitar (2013): https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/19838-twang-101-travis-picking-essentials - Wikipedia, "Fingerstyle guitar": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fingerstyle_guitar - Mike Dawes, "Travis picking: how to fingerpick like Merle Travis", Guitar World (2019): https://www.guitarworld.com/lessons/how-fingerpick-merle-travis ## Related - [[AI Wiki - Music - Fingerpicking]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Travis Picking]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Fingerpicking Patterns]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Percussive Fingerstyle]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Classical Guitar Technique]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Arranging Songs]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Alternate Tunings]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Capo and Transposition]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Melody and Phrasing]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Transcription and Playing by Ear]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Triads on the Fretboard]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Reharmonization]] - [[AI Wiki - Music - Classical Guitar]]