The purpose of Synaptic Studios is to provide guitar players with a resource for guitar lessons, music theory instruction and articles aimed at helping them to hone their skills. Most of the guitar lessons include MP3’s. For example, clicking on a chord diagram will give you a high quality MP3 audio sample of what that chord should sound like.

The easiest way to use this new site is to use the Listing of all the lessons link.

One of the latest posts, A Promenade With Your Muse, includes an MP3 of an original composition.

I hope you will find these lessons useful. There are more to come soon.

Thanks for your visit!

Cheers,

Gil

Now that we have introduced all of the modes, let’s look at what roles individual notes take in these scales. In a tonal context, they all have certain tendencies.

Stable Tones: (1,3,5)

Tonic:

• The tonic is the 1st degree of the scale. All other notes are based around the tonic and gravitate towards it.

Dominant:

• The dominant is the 5th degree. This is a solid or stable note.

Third degree:

• The 3rd degree is stable; however, it is not as stable as the tonic or the dominant.

Unstable Tones: (2,4,6,7)

Second degree:

• The 2nd degree moves most commonly to the tonic but also to the 3rd.

Sixth degree:

• The 6th degree tends to move to the dominant (5th) which is most stable. The 6th degree also moves to the 7th but it is not as stable as 5th degree.

Seventh and Fourth degrees:

• The 7th and 4th degrees usually move by half steps and are the most unstable tones.
• The 7th (not the b7) commonly resolves to the tonic (1st). The pull from the 7th to the tonic is very strong.
• The 4th degree commonly resolves to the 3rd as the 4th is not a chord tone in tonic chords.

Please note: all of the modes contain the same stable tones (1,3,5) and unstable tones (2,4,6,7).

© 2009, Synaptic Systems Inc.

As we discussed in previous lessons, the Major scale is also know as Ionian and the Minor scale as Aeolian. We also know that the relative minor is the major scale starting from it’s 6^th degree. The scales starting from all of the other degrees will now be introduced. This group of scales is known as “the modes”.

Lets start in the key of C.

If we re-spell the C Major scale (Ionian) starting from each subsequent degree in the scale, we end up with the following:

Mode Name	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
C Ionian	C	D	E	F	G	A	B
D Dorian	D	E	F	G	A	B	C
E Phrygian	E	F	G	A	B	C	D
F Lydian	F	G	A	B	C	D	E
G Mixolydian	G	A	B	C	D	E	F
A Aeolian	A	B	C	D	E	F	G
B Locrien	B	C	D	E	F	G	A

In the example above, the modes are all relative to C Ionian or the key of C Major. They are simply a re-spelling of that scale.

Now, lets see the modes in parallel to C Ionian. Each mode is related to a different key / different major scale.

C Ionian

C

D

E

F

G

A

B

C Dorian

C

D

Eb

F

G

A

Bb

C Dorian is parallel to C-Ionian. It is relative to Bb Major / Bb Ionian.

C Phrygian

C

Db

Eb

F

G

Ab

Bb

C Phrygian is parallel to C-Ionian. It is relative to Ab Major / Ab Ionian.

C Lydian

C

D

E

F#

G

A

B

C Lydian is parallel to C-Ionian. It is relative to G Major / G Ionian.

C Mixolydian

C

D

E

F

G

A

Bb

C Mixolydian  is parallel to C-Ionian. It is relative to F Major / F Ionian

C Aeolian

C

D

Eb

F

G

Ab

Bb

C Aeolian is parallel to C-Ionian. It is relative to Eb Major / Eb Ionian

C Locrian

C

Db

Eb

F

Gb

Ab

Bb

C Locrian is parallel to C-Ionian. It is relative to Db Major / Db Ionian.

Memorize the names of the modes and their relative and parallel relationships. In time, this will help you apply them to your instrument. Once you have begun improvising with the modes, knowing their characteristic pitches will help you to capture each modes individual sound.

© 2009, Synaptic Systems Inc.