Learning how to do modes is high up on most jazz guitar players to-do lists.
And it seems like a good idea, too. Lots of good players talk about learning scales and modes – so it’s probably a good idea to learn about them.
And modes are an important part of playing jazz. You do need to know how to play them if you want to play at a more advanced level.
But if you’re looking for an edge that will make you a better player overnight, you’re wasting your time.
See, modes aren’t the miracle cure for improvisation that they’re usually advertised to be.
In fact, diving into modes too early in your playing is a recipe for getting overwhelmed, frustrated, and confused. If you don’t already have a handle on your major scale patterns, you could even end up playing worse than you do right now.
I remember hearing jazz guitarist Jimmy Bruno grumbling about how “modes were invented by college professors to confuse students!”
And he’s kind of right.
College professors didn’t invent modes – but the way they’re taught across the board is typically confusing for students of all ages.
Except for the ones who gravitate towards music theory topics anyway.
Or ones who just power through until they “get it” eventually.
Plenty of people get swept up in mode names, half step and whole step formulas, and all kinds of memorization work…
… but none of it actually improves their playing.
Which is kind of the point for most of us.
Who wants to be able to name all of the modes, but not actually be able to play them when it counts?
And that’s why I’m writing this.
In my own wrestling with modes, I figured out a couple of things.
First, I learned how simple it really is to play all your modes on the guitar. It was one of the big disappointments of my career after all the time I spent working hard on modes.
But this is the method I’m going to show you first – so you can easily get all of your modes under your fingers and into your ears – where they belong.
And second, I figured out how diving deep into the modes themselves can improve your ear and increase your overall theory knowledge.
We’ll dive into this second – after you can actually play and hear the modes in a more simple way.
Now, both of these angles on the modes are important. They just teach you different things.
One isn’t better than the other – you need to learn to think in both methods over time.
But approaching your modes from a playing standpoint first is a much more satisfying way to learn them.
And once you can play them, understanding the details is easy.
What Are Modes, Anyway?
Modes are a series of scales that come from a parent scale. That’s why you have modes of the major scale.
And modes of the harmonic minor (or melodic minor) scale.
Let’s think about the modes of the C major scale for a minute.
One mode would be created from each scale step of the major scale:
Don’t worry too much about the names of the modes.
While they’re important in theory class or in talking with other musicians, they won’t help you play any better.
Focus on the patterns first, and work on the names as you get better at playing the modes themselves.
Even though the notes themselves are the same, each mode of a parent scale gives you a different sound to play with. And each mode can be tied to a different type of chord.
Let’s dive into getting modes under your fingers, and into your ears.
How To Do Modes With Major Scale Tones
Using the major scale tones is my favorite way to start working on modes.
Partly because it takes the least amount of extra information. If you can play your major scale patterns, you can do this.
You can learn this approach to modes quickly. And with a little practice, you can start to hear the different sounds created by each mode.
Plus, you can do it all without hurting your brain trying to figure out the theory part of it.
Here’s how it works:
The notes of the major scale each get a number: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7.
These numbers repeat over and over again as you play the scale up and down. They are the common names of the intervals found in the scale.
2 is a 2nd away from the root (1). 3 is a 3rd away from the root (1). And so on.
To play a mode, you start and end the scale on a note other than 1. It’s that simple – but making it usable in your playing takes some work.
So now our modes all have a simple number formula:
Ionian – 1234567
Dorian – 2345671
Phrygian – 3456712
Lydian – 4567123
Mixolydian – 5671234
Aeolian – 6712345
Locrian – 7123456
There are 2 ways I recommend practicing this – up and down as a scale, and improvising.
Practicing Like A Scale
Let’s use Dorian as an example:
Start on the 2 of your major scale pattern (marked red this time).
Just like with our major scale – play up as far as the pattern lets you go.
Play down as far as the pattern lets you go. And then play back up to the root.
This will start to clue in your fingers and ears that this is a new pattern that works.
Your ears are going to try and trick you on this. They generally want to hear 2 sounds: the major scale, and the natural minor scale.
Your job is to stick to the pattern and make sure you’ve got your fingers going to the right spots.
Practicing Through Improvisation
This is another good way to get these mode patterns under control. We’ll go with the Phrygian mode (3) this time.
Improvise with the scale. Don’t worry about having any chords playing right now. You want to get used to hearing what the mode really sounds like coming from your instrument.
As you play, do your best to make the 3 sound like “home base.”
You can do this by:
- Starting there
- Pausing a little bit every time you play it
- Playing it more often
This is going to help you start to hear the differences between the modes as you play them.
This approach to modes – using major scale tones only – is my favorite.
You can learn it quickly.
It’s less confusing, even for beginners.
It also matches up with how we talk about chord changes – we use the same numbers.
To play over a 2 chord, start your scale at the 2. To play over a 5 chord, start your scale at the 5.
The 2 5 1 progression is built off of the 2nd, 5th, and 1st notes of the major scale.
There is a direct path to playing good melodies over each chord when you work on modes this way.
How to Do Modes as Separate Interval Patterns
This is a more typical approach for how modes are taught. It’s the “theory class correct” version of how to do modes in your guitar playing.
It also aggravates me a little bit.
I get a little down on this approach because I see lots of students get buried under the theory with this method.
There are lots of facts to memorize, but not too much playing (typically) when people are learning modes this way.
- Memorizing names of modes
- Learning different whole-step half-step patterns
- Trying to remember which name goes with which mode
And (if you’re lucky), learning tons of scale patterns without taking a step back to see the truth – that modes are just the major scale. You’re learning it from 7 different angles, that’s all.
That being said, this way of looking at modes does have some benefits. And I’d argue that those benefits only kick in when you can already play the modes. (With the approach I shared earlier).
When you’re already able to play the modes, this approach will help you get more solid with them.
You’ll be able to go deeper into the theory side of things – if you need or want to.
Just looking at modes from another perspective for a little bit is going to help you learn them so much better.
Now with this approach, each mode is a unique set of intervals, starting with 1.
You end up with flat or sharp intervals, depending on the mode. This is great for understanding what chord goes with each mode, and seeing what notes make the modes unique.
Here are the formulas for each mode:
Ionian – 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Dorian – 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7
Phrygian – 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7
Lydian – 1 2 3 #4 5 6 7
Mixolydian – 1 2 3 4 5 6 b7
Aeolian – 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7
Locrian – 1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7
To practice this, follow the same advice as in the earlier section.Play up and down as scales, and spend some time improvising with the modes.
Which Way Should You Learn Your Modes?
You’ll find plenty of opinions out there on what the “correct” way to do this. Some people lean on the major scale intervals as their guide.
“Start from the 2 and you’re playing over the 2 chord…”
While other people insist that each mode is a unique sequence of notes.
“Dorian has a b3 and a b7 – if you’re not thinking about that, you’re doing it wrong…”
But at the end of the day, I think we need both approaches if we’re really going to understand how to play these things when it counts – in our playing.
I spent a lot of time thinking about modes the way I was taught – as separate sequences that needed to be learned.
As I was out in the world playing and teaching though – I started looking at other ways of approaching it.
I was always looking for new ways to explain things to my students – because it turns out that one explanation doesn’t make sense to every single person.
It’s not a matter of whether someone “gets it” or not. It’s a matter of being able to explain things in different ways – that make sense to different students.
Both approaches of how to do modes have their strengths:
Major Scale Tones
Thinking only as major scale tones is faster to learn. It also matches closely with how we describe chord progressions.
To play over the 2 chord, you start from the 2 of the major scale – and everything is covered. But it does take some work to get good at approaching your modes this way.
You can’t just tuck this piece of information into your brain and then be good at jazz guitar. You have to spend time with each scale degree, getting the sound and the new-ish pattern into your ears and fingers.
Separate Interval Patterns
Treating each mode as a different sequence of intervals is a great way to dig deeper into music theory. You learn what makes each shape “tick” as you dive into the different finger patterns.
Because you’re looking at the intervals in relation to the root of each mode, you get a better grip on what intervals you should emphasize in your solos.
If I were you, I’d pick one of these approaches and run with it. It doesn’t really matter which one.
Once you can play modes reliably, try shifting to the other perspective. Try as best you can to start from the beginning – even though you can already play your modes.
You’ll come away with a better understanding of what each mode sounds like, how to build it, and what approach works best for your playing in any situation.
Learn How to Do Modes Your Way
Figuring out how to do modes doesn’t have to be a big challenge.
Really, there are 2 solid approaches to learning and understanding these scale patterns:
- Thinking about the major scale, but starting on different scale degrees to create new modes
- Thinking about each mode as a new scale, with different intervals
There’s not really a right or wrong here.
Sometimes I think of them as diatonic or parallel modes. Check out The Advancing Guitarist by Mick Goodrick (affiliate link) for more on these terms.
- Diatonic modes all come from the same major scale
- Parallel modes all come from the same root, but have different interval patterns
Both approaches are important – but you need to decide which one you need to learn first – and stick with it for a little while.
How do you think about these patterns in your own playing? Let me know in the comments.
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