John Scofield's Two-Note-Per-String Arpeggios (With Examples From His Solos)
Nov 07, 2026Short answer: John Scofield often plays arpeggios two notes per string, using hammer-ons and pull-offs instead of picking every note. The two-note path runs diagonally, so it moves you across the fretboard quickly. His favorite version is over 7♯11 chords: over F7 that's F, A, E♭ and B (root, major 3rd, ♭7, ♯11). He uses the same path in solo after solo (Charlie Chan, Confirmation, Autumn Leaves), and when he wants to stay in position he switches to arpeggios with one note per string.
Lots of students tell me one of their goals is to play across the whole fretboard with no limitations. Today we're looking at John Scofield's two-note-per-string arpeggio approach. I'd only been using it briefly while I worked on this lesson and already saw a ton of progress. ▶ 0:00
| Example | Chord | What Scofield does |
|---|---|---|
| Charlie Chan | F7♭9♯11 | B and E♭ (♯11 and ♭7), then G♭ and F (♭9 and root), resolving to B♭ ▶ 2:02 |
| Second F7 line | F7♯11 | F, A, E♭, B: the core two-note-per-string shape ▶ 3:15 |
| Confirmation | G-7 to C7, played as C7♯11 | the same path as the F7 shape, continued further down ▶ 5:23 |
| Autumn Leaves (measure 33) | A-7, D7, GMaj.7 | D7 arpeggio over the A-7, then half steps and two-note pull-offs over D7 ▶ 6:37 |
| Autumn Leaves (measure 37) | F♯-7♭5, B7 | half-step pairs: C♯ and C, G and F♯, D♯ and D, C and B ▶ 9:01 |
| G7♯11 lick | G7♯11 | stays in position: root, ♭7, ♯11, 3rd, with the big leap from the 7th to the ♯11 ▶ 12:02 |
What "two-note arpeggios" means
I mean using two notes on every string. A lot of the arpeggios we learn have two notes on some strings and one on others, and that change affects how you pick and how your technique goes. ▶ 0:58
Scofield's picking approach informs everything else in his lines. It's much closer to Pat Metheny than to George Benson, who I talk about a lot: Scofield uses a lot of two notes per string, rarely four, and he plays them with hammer-ons and pull-offs. ▶ 1:21
Example 1: Charlie Chan (F7♭9♯11)
This line is from his solo on Charlie Chan, over F7♭9♯11. The two-note-arpeggio part starts with B natural and E♭: over F7 that's the ♯11 and the ♭7. He finishes the sound with the ♭9, G♭, and the root, F. ▶ 2:02
He could have kept going: continue the pattern down and you'll see how quickly it takes you across the fretboard. Here he resolves right away because the harmony goes to B♭ major. When he hits that E♭, instead of continuing the arpeggio, he resolves. That's true for any line you're working on: the idea could continue, but when the harmony changes you have the option to resolve. ▶ 2:39
Example 2: the core 7♯11 shape
Another line over F7♯11. Look at the middle part first: F, A (the major 3rd), E♭ (the ♭7) and B (the ♯11). That's an F7♯11 sound, and this pattern is the two-note-per-string arpeggio. Scofield plays it with pull-offs, and you can continue it up; he could have started up on that F. He's visualizing a two-note-per-string path that goes down diagonally. ▶ 3:15
On the first string he only plays one of the two notes. The path is still two notes per string; he uses one of them because, in the moment, he wants to land a certain note on a downbeat or an upbeat. ▶ 3:58
Fingering: don't roll your first finger. Shift instead: 3-1, 3-1, third finger and first finger, all the way down. ▶ 4:38
How I know he thinks this way
I analyzed a whole bunch of his transcriptions across a ton of different songs, and he uses this pattern constantly: it's in basically every solo I looked at. I wasn't looking for it; it's just the pattern I kept seeing. ▶ 4:49
On Confirmation he plays the same pattern over a ♯11 chord, just a different one. It's really a ii-V, G-7 to C7, but he treats the whole thing as C7♯11, anticipating the V chord. It's the same path we had for the F7, continued further down. I pick it, because that's my technique; he uses pull-offs. ▶ 5:23
Example 3: a ii-V-I on Autumn Leaves
Does he only do this on single chords? No: he thinks this way generally, almost no matter what he's soloing over. On Autumn Leaves (measure 33: A-7, D7, GMaj.7) he plays the whole ii-V-I with two-note-per-string ideas and lots of hammer-ons and pull-offs. ▶ 5:46
- Over A-7 he's really just playing over D7: a D7 arpeggio, A, C, D, F♯. ▶ 6:37
- Over D7 come the half steps and dissonances Scofield is known for. I think he uses them partly because they're so useful with two notes per string: his harmonic choices come partly from what he's doing technically on the guitar. ▶ 6:48
- He plays the 3rd to the ♯9, a very common diminished or melodic minor pattern (I've talked about it in a Benson lesson). Next he plays G and F over D7 instead of F♯, because he's focused on keeping two notes per string. ▶ 7:21
- Then he voice-leads into G major, sort of like a G7♭9 going to G major, another pattern he uses a lot. ▶ 7:57
He doesn't use two notes per string for every arpeggio, especially going up. On the descending side he uses these two-note arpeggios much more often. ▶ 7:57
Example 4: the minor ii-V on Autumn Leaves
Over the minor ii-V (measure 37: F♯-7♭5 to B7) you still hear the harmony, but he's playing mostly half steps: C♯ and C, G and F♯, D♯ and D, then C and B. That's the same diminished pattern as before, this time over B7, plus the 3-1, shift, 3-1 pattern we saw on the F7♯11 and the C7. It's a totally different way through these changes. ▶ 8:34
What's good about these half steps is that they create their own voice leading: each one sounds like it wants to go to the next note. ▶ 10:19
A second minor ii-V example (measure 69) is a variation in the same position. He plays around a G major triad with the same little diminished pattern, then goes back up and uses another chromaticism to resolve to B instead of down to G. ▶ 10:45
When he uses one note per string instead
Two-note arpeggios move you down in position quickly. Sometimes you don't want that, because you're already up high and don't want to take your solo lower. That's when Scofield uses arpeggios with one note per string, which keep you in position. ▶ 11:24
Example: a lick over G7♯11. With the two-note approach from the F7♯11, the notes would be the root, the ♭7, the ♯11 and the 3rd. He uses those, but expands on the idea to stay in position, including the big leap from the 7th to the ♯11, a really common move in his two-note arpeggios. Visualize G7♯11 as you see the lick. ▶ 12:02
How to practice it
Don't just watch this as infotainment. Take each idea and apply it over a chord change in all five positions, so you have a real way of practicing it. ▶ 13:12
Frequently asked questions
What are John Scofield's two-note arpeggios?
Arpeggios played with two notes on every string, usually with hammer-ons and pull-offs. The path runs diagonally down the neck, so it moves you across the fretboard quickly. His most common version is over 7♯11 chords: root, 3rd, ♭7 and ♯11.
How does John Scofield pick?
His picking is much closer to Pat Metheny's than to George Benson's: lots of two notes per string, rarely four, played with hammer-ons and pull-offs. That technique shapes the lines he plays.
What notes are in an F7♯11 arpeggio?
F, A, E♭ and B: the root, major 3rd, ♭7 and ♯11. In his Charlie Chan solo, Scofield starts from B and E♭ and finishes with G♭ (the ♭9) and F.
What fingering works for two-note-per-string arpeggios?
Third finger and first finger on each string, 3-1, then shift and 3-1 again. Don't roll the first finger.
Why does Scofield use so many half steps?
They fit the two-note-per-string approach, and they create their own voice leading: each half step sounds like it wants to resolve to the next note. On Autumn Leaves he plays C♯ and C, G and F♯, D♯ and D, C and B over F♯-7♭5 to B7.
Keep learning
- How to sound like Pat Metheny: the player whose picking approach is closest to Scofield's
- George Benson's fast arpeggios: the opposite picking approach, for comparison
- Jazz guitar arpeggio workout: ii-V arpeggios through all keys
Go deeper
Not sure what to work on next? Take the free Guitarist Profile quiz: 10 minutes, and you get your practice mindset, your strongest and weakest skills, and a 28-day plan. Find out what kind of jazz guitarist you are →
If you want me to guide you, that's what we do inside Chase's Guitar Academy. The Master Improvisation Blueprint gets jazz vocabulary like this into your playing, step by step, and every week we work through a tune together in the live class. You can try it free for seven days.
"What's so fantastic about Chase's Guitar Academy is the structured way it builds step by step — not just repertoire, but vocabulary. And not vocabulary from a random set of rules — it's actual jazz master vocabulary taken from real master solos." Julian Gurr, CGA member
50+ five-star reviews from CGA members, most of them on video: read what members say.
Chase Maddox is a jazz guitarist and educator in Miami and the founder of Chase's Guitar Academy. George Benson has called him "an amazing instructor." More free lessons are on his YouTube channel.
