Modes

with jam tracks

Modes in C

The epic jungle of mode thread's in various forums around the internet sparked this lesson into existence. I often get asked by my students what modes are, and the simple explanation is: "It is the seperation of the major scale into seven parts. You have seven notes in your major scale, and each one of those notes is assigned the name of a mode."

So in all honesty, if you have been practicing your scale up and down the fretboard or in certain sections, you may have seperated them on your own already. Here is the scale as it appears across the neck of the guitar.

C Major Scale

In this example above, if you had to play ,in sequence, from one note to its octave above... you will have a mode. Here is a list of the mode you would be playing:

This lesson, however, does not focus on improvising through the C major scale modes. This lesson goes a step further in letting you only play in C. This means that you will learn seven different keys to solo in. Kind, aren't I?

By learning the sound of the mode, you begin to understand the complexities available to you in sound. As well as other means of improvisation within your own music. Here is a rundown of the modes starting on C.

The progressions I used are based off of I - IV - V movements starting from the C note. In almost each case, the chord progression has a C root somewhere, or has a C note within the chord. This helps in letting your ear hear the notes, and also... you can resolve only on C. So for instance, if you are playing C Locrian... the ear naturally wants to resolve to Db. In this case it won't be a nice resolution at all.

Here follow the modes, using the C note as the root. In each case I give the chords used, the scale/key in which the mode appears in naturally and the jam track. (Scale formulae are compared from the said scale against the major scale formula).

C Ionian - Parent scale: C major. Scale formula: R - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7. Track tempo 100bpm

C Dorian - Parent scale: Bb major. Scale formula: R - 2 - b3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - b7. Track tempo 130bpm

C Phrygian - Parent scale: Ab major scale. Scale formula: R - b2 - b3 - 4 - 5 - b6 - b7. Track tempo 130bpm

C Lydian - Parent scale: G major scale. Scale formula: R - 2 - 3 - #4 - 5 - 6 - 7. Track tempo 120bpm

C Mixolydian - Parent scale: F major scale. Scale formula: R - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - b7. Track tempo 120bpm

C Aeolian - Parent scale: Eb major scale. Scale formula: R - 2 - b3 - 4 - 5 - b6 - b7. Track tempo 90bpm

C Locrian - Parent scale: Db major scale. Scale formula: R - b2 - b3 - 4 - b5 - b6 - b7. Track tempo 100bpm