With springtime here, it's always good to try something new and unique- especially trying a new arrangement for fingerstyle guitar. "Sweet Melody" was one of my first arrangements for solo guitar. It was inspired by guitar hero Phil Keaggy and of course, I dedicated it to my girlfriend at the time.
The song starts out with a riff in 7/4 time using notes of the E major scale to emphasize movement and the tonic note. I quickly change to 4/4 using chord arpeggios to lead into the principal theme. I often use what I feel are Attention-grabbing chords/arpeggios to create sustained tones similar to those you would commonly find in piano music.
Now to the theme- In measure 14 you'll find a passage I teach to many of my students to get them into fingerstyle guitar. They think it's cool that they can play a part of one of my tunes! You'll notice I changed time signatures again, so that the bass notes ring out on beat one. I use a p i m i pattern in my right hand to move swiftly through this section.
I repeat the A section because it's interesting enough to merit a repeat, and then go to an arpeggio section with E-A-E chords guiding my way, switching positions to keep the right hand playing a similar pattern. I then repeat the B section and end the tune with a pattern similar to the theme using a C chord instead of C# and ending on the beautiful E add9 chord.
The neat thing about this piece is that you can play its component parts in any order you like. I've included markings above the staff so that you can learn the piece in sections. Follow the tablature to help you with the positions and you'll be good to go.
I hope you enjoy learning this tune and that it will make a great workout for both hands.
Best wishes,
Lance Allen
About the Author
Lance Allen was born and raised in Kentucky and first showed interest in the guitar at age 11. Being surrounded by music in his home, he began learning songs from his father and before long the guitar became his primary focus.
After a lot of practicing and playing, he began to pick the guitar with his fingers and discovered the possibilities of fingerstyle guitar. He learned songs from recordings by Chet Atkins, Tommy Emmanuel, Phil Keaggy, and other great fingerstyle guitarists. Soon, writing his own compositions became a normal part of daily life.
Now 27 years old and with a new acoustic guitar album called Sometime in Life to his credit, Lance continues on his musical journey. He teaches guitar fulltime and has been featured in Fingerstyle Guitar Magazine as well as on Nashville Public Television.
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Photo by Twila Allen
