|
On the subject of scales and modes, at first they seem somewhat interchangeable. Looking at a mode and a scale seems to imply that they are. However, where a scale is a run from root to octave, modes take this a bit further. A mode might start from a regular scale, but it uses different roots and intervals within that same scale to give different tonal qualities. Essentially, you're using scale degrees for different root notes. You could look at this as an inversion of the scale.
Now for a little history lesson. Modes had their origin way back in ancient Greece. Modes are actually named after the different groups that lived in Greece. The Greeks had their own order for these modes. However, the western world at some point in history rearranged the order (I don't remember the time it was done, but I do know it had something to do with the church so that may somewhat narrow down the time). In our world today, the order is C Ionian, D Dorian, E Phrygian, F Lydian, G Mixolydian, A Aeolian, and B Locrian. The root doesn't always need to be C, but the order of Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, and Locrian needs to be exact.
Starting with C Ionian, you won't have any flats or sharps. I think it works out well because to me it's easier to remember the notes at first.
For starters, we have C Ionian (also known as the C major scale)
C D E F G A B C
R 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Ionian has no flats or sharps and has a fairly upbeat,, brighter type sound to it.
Next we move on to D Dorian. The Dorian intervals are as follows R 2 b3 4 5 6 b7. We're adding a flat 3rd and 7th scale degrees.
D E F G A B C D
R 2 b3 4 5 6 b7 8
Since we've added a flat 3rd and flat 7th, this gives the scale a more blues type feel.
Now we come to E Phrygian. Here we flat the 2nd, 3rd, 6th, and 7th scale degrees.
E F G A B C D E
R b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 8
I've always associated Phrygian with a more Spanish type tonality to it. It works well for classic metal too. Randy Rhoades made use of this mode on some of his leads on both Blizzard and Diary.
Next up is F Lydian. The Lydian mode adds a #4 scale degree (technically, it could be viewed as a b5, but the mode defines it as a #4). It's somewhat like the Ionian mode in that it has that brightness, but it's also slightly dissonant because of that #4.
F G A B C D E F
R 2 3 #4 5 6 7 8
After that, we come to G Mixolydian. Here we just flat the 7th scale degree. I always thought this had a sort of funk vibe to it. Once you practice this one, it'll sound familiar to you.
G A B C D E F G
R 2 3 4 5 6 b7 8
Moving on to A Aeolian ( also known as the natural minor scale), we flat the 3rd, 6th, and 7th scale degrees. This one has a more gritty type sound that lends it to blues and rock.
A B C D E F G A
R 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 8
Finally, we come to B Locrian. we flat the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th scale degrees. This mode has a rather dissonant quality to it.
B C D E F G A B
R b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7 8
So you could look at other modes as the inversion of the Ionian mode with different interval usage.
Now that you see how the modes are constructed note wise, here's how they look on the guitar. Even though all the modes use different intervals, they all look the same when applied to the fretboard.
0 3 5 7 9 12
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
Here's the same thing in tab format
|-0-1---3---5---7-8---10-12-|
|-0-1---3---5-6---8---10-12-|
|-0---2---4-5---7---9-10-12-|
|-0---2-3---5---7---9-10-12-|
|-0---2-3---5---7-8---10-12-|
|-0-1---3---5---7-8---10-12-|
Now even though they might look exactly the same, when you look at this from each modes perspective you can see how differently it looks. These next 7 examples show the different degrees of each mode in relation to the fretboard. What I'll do is place the notes on the top example and the degrees on the bottom so you can relate them. If you'd rather have it in tab format instead of the actual notes, you can email me and I can send you that format instead.
I know it's sort of odd to see the exact same notes over and over, but it'll help you remember the modes as well as give you an understanding of the intervals you're looking at. This way, you put that into a working knowledge.
Again, we start with C Ionian.
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-3-4---5---6---7-R---2-3-|
|-7-R---2---3-4---5---6-7-|
|-5---6---7-R---2---3-4-5-|
|-2---3-4---5---6---7-R-2-|
|-6---7-R---2---3-4---5-6-|
|-3-4---5---6---7-R---2-3-|
D Dorian
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-2-b3---4----5-----6-b7---R--2-|
|-6-b7---R----2--b3---4----5--6-|
|-4----5----6-b7----R----2-b3-4-|
|-R----2-b3---4-----5----6-b7-R-|
|-5----6-b7---R-----2-b3---4--5-|
|-2-b3---4----5-----6-b7---R--2-|
E Phrygian
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-R--b2---b3---4-----5--b6---b7-R--|
|-5--b6---b7---R--b2----b3---4--5--|
|-b3----4----5-b6----b7----R-b2-b3-|
|-b7----R-b2---b3----4-----5-b6-b7-|
|-4-----5-b6---b7----R--b2---b3-4--|
|-R--b2---b3---4-----5--b6---b7-R--|
F Lydian
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-7--R----2----3---#4-5----6-7--|
|-#4-5----6----7-R----2----3-#4-|
|-2----3----#4-5---6----7--R-2--|
|-6----7--R----2---3----#4-5-6--|
|-3----#4-5----6---7--R----2-3--|
|-7--R----2----3---#4-5----6-7--|
G Mixolydian
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-6-b7---R----2----3-4----5--6-|
|-3-4----5----6-b7---R----2--3-|
|-R----2----3-4----5----6-b7-R-|
|-5----6-b7---R----2----3-4--5-|
|-2----3-4----5----6-b7---R--2-|
|-6-b7---R----2----3-4----5--6-|
A Aeolian
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-5--b6---b7---R-----2-b3---4--5--|
|-2--b3---4----5--b6---b7---R--2--|
|-b7----R----2-b3----4----5-b6-b7-|
|-4-----5-b6---b7----R----2-b3-4--|
|-R-----2-b3---4-----5-b6---b7-R--|
|-5--b6---b7---R-----2-b3---4--5--|
B Locrian
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-B-C---D---E-F---G---A-B-|
|-G---A---B-C---D---E-F-G-|
|-D---E-F---G---A---B-C-D-|
|-A---B-C---D---E-F---G-A-|
|-E-F---G---A---B-C---D-E-|
|-4--b5----b6---b7----R--b2---b3-4--|
|-R--b2----b3---4--b5----b6---b7-R--|
|-b6----b7----R-b2----b3----4-b5-b6-|
|-b3----4--b5---b6----b7----R-b2-b3-|
|-b7----R--b2---b3----4--b5---b6-b7-|
|-4--b5----b6---b7----R--b2---b3-4--|
So there you have it. To get other modes, simply transpose the C Ionian mode up or down to whatever note you want. After you decide on a root note, simply go through it's Ionian mode and apply the correct mode to each degree. So for A Ionian, it would look like this
A Ionian
B Dorian
C# Phrygian
D Lydian
E Mixolydian
F# Aeolian
G# Locrian
And that's really all it takes to do that. It's not too hard to learn, but I think more of it is getting the idea in your head. It's all down to the order of the notes. If you have any questions, or if I screwed something up feel free to email me.
|