From the February 2019 issue of Acoustic Guitar | BY TIM BERTSCH
Ever since the Middle Ages, modes—certain types of scales—have been an important component of Western music. The concept of modes dates to the ancient Greeks and was a central part of their music theory. Used heavily in Gregorian chant, modes were also the basis of European art music for over a thousand years.
More recently, modes have been employed in all kinds of music—everything from folk songs to modern jazz to blues and rock and beyond, and in the work of guitarists like Jerry Garcia, Carlos Santana, and many others. In this lesson, you’ll meet the major scale’s seven modes—Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, and Locrian—and learn how you can use their distinctive sounds to create more interesting melodies and chords.
Week One
A useful way to think of modes is as scales within a scale. Example 1 depicts all of the modes in the C major scale, which is written in two octaves: Ionian (from C to C), Dorian (D to D), Phrygian, (E to E), Lydian (F to F), Mixolydian (G to G), Aeolian (A to A) and Locrian (B to B).
Although these seven modes share the same seven notes, each one has a distinct sonic identity because every mode begins on a different degree of the scale. Ionian, Lydian, and Mixolydian sound major, while Dorian, Phrygian, and Aeolian sound minor; Locrian sounds diminished. Also, Dorian is often described as “jazzy,” Phrygian as “Spanish,” Mixolydian as “bluesy,” and so on. Be sure to play through all the modes to make your own associations, and keep in mind that Ionian and Aeolian are identical to the major and natural minor scale, respectively. Continue reading.
