Modes

[maskedsam]

Modes can be very confusing, it took a long time for me to get my head around them and I eventually came up with this chart to make it easier for me to work them out, to the point that now it's in my head.

Notice that as we move through the modes the Tone/Semitone pattern moves along by one (as if the first one drops off and is added to the end in the next one)

Basic qualities move up in the same pattern as the major scale chords

(If your confused about the diminished scale it's simply a minor scale with a b5th, so the Locrian is a minor scale with a b2nd & b5th)

No.	Mode	Quality	Pattern
1	Ionian	Major	T T S T T T S
2	Dorian	Minor +#6	T S T T T S T
3	Phrygian	Minor + b2	S T T T S T T
4	Lydian	Major +#4	T T T S T T S
5	Mixolydian	Major + b7	T T S T T S T
6	Aeolian	Minor	T S T T S T T
7	Locrian	Dim+ b2	S T T S T T T

An easy way to remember their order


In Days Past Laughing Men Always Lied

Brightest	Lydian
	Ionian
	Mixolydian
	Dorian
	Aeolian
	Phrygian
Darkest	Locrian

Damn...it's lost the formatting....if you want a clearer colour copy pm me with your email address

[bandcoach]

Modes can be very confusing, it took a long time for me to get my head around them and I eventually came up with this chart to make it easier for me to work them out, to the point that now it's in my head.

Notice that as we move through the modes the Tone/Semitone pattern moves along by one (as if the first one drops off and is added to the end in the next one)

Basic qualities move up in the same pattern as the major scale chords

(If your confused about the diminished scale it's simply a minor scale with a b5th, so the Locrian is a minor scale with a b2nd & b5th)

No.	Mode	Quality	Pattern
1	Ionian	Major	T T S T T T S
2	Dorian	Minor +#6	T S T T T S T
3	Phrygian	Minor + b2	S T T T S T T
4	Lydian	Major +#4	T T T S T T S
5	Mixolydian	Major + b7	T T S T T S T
6	Aeolian	Minor	T S T T S T T
7	Locrian	Dim+ b2	S T T S T T T

An easy way to remember their order


In Days Past Laughing Men Always Lied

Brightest	Lydian
	Ionian
	Mixolydian
	Dorian
	Aeolian
	Phrygian
Darkest	Locrian

Damn...it's lost the formatting....if you want a clearer colour copy pm me with your email address

Fixed.....

[maskedsam]

Thanks....but what's really strange is that when I posted it last night, it looked like what you've done....lol, I have no idea how it's reverted to the way it looks now. The formatting I was talking about was different again.

[kebeats]

Thanks!

[Mike78]

People go bonkers on Modes, and get so confused by theory, and never really learn how they work......
In the Key of C major, you get the following Chords
C, Dm,Em,F,G,Am,B diminished.

If you write a chord progression that starts with C, e.g. C///F///G///C/// then play C major (Ionian) Scale
If you write a chord progression that starts with Dm, e.g. Dm///F///G///C/// then play D Dorian Scale
If you write a chord progression that starts with Em, e.g. Em///F///G///C/// then play E Phrygian Scale
If you write a chord progression that starts with F, e.g. F///G///G///C/// then play F Lydian Scale

You can see where I am going with this ( I hope)

Now the thing that I have learned over the years, is that whilst the above is true, there's more too this than just the first chord dictating which mode you play. In actual fact, there are some very easy Chord Progressions that makes you Mode's sound Modi'er (if that's a word)!!

Here's my take on the best progressions to get a modal sound (note: the progressions are very simple, and sound crap on their own, but they provide the best platform for you to try your modal scales over, to really hear how these work). Modes on really come to live when you play the scale over the correct chord sequence.

C///F///F///C/// : C Ionian Scale
Dm///G/// : D Dorian Scale
Em///F/// : E Phrygian Scale
F///G/// : F lydian Scale
G///F/// : G mixolydian Scale
Am///Em/// : A Aeolian Scale
Bdim///??? : Locrian Scale (Very hard to get a good Chord progression) perhaps someone has one to contribute....

Now if you apply Roman numerals to your C Major Scale chords,

I - C
II-Dm
III-Em
IV-F
V - G
VI - Am
VII - B diminished

Then the best chord progressions for each mode can be described by these numbers

Ionian :- I-IV-V
Dorian II - IV
Phrygian III-IV
Lydian IV-V
Mixolydian V-IV
Aeolian VI-III

Memorise these, and you can apply this logic to all Major Scale Keys

e.g. G Major scale chords = G, Am,Bm,C,D,Em,F#diminished

Therefore a Phrygian sound in G Major uses the III-IV chords in a progression, and just use the B Phrygian scale to solo....


There's lots and lots more you can learn, but this is to help people who are sick of the theory actually start making some sounds out of modes!

***KEY POINT : Modes only really work, if you have the correct chord progression underneath - if you don't understand the chord progression, you'll never know what modes to play.....you cant just take a song (e.g. A///D///A///E///) and play any old 'A' mode, you have to understand where these chords sit in the roman numeral positions.......A-D-A-E is actually the I-IV-V in the key of A, therefore is A Ionian scale.

Good Luck.....

[bandcoach]

People go bonkers on Modes, and get so confused by theory, and never really learn how they work......
In the Key of C major, you get the following Chords
C, Dm,Em,F,G,Am,B diminished.

If you write a chord progression that starts with C, e.g. C///F///G///C/// then play C major (Ionian) Scale
If you write a chord progression that starts with Dm, e.g. Dm///F///G///C/// then play D Dorian Scale
If you write a chord progression that starts with Em, e.g. Em///F///G///C/// then play E Phrygian Scale
If you write a chord progression that starts with F, e.g. Em///F///G///C/// then play F Lydian Scale

last one has a mistake (starts on Em and is in fact a repeat of the previous one)

far too simplistic in your treatment of this - better to start from a melodic point of view

You can see where I am going with this ( I hope)

Yep and it is missing the point of modes entirely........

Now the thing that I have learned over the years, is that whilst the above is true, there's more too this than just the first chord dictating which mode you play. In actual fact, there are some very easy Chord Progressions that makes you Mode's sound Modi'er (if that's a word)!!

you were searching for modal, which suggests you really do not know what it is you are writing about........

Here's my take on the best progressions to get a modal sound (note: the progressions are very simple, and sound crap on their own, but they provide the best platform for you to try your modal scales over, to really hear how these work). Modes on really come to live when you play the scale over the correct chord sequence.

C///F///F///C/// : C Ionian Scale
Dm///G/// : D Dorian Scale
Em///F/// : E Phrygian Scale
F///G/// : F lydian Scale
G///F/// : G mixolydian Scale
Am///Em/// : A Aeolian Scale
Bdim///??? : Locrian Scale (Very hard to get a good Chord progression) perhaps someone has one to contribute....

Now if you apply Roman numerals to your C Major Scale chords,

what you gave here is not considered best practice in using Roman numerals anymore: you are using all caps with your Roman numerals which means you are asserting that all chords are Major (I know that you are not trying to do this, but modern Roman numeral usage in describing chordal concepts without reference to a home key says other wise).

So
I - C
ii - Dm
iii - Em
IV - F
V - G
vi - Am
vii^b5 - Bm^b5

Then the best chord progressions for each mode can be described by these numbers

and again you miss the point of modes completely, they are treated as if they exist in the home Ionian scale but are treated as separate, unique, modalities based upon a rotation of the tones in the Ionian to create new modes of sound.

Mode	Progression	In the Ionian
Ionian	I-IV-V	-
Dorian	i-IV	ii-V
Phrygian	i-bII	iii-IV
Lydian	I-V-ivb5-II	IV-I-viib5-V
Mixolydian	I-IV	V-I
Aeolian	i-iv | i-v	vi-ii | vi-iii
Locrian	ib5-V	viib5-IV

Memorise the above translations from the Mode to the Ionian and you can't go wrong...... however,

Memorise these (what mike78 gave), and you can apply this logic to all Major Scale Keys

Please don't, you will make more errors than you can possibly imagine.....

There's lots and lots more you can learn, but this is to help people who are sick of the theory actually start making some sounds out of modes!

Which you have made even more sickening with your incomplete and poor presentation of the nonsense which I have deleted in quoting you.

[Mike78]

last one has a mistake (starts on Em and is in fact a repeat of the previous one)

far too simplistic in your treatment of this - better to start from a melodic point of view




Yep and it is missing the point of modes entirely........



you were searching for modal, which suggests you really do not know what it is you are writing about........



what you gave here is not considered best practice in using Roman numerals anymore: you are using all caps with your Roman numerals which means you are asserting that all chords are Major (I know that you are not trying to do this, but modern Roman numeral usage in describing chordal concepts without reference to a home key says other wise).

So
I - C
ii - Dm
iii - Em
IV - F
V - G
vi - Am
vii^b5 - Bm^b5



and again you miss the point of modes completely, they are treated as if they exist in the home Ionian scale but are treated as separate, unique, modalities based upon a rotation of the tones in the Ionian to create new modes of sound.

Mode	Progression	In the Ionian
Ionian	I-IV-V	-
Dorian	i-IV	ii-V
Phrygian	i-bII	iii-IV
Lydian	I-V-ivb5-II	IV-I-viib5-V
Mixolydian	I-IV	V-I
Aeolian	i-iv | i-v	vi-ii | vi-iii
Locrian	ib5-V	viib5-IV

Memorise the above translations from the Mode to the Ionian and you can't go wrong...... however,


Please don't, you will make more errors than you can possibly imagine.....



Which you have made even more sickening with your incomplete and poor presentation of the nonsense which I have deleted in quoting you.

***There's always some clown who thinks he knows it all.....let the people on this forum be the judge of what I have written, go try it IT WORKS....It is purposely written (as explained to be simple) for those who are really struggling. I have taught music for many years, and my simplistic method works best. The only thing I agree with from your comment is :

Em///F///G///C/// then play F Lydian Scale .....sorry, I meant F///G///G///C///

PS. I love the way you are "sickened"......haha get a life.

Folks, there's tons more to learn, but I assume you have not spent years studying, and therefore gave you a quick way to get playing modes.
Let text books like (bandcoach) spend their time slating people for taking half hour out of their evening trying to help people on this post.....

Bandcoach, why don't you just write a book, and tell people not to use forums, and you'll always be right!
Let's hear your music, see what you got to back you up.

[bandcoach]

***There's always some clown who thinks he knows it all.....

Let text books like (bandcoach) spend their time slating people for taking half hour out of their evening trying to help people on this post.....

Ahh, abuse the first resort of someone who knows very little......

PS. I love the way you are "sickened"......haha get a life.

Actually, I wasn't sickened, I was extending your statement contextually...

Bandcoach, why don't you just write a book, and tell people not to use forums, and you'll always be right!
Let's hear your music, see what you got to back you up.

You are receiving excerpts from my book every time I answer a question.....

my music is readily available and accessible via my siglinks......

[Mike78]

Ahh, abuse the first resort of someone who knows very little......



Actually, I wasn't sickened, I was extending your statement contextually...



You are receiving excerpts from my book every time I answer a question.....

my music is readily available and accessible via my siglinks......

Bandcoach. I listened to your music ånd read your tutorials....frankly you have no musical talent, ånd you hide behind å therory you are unable to demonstrate musically.

Your tutorials are pretty poor, example being your lesson on common chord progressions is little møre than å list of 'every possible combination' to open å lock.....

Its game over for you, you picked av arguement ånd clearly have nothing to back it up. Well done for trying, ånd Well done for spending your time posting lots.....but tåke my advice, spend your time playing music, as it needs å lot of work, ånd you are unable to convey simple theory without confusing people.

Hope it all works out for you in the end.

[bandcoach]

How about some of yours - you seem to be hiding everything.

As for you having demonstrated or taught me anything I find it laughable in the extreme....

Common chord progressions are just that - I could list all of the songs that are related to them but why bother when someone can play through the progression and go " Oh, I know that one, it's insert current popular song here"