Don't sweat the modes.

Hi. I hope all is well and that the twanging is good.

One subject I've never touched on in these articles is "modes". I think the main reason I've neglected the topic is that I've never in all my years of playing, ever, thought "modes". They just always seemed to take care of themselves. Of course, to be able to understand how that happens to be, it's a good idea to at least know what they are.

First of all, modes are nothing but scales, or sequences of notes. There is nothing special or unusual about them. Without being a musicologist, I believe that early music was based on these modes, and when the science/art was refined, they just blended into the bigger picture.

So where do they come from and why should you not worry too much about them? They come from the major scale. In fact the major scale itself is one of them. Here is how it works:

The major scale, that do re mi sequence, that Mother Of All Music, is a series of intervals. The intervals are not even, they are either whole tones (2 frets apart) or semitones (one fret apart). That unevenness is the source of the richness of possibilities that music yields. This is the sequence:

W - W - s- W - W - W - s

Starting at C, using the intervals above, we get a series of notes -- the C Major Scale. The notes are:

C D E F G A B C -- It goes from C to C.... (Remember, all 12 major scales are the same, it's just easier to understand in C because C uses all the natural notes)...

Now let me insert a * where the sharp/flat notes are:

C * D * E F * G * A * B C ... now you can see the unevenness of the scale.

That scale can of course be repeated into new octaves, so we get:

C * D * E F * G * A * B C * D * E F* G * A * B C * D * E F * G * A * B, etc.

You can think of scales as being in a circle too, like a clock, each hour being one semitone. In this case, imagining C to be at the noon position, we get:

noon * 2pm * 4pm 5pm * 7pm * 9pm * 11pm midnight. Noon to midnight is one octave.

The modes are simply that same series of intervals using different notes as starting and ending notes. Like this in other words:

W - W - s - W - W - W - s
    W - s - W - W - W - s - W
        s - W - W - W - s - W - W
            W - W - W - s - W - W - s -
                W - W - s - W - W - s - W
                    W - s - W - W - s - W - W
                        s - W - W - s - W - W - s

Gives:

C * D * E F * G * A B * C *
    D * E F * G * A * B C * D *
        E F * G * A B * C * D * E
          F * G * A * B C * D * E F *
              G * A * B C * D * E F * G *
                  A * B C * D * E F * G * A *
                      B C * D * E F * G * A * B

So there are 7 modes, one for each new starting note. They all have Greek names which I won't mention here. There is really no need to clutter your brain with that information. They all yield, by taking their first, third and fifth notes, a chord.

C D E F G A B C  ---->  I-III-V = C E G = C major
  D E F G A B C D  ---->  I-III-V = D F A = D minor
    E F G A B C D E  ---->  I-III-V = E G B = E minor
      F G A B C D E F  ---->  I-III-V = F A C = F major
        G A B C D E F G  ---->  I-III-V = G B D = G major
          A B C D E F G A  ---->  I-III-V = A C E = A minor
            B C D E F G A B  ---->  I-III-V = B D F = B half dim

Modes occur naturally, without having to be conscious of them. I always use the Happy Birthday tune as an example. The part where we sing the first syllable of the celebrant's name ( ..."happy birthday dear SO'n'so..."), we're singing a modal note. If we were in the key of C, the chord would be F, and we'd be singing a B note. There is no B note in an F major scale -- F major uses a Bb note -- but the chord is F major. So how can it be? Because even though the chord is F major, the underlying scale is not an F major scale, it's an F Lydian mode... oops. Greek!

Another way of putting it: using the C major scale, but starting and finishing on the F's is to be playing an F Lydian mode. (It's almost identical. It's just that 4th note that's up one semitone from its major scale position. That 4th note is the culprit in Happy Birthday.)

All that's happening really is that our melody is using notes from the original C scale. All the chords generated by the C scale ( C, Dm. Em, F, G, Am, Bdim) are in fact modal when turned into their scales. Their I - III - Vs line up in such a way as to create the major and minor (and half diminished for the last chord) qualities, but broken back down into their 7 note scales, these chords are modal. The intervals are not major scale intervals.

Why do we not notice anything unusual? Because there is nothing unusual going on. The melody simply keeps using notes from the original scale, regardless of what chord is being played.

What does it all mean? It means that unless you're pushing the boundaries of music and playing really self-conscious, pre-fabricated, out-there melodies, modes simply blend into the piece of music. Melodies that sit over the 7 chords of the key of any piece of music are modal in nature. They just sound natural and right. That's why when you get to the point where you want to improvise, it's essential to remember that the major scale intervals only really apply to the One Chord of the piece. Once the chord changes to a new chord, you're in modal zone. But don't worry about which mode, just remember what key you're in and use those notes from the original mother scale -- the One Chord's scale -- to create your lines. The I-III-V of each chord are the main notes to concern yourself with, for the others, refer to the original scale. We've seen via Happy Birthday how the Four chord is affected, the same reasoning applies to the fact that Five chords use flat sevens. The Five chord of C is G, and if you used the G major scale when soloing over that chord (in C), you'd have an F# there REALLY sounding awful. Why? because there is no F# in the key of C. There's an F though, so the G chord becomes one with an F built into it. A G chord with an F in it is a G7th. You're playing a mode again.

I prefer to see it as simply playing along to a G7 chord.

By the way, if you're wondering what the trick is to tracking all this stuff on the fretboard, then you haven't read PlaneTalk -- The Truly Totally Different Guitar Instruction Book. I wrote and illustrated this exposition of the simple visualization technique a few years ago, and thanks to the Internet, thousands of players all over the English speaking World have had their lights turned on. I receive a continuous flow of positive feedback regarding the lesson this book teaches. Some of the many letters I receive are posted at the Testimonials page at the site http://planetalk.thatllteachyou.com The Guitar Slide Rule, which comes with the book, crystallizes the technique at a glance. The lesson can also be accessed online at http://planetalk.thatllteachyou.com

I'll say it again: modes, unless you're into very esoteric or contrived music, simply take care of themselves. They are built into the major scale in the way described above and need not be worried about too much.

I hope this clears up the modes question, although upon reading it all back, I may have even confused you more! If nothing else, this will bring home to you that music is totally interconnected, and much easier to play than explain.

All the best, forget all this theory stuff and keep on keepin' on twangin'.

Kirk
http://planetalk.thatllteachyou.com

http://www.guitarforbeginners.com

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