A mode is a scale with a home note. The seven modes of the major scale use the same seven notes, but each starts on a different degree, so each has a different tonic, a different interval pattern and a different sound. Guitarists often learn modes as shapes. The shapes are useful, but the sound comes from the relationship between the notes and the home chord.

Two ways to see a mode

The parent-scale view takes the major scale and starts it on a different degree. C major starting on D gives D Dorian. The notes are the same as C major, but the home note is D, so the ear hears a different scale.

The parallel view compares modes that share a tonic. D Dorian compared with D major has a flat third and a flat seventh. The tonic stays the same and the altered notes change the color. The parallel view is the one that trains the ear, because it isolates the characteristic note.

Both views are useful. The parent view helps you find shapes and connect positions. The parallel view helps you hear what makes each mode different. A mode is not a scale shape. It is a scale with a tonic, and the tonic must be established by the bass, a drone or a chord vamp. Without that anchor, the ear hears the parent key.

The seven modes

Mode        Formula              Characteristic note
Ionian      1 2 3 4 5 6 7        major 3rd and 7th
Dorian      1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7      natural 6
Phrygian    1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7    b2
Lydian      1 2 3 #4 5 6 7       #4
Mixolydian  1 2 3 4 5 6 b7       b7
Aeolian     1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7     b6
Locrian     1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7   b5

Ionian is the major scale. It is the default major sound, and it is the parent of the other six modes. Dorian is a minor scale with a natural sixth. It sounds brighter than Aeolian and is common in jazz, funk and rock. Phrygian is a minor scale with a flat second. The flat second is the signature, and it gives the mode a Spanish or metal flavor. Lydian is a major scale with a sharp fourth. The sharp fourth makes it sound dreamy and floating, which is why film composers use it. Mixolydian is a major scale with a flat seventh. It is the sound of dominant seventh chords, rock and blues. Aeolian is the natural minor scale. Locrian has a diminished tonic and a flat fifth; it is unstable and rare as a home mode.

Shapes on the guitar

The modes can be learned as seven positions of the parent major scale. Each position starts on a different degree, so each position has a different mode as its home. The shapes are the same notes in a different order. The CAGED system gives five shapes for the major scale; each shape can become any mode by changing which note you treat as the tonic.

e|--------------------|
B|-------0-1-3--------|
G|-----0-2------------|
D|-0-2-3--------------|
A|--------------------|
E|--------------------|

This is D Dorian in open position. The notes are D E F G A B C D. The root is D on the open D string. Play it up and down, then hold a D bass note and listen to the natural sixth, B, against the root.

e|--------------------------|
B|--------------------------|
G|--------------------------|
D|--------------10-12-------|
A|--------10-12-14----------|
E|-10-12-13-----------------|

This is D Dorian in the tenth position. The low E string gives D, E and F; the A string gives G, A and B; the D string gives C and D. The two shapes are the same mode in different registers. Find the tonic D in both and connect them.

Do not rely on a single box. Learn the mode across the neck, and find the tonic on every string. A shape is a route; the note is the destination.

Modal harmony

The chord vamp is what makes a mode sound like a mode. Choose chords that contain the characteristic note and avoid chords that pull the ear back to the parent key. A drone or a two-chord vamp is the clearest way to hear the result.

D Dorian       Dm7 - G7
E Phrygian     Em - F
F Lydian       Fmaj7 - G
A Mixolydian   A - G - D
A Aeolian      Am - F - G
B Locrian      Bm7b5 - C

D Dorian works over Dm7 and G7 because both chords belong to the mode. Avoid an A major chord in D Dorian: the C# would introduce the leading tone and turn the sound toward D major. E Phrygian works over Em and F because F contains the flat second, the characteristic note. F Lydian works over Fmaj7 and G because G contains the sharp fourth, B. A Mixolydian works over A, G and D because all three chords belong to the mode. A Aeolian works over Am, F and G. B Locrian is unstable, and the diminished tonic is the reason.

The characteristic note

Each mode has one note that does most of the work. In D Dorian the natural sixth is B. Play D minor pentatonic and add B; the B is what makes it Dorian. In E Phrygian the flat second is F. It is one fret above the root, and it can be a passing tone or a held tension. In F Lydian the sharp fourth is B. In A Mixolydian the flat seventh is G. In A Aeolian the flat sixth is F, which distinguishes it from Dorian. In B Locrian the flat fifth is F.

Target the characteristic note on a strong beat, then resolve it. That single note does more for the modal sound than a hundred fast runs. Sing the note before you play it, and listen to how it changes the color of the chord.

How to practise modes

Work on one mode at a time. Sing the tonic, then play it. Loop a bass note or a chord vamp and play the mode slowly. Find the characteristic note in every position. Compose a four-bar vamp that uses the mode, and write a melody that uses only the mode.

Transpose the mode to all twelve keys. Compare parallel modes on the same tonic: D Ionian, D Dorian, D Phrygian and D Mixolydian. The changed note is easy to hear when the tonic stays the same. Then compare relative modes: C Ionian and D Dorian use the same notes, but the home note changes the meaning of every interval.

Practise the mode over a chord that establishes it. D Dorian over a D drone, E Phrygian over an E drone, F Lydian over an F drone. Play the parent scale over the modal vamp to hear how the same notes change color when the tonic changes.

Common mistakes

• Playing the parent scale over a chord that does not establish the mode.
• Thinking the mode is just a shape.
• Ignoring the characteristic note.
• Using the same licks in every mode.
• Confusing modal mixture with modulation.
• Practising modes only as speed exercises.

A practice example

Loop Dm7 and G7. Play D Dorian. Over Dm7, target B, the natural sixth, and F, the flat third. Over G7, target F, the flat seventh, and B, the third. Resolve to D when the loop returns.

Loop A, G and D. Play A Mixolydian. Over A, target G, the flat seventh, and C#, the third. Over G, target B, the third, and D, the fifth. Over D, target C#, the seventh, and F#, the third. Write a four-bar phrase for each vamp and keep it simple enough to repeat.

Where to go next

Modal interchange borrows chords from parallel modes. Borrowed chords and secondary dominants extend the harmonic vocabulary. Jazz harmony uses modes over specific chord types. Composition turns the colors into a piece. Learn the seven modes on one tonic first; the relationships between them are more valuable than a collection of shapes.