Guitar arpeggio
F# Diminished Guitar Arpeggio
F# Diminished is a three-note arpeggio built from F#, A, and C. It is also commonly called F# Diminished Triad. Use it to study chord tones, interval formulas, and guitar fretboard positions.
- Chord tones
- F#, A, C
- Formula
- 1 b3 b5
- Semitones
- 0 3 6
- Chord symbols
- F#dim
- Also called
- F# Diminished Triad
How to read this arpeggio
The chord tones are shown as pitch classes first. In the fretboard tool, square markers represent F# root notes, while circular markers represent the remaining tones in the arpeggio.
Use the interactive fretboard to locate the F# root notes and connect the remaining diminished chord tones across standard tuning.
This same arpeggio shape is also commonly called F# Diminished Triad.
Chord construction and defining tones
F# diminished combines b3 (A) and b5 (C). Two stacked minor thirds produce the minor third and diminished fifth that define the triad's unstable sound.
Harmonic use
Use this arpeggio over F#dim or as a leading-tone shape that pushes toward a chord one semitone above its root.
Practice this arpeggio on guitar
- Play the F# Diminished arpeggio from one F# root to the next in at least two fretboard positions, saying each note name and interval degree aloud.
- Cycle through b3 (A) and b5 (C) in three-note groups and resolve the flat fifth by a semitone in either direction.
- Create a tense F# diminished line, then resolve every note by the smallest available move into a nearby major or minor triad.
Fretboard diagram
Open this arpeggio in the fretboard tool
Start with F# Diminished loaded, then adjust tuning, labels, colors, fret count, and orientation.
Open in interactive fretboard