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Module 5 - Modes and Other Scales Dan Amerson

i) Demystifying the Modes

Modes are a highly mystical concept, because it's repeated many times without
explanation. This leads to greater and greater anxiety for beginner guitarists.

Here's the simplest concept to understand that will clear up the modes; if you know the
natural major scale, you have the ability to learn all the other modes.

Let's review the natural major scale with C major as an example.

Remember that every note is either 1 or 2 semitones apart. B & C, and E & F, are both one
semitone apart, marked by the symbol ^. The other notes are 2 semitones apart.

The natural major scale has another name: Ionian; it is a mode.

So what about the other 6 notes on the major scale.

Well, if you start on the natural minor scale. In this case, this is A natural minor.

The natural minor scale has another name: Aeolian; it is also a mode.

The difference between major and minor, and their connection, is a perfect example of the
different modes and their interconnectedness.

That leaves 5 other notes on this scale. You can start your scale on any of these five notes.
The 7 starting points of a major scale are all modes.

Let's get a further understanding of the modes before applying it to the guitar itself.

Let's understand the scale degrees. This example uses the G major scale.
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This set of chords shows what is appropriate to play over top of G major, all while
respecting the notes of the G major scale.

That means that even if you're playing A minor, C major, or F# diminished, you'll be
playing notes that are in the G major.

Notice that the 1st, 4th and 5th degrees are major (V can be either major or dominant 7th).

The 6th degree is minor. These four chords (1, 4, 5, minor 6) make up most chord
progressions in popular music.

Keep in mind that the pattern repeats itself over and over; if you start on the iii chord, you
can go upwards to IV, V, vi, vii diminished, I, ii, and finally iii. The pattern starts over and
over.

Let's move on.

Make a note of the pattern, starting with the root of the Ionian, which is the root of the I
chord:

MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished

Overall, there are 3 majors, 3 minors, and 1 diminished

Only 1 of the majors and 1 of the minors have a name that we know.
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Let's find names for each of these patterns by going through them one at a time.

Once we have all the pieces, we will piece them together

C Ionian:
MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished

Easy enough. It's the simple major scale. This is also represented by scale degrees, starting
on 1, and going up through 7, over and over.

It fits over top of the I chord in the scale degrees.

Let's find a different mode by starting our scale on a different part of the scale.

D Dorian:
MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished

Dorian is based on a minor, much like the natural minor.

There is a semitone between the 2nd and 3rd note, similar to the natural minor.

But there is another semitone between the 6th and 7th note, unlike the natural minor.

Said otherwise, if you take a natural minor scale and sharp the 6th note, you have a Dorian
scale..
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E Phrygian:
MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished

Right next to the Dorian scale, you can move over and play the Phrygian scale. It is a minor
scale.

It is different from the other minor scales since it has a semitone between the 1st and 2nd
notes (instead of the 2nd and 3rd notes in the Dorian and natural (Aeolian) minor scales).

But, it is similar to the natural minor as it has a semitone between the 5th and 6th notes.

It sounds unique, and we'll offer examples later on in this course.

It fits over the iii chord in the scale degrees.

F Dorian:
MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished

This major scale sounds A LOT like a major scale. The only difference is that a semitone is
found between the 4rd and 5th note (instead of the 3rd and 4th note).

Another way of getting to a Lydian is to begin with a major scale, and putting a sharp on
the 4th note. More on this later.

It fits over the IV chord in the scale degrees.

G Mixolydian:
MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished
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If you want a Mixolydian scale, begin with a natural major scale (Ionian) and flatten the 7th
note of the scale.

The semitone gap moves between the 6th and 7th (instead of between 7th and 8th/1st
(root).

It fits over the V chord in the scale degrees.

Confused yet? I don't blame you; we've seen 4 foreign scales.

Let's focus on something that you probably are aware of.

A Aeolian:
MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished

An Aeolian scale is the 'natural minor' which I have mentioned many times. I assume that
you know this scale.

If you don't, begin on a major scale, and move to the 6th note on the scale. That is the
root for the Aeolian scale.

The Aeolian scale is widely used, both in melodies and in chord progressions.

It fits over the vi chord in the scale degrees.

B Locrian:
MAJOR, minor, minor, MAJOR, MAJOR, minor, diminished
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Locrian is an interesting scale. If you take a Aeolian minor, and flatten the 2nd and 5th
notes, you get a Locrian scale.

It fits over the vii diminished chord in the scale degrees.

ii - Putting It All Together

Here's a compilation of the 7 modes, showing the differences between their roots and
their intervals.

You can and should use the Ionian scale as your starting place (for now), since it is the
natural major, and you should be most comfortable with this, given that we've studied this
in previous modules.

If you're playing what is technically a C major scale, but using an E as your root; you're
playing the E Phrygian.

If you start on the G with the C major scale, you're playing the G Mixolydian.

It's very tricky to visualize two things at once, but this is the nature of modes; use the
structure of a scale, but begin it on a note other than the root.
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Review of the Scales System

The system that I've taught so far uses a set of 5 patterns, in this order:

L1
L2
R1
R2
D2

These patterns move up the next. So L1 in the bass note, L2 above that, R1, R2, D2, etc. See
below.

Once you get to D2, you start over at L1 and keep going.

With these 5 patterns, you can find 5 'forms' where you play these patterns. Because each
mode has a different root, each mode gets its own CAGED system. However, it's not
terribly complicated if you understand the CAGED system for the natural major and minor
scales.

Connecting the Modes Vertically

There are 5 positions on the fretboard. C, A, G, E, and D forms; hence, the CAGED system.
Moving up the fretboard, you move through each of these positions, ultimately winding up
in the same shape you used at the beginning.
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One of the more intuitive places to start is the E form, which plays the root at the thickest
string.

NOTE: All of these 'shapes' and their names relate to the Ionian. The shape will be different
when you relate it to all the other modes.

1) E Major Form
I call this the E Major form because the root is on the E string, and you can play an E major
chord (or a barre chord that resembles an E major chord). Try it by playing the 1st, 3rd, and
5th notes on the Ionian example.

Don't get confused when I use the term 'form' because even if you're playing something in
the E major form, you could be playing the A# major.

Here's the configuration of all 7 modes, played on the same set of notes. If you don't
already know them, memorize the Ionian and the Aeolian, which I've highlighted.
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2) D Major Form

I call this the D Major form because the root is on the D string, and you can play an D
major chord (or a barre chord that resembles an D major chord). Try it by playing the 1st,
3rd, and 5th notes on the Ionian example.

If you know the CAGED system, you'll understand that the root of the E form coincides
with the root of the D form.

Here's the configuration of all 7 modes, played on the same set of notes. If you don't
already know them, memorize the Ionian and the Aeolian.
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3) C major form

I call this the C Major form because you can play an D major chord (or a barre chord that
resembles an C major chord).

If you know the CAGED system, you'll understand that the root of the D form coincides
with the root of the C form.
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4) A Major Form

I call this the A Major form because you can play an A major chord (or a barre chord that
resembles an A major chord).

If you know the CAGED system, you'll understand that the root of the C form coincides
with the root of the A form.

5) G major Form
I call this the G Major form because you can play an G major chord (or a barre chord that
resembles an G major chord) over the Ionian.

If you know the CAGED system, you'll understand that the root of the A form coincides
with the root of the G form.
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Conclusion for Vertical Connecting

With this model, you have 35 different things to remember; that's 7 modes in
5 different positions.

These are your individual puzzle pieces. We're going to connect these pieces
together in order to give you a fuller understanding of the modes.
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iv - Connecting the Modes Horizontally

If you don't quite understand the system of modes vertically, let's look at the horizontal
way of connecting the modes.

We'll use Ionian as the base, and with each mode, we'll continually refer to the root for
Ionian to give some context.

The root of the Ionian will always be that pink/salmon color. The other modes will use
orange as its root.

Each mode has a different relationship to the root of the Ionian. Play the two minor scales
above, and compare them to the Ionian.

Let's look at the following two major scales.

The Lydian begins on the 4th note of the Ionian scale, and the Mixolydian begins on the
5th note of the Ionian.

Let's look at the final two notes and compare it to the Ionian.
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v - Applying the Modes

We've spent a great deal of time trying to understand the modes as per what they do. But
what of it? What is the use of knowing these modes?

Let's bring back the image that shows the note degrees.

If you knew nothing about modes, it would seem like the logical thing to do is to:

- Play the Ionian "natural" major scale over the major chords (I, IV, V)
- Play the Aeolian "natural" minor scale over the minor chords (ii, iii, vi)
- Play a dominant 7th scale over a dominant 7th chord (V7)
- Play a diminished scale over the diminished chord (vii dim)

Premises #3 and #4 are accurate, but there are some issues with premises #1 and #2.

Let's use your knowledge of modes find what to play.

Let's begin with the minor. Placed on the models are red marks to represent what would
happen if you were to play the natural minor over the ii or iii chords.
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The sensible solution:

- Play the Dorian scale over the ii chord.

- Play the Phrygian scale over the iii chord.

There are situations where you can use the natural minor scale over these chords. Trust
your ear and try all of the minor scales in various contexts.

Let's continue with the major chords. Here are the notes you would get if you played the
Ionian major on top of the Lydian and Mixolydian.
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There is more flexibility when it comes to playing the Lydian or Mixolydian instead of the
Ionian.

Mixolydian, because of its flat 7th, fits well over many dominant 7th chords.

Lydian can be played over the I chord because it doesn't clash with the major chord.

The recommendation:

- Play the Ionian scale over the I chord.

- Play the Lydian scale over the IV chord.
- Play the Mixolydian scale over the V chord.

For the other chords:

- Play the Aeolian scale over the vi chord.

- Play the Diminished scale over the vii dim chord.
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Once again, use your ears in various contexts.

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vi - Mode Roots

Here is a list of mode roots, referring to the 5 patterns which we'll already covered in previous
modules. With this table, you can find your mode with greater ease, as you should immediately
know which pattern is above and below said pattern.

vii - Mode Arpeggios

Mode arpeggios use the modes to create a set of notes which is both musical and
adhering to its respective mode. For example, the Dorian scale's arpeggio is the Minor 6,
which uses the same major 6th.

As mentioned before, each mode arpeggio can be positioned five ways (C shape, A shape,
etc.). Given that we are covering six mode arpeggios, you are effectively learning 30
different things. Be patient when learning this.

Here are the six mode arpeggios:

 Ionian - Major 7th

 Dorian - Minor 6th
 Lydian - Lydian arpeggio
 Mixolydian - Dominant 7th arpeggio
 Aeolian - Minor arpeggio
 Locrian - Minor 7th (flat 5)

Here are the individual scales to practice; each shape (and all set of chords) fit over the
same space. With that, play all six mode arpeggios on the same place on the neck.
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E Shape

D Shape
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C Shape

A Shape
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vii - Big 1 & Big 2 with Modes

I – Ionian (Major) and vi – Aeolian (Minor) use the same L2 and R1 patterns

IV – Lydian Scale uses the R1 and R2 scales

All ii – Dorian, V – Mixolydian, and vii – Locrian use the L1 and R2 pattern, though the root
differs.
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Mode Arpeggio Recap

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ix - "Big" Crossovers

Major Pentatonic

L-R Crossover happens with Ionian

R-R with Lydian, L-L Mixolydian

Minor Pentatonic

L-R Crossover happens with Aeolian

R-R with Dorian, L-L with Locrian** **(sort of)