The WRONG Way To Learn Modes

Added: 2026-05-30

[00:00:00]You've probably heard guitarists say that understanding the major scale modes is as simple as playing through the different positions of the major scale.

[00:00:08]Like this shape is Ionian, this shape is dorian and this shape is friian.

[00:00:18]Now, whilst there is a grain of truth to that, it's also a massive oversimplification of what is without a doubt the most misunderstood concept in modern guitar education. And if you've failed to grasp modes in the past, it is probably because you only learned one of the two approaches that are both essential to understand. The first is called the relative approach, which explains where the modes come from, and that's what I just demonstrated. C Ionian, Dorian, E Friian, and so on. But the second approach is called the parallel approach, and it explains to you what the modes actually sound like. And so that sounds like this.

[00:01:15]All right. So, let's break down the difference between these two approaches so that you can understand modes on a level deep enough to actually start using them musically because there's no point in memorizing scale patterns for these modes if you're not going to turn them into music, right? So today we're dealing with the seven modes of the major scale. Modes are derived from a parent scale, which in our case is the major scale. And most of you watching this already know two of the modes of the major scale, whether you realize it or not, because one is the major scale itself. That's mode one. And then the other is the natural minor scale. Now, you've probably heard people say that the keys of C major and A minor share the same notes and chords, which is true. That's a basic theory concept called relative minor keys. Every major scale and key has a relative minor scale that shares the exact same notes. So, the C major scale uses the notes C, D, E, F, G, A, and B.

[00:02:32]The A natural minor scale uses those exact same notes, only it starts from the sixth note of the C major scale, which is A. A B E C D E F G.

[00:02:47]In the key of C major, the chord C major sounds like home. But in A natural minor and A minor chord would be the tonal center. In other words, the A minor chord would sound like home where everything pulls toward. So here's C major played over a chord progression in the key of C major.

[00:03:23]But what happens if I play a natural minor over that same C major progression?

[00:03:47]doesn't really sound any different, right? And that is because even if I am thinking a natural minor and thinking about a root notes, your ear is still hearing C major, the notes alone do not determine the mode. The tonal center does. So if I actually want those same notes to sound like a natural minor, I need the right harmonic context like this.

[00:04:30]So, in that clip, I was playing a natural minor over a chord progression in a minor. And what I've just shown you there is the relative approach to understanding modes. That means viewing each mode in relation to its parent scale. For example, a natural minor can be viewed as the sixth mode of C major.

[00:04:51]So if we take the C major scale and build all seven modes from it using the relative approach, we get C Ionian, Dorian, E friian, F Lydian, G mixelyian, A aolon or natural minor and B loan. So that's the relative approach. It's excellent for understanding where modes come from and how they relate to their parent scale, but on its own, it's very difficult to turn that knowledge into musical expression. Which brings me to the parallel approach. Instead of changing the root note each time and just starting the major scale on a different note, with the parallel approach, we now keep the same root note and change the intervals that come after it. So now we get C Ionian, C Dorian, C Friian, C Lydian, C mixelyian, C Aolon, and C Lorian.

[00:06:00]And this is where the unique sound and character of each mode really starts to reveal itself because now you're not looking at Dorian, Friian, Mix Lydian, any of the modes. You're not thinking of them in relation to something else, in relation to their parent scale. You're thinking of them as independent scales with their own scale formulas. Now, this is the key to understanding modes. You need to know that scales or modes are not fretboard shapes. They are formulas.

[00:06:33]If someone definitely just angrily commented on this video saying that Hrix didn't know theory and what else? What's the other usual ones? Oh yeah, music isn't math. And oh yeah, I just play with feel. Someone definitely commented that right now.

[00:06:48]Anyway, here's the thing. If you want to improvise freely with any scale, the goal is to actually minimize the amount of thinking that you have to do in the moment. Right? There's an old saying which is learn the theory so well that you can forget it. And that doesn't mean like abandoning the knowledge. It just means internalize it so deeply that it becomes instinctive just like language.

[00:07:10]Like right now you are not consciously thinking about grammar rules or sentence structure whilst listening to me speak.

[00:07:16]You simply understand the language because you've absorbed it through repetition over time. And theory, the language of music, works the same way.

[00:07:25]That's all it is, by the way, guys. It's just the language of music. I don't know why you get so angry about it. Anyway, this is exactly why the parallel approach matters so much. It removes a layer of thinking which will lead to better improvisation. Because if you only think of Dorian, for example, as the second mode of C major, then even if you technically know when to use it, your brain will usually default to visualizing C major patterns and C major root notes on the fretboard. Will the sound of Dorian come out? Yes, but your phrasing, resolution, melodic ideas, they'll all tend to gravitate, sorry, towards C major root notes. So to really sound like you're playing in Dorian, you need to hear it and visualize it as its own independent thing centered around D root notes. And that starts with understanding the formula behind the mode itself. I mean, this goes for any mode, but I'm just using Dorian as an example. Because once you understand these formulas, a few really important things are going to start to click for you that will completely change the way that you think about modes. And that's what I'm going to get into later in this video. But first, let's just look at the modes using the parallel approach. Okay? So, we're going to look at each formula. So, we'll start with the formula for the parent scale, which is 1 2 3 4 5 6 7.

[00:08:48]And yes, I'm deliberately playing everything on one string because I want you to stop associating modes with visual fretboard shapes. Okay? So, number one is C. That's the root note, right? Numbers two through seven are intervals or scale degrees. Intervals are simply the distances in pitch between two notes. And scale degrees are the notes themselves. Okay. So in this case, all of these intervals are being measured against the root note. Measured from the root note, I should say, right?

[00:09:17]So the full names of these intervals after the root are major 2, major 3r, perfect fourth, perfect fifth, major 6th, and a major 7th.

[00:09:32]But because the major scale is basically a blueprint for understanding just about everything when it comes to melody and harmony in western music, instead of saying major second, major third, perfect fourth every single time, we usually just shorten them to those numbers 1 2 3 4 5 6 and seven. So now that we've established the parent scale, let's look at the next mode in the major scale using the parallel approach, Dorian. Okay, I'm going to use the same root note, same root note of C. Okay. So the Dorian formula is 1 2 flat 3 4 5 6 flat 7. So compared to the major scale the third and seventh have been flattened by one semmit tone.

[00:10:20]So if I take the major scale, I'm going to drop this note by one and this note by one to get Dorian.

[00:10:35]So that's Dorian. The next mode of the major scale is frigian. It's a mode that you'll probably never have to use, but let's look at it anyway. The formula is 1 flat 2 flat 3 4 5 flat 6 flat 7. So compared to the major scale, we now have four flattened notes. The second, third, sixth, and the seventh.

[00:11:07]Up next is Lydian. Famously used by players like Steve Vi and Joe Satriani.

[00:11:12]has a very dreamy sound. Its formula is 1 2 3 sharp 4 5 6 7. So compared to the major scale, the only note that changes is the fourth, which is sharpened by one semmit tone. Up next, we've got mixelyian, which is one of the most commonly used modes in rock, blues, and country music. Its formula is 1 2 3 4 5 6 flat 7. So compared to the major scale, the only difference is the flattened seventh in mixelyian. That one note is what gives mixelyian its bluesier dominant sound. Next is aolon, also known as the natural minor scale, which we talked about earlier. Its formula is 1 2 flat 3 4 5 flat 6 flat 7.

[00:12:00]So compared to the major scale, we flattened the third, sixth, and seventh.

[00:12:03]Right? Finally, we have Loran. Now loan exists but you will never have to use it. Okay. Anyway, the scale formula for Lorian is one flat 2 flat 3 four flat 5 flat 6 flat 7th. Okay. Compared to the major scale, five notes have been flattened there including the flattened fifth which creates a very unstable intense sound. Now what is the point of me teaching you all these formulas? Well, there are two huge reasons. The first is that chords also have formulas. And when you understand both chord formulas and scale or mode formulas, you can start matching the modes to the correct harmonic context. Right? That's the first real step after you've learned the parallel approach towards applying modes musically. The second reason has something to do with pentatonic scales, which I'll come back to in a minute. So let's quickly match each mode to its most common chord type using the parallel approach. Okay. So Ionian works great over major 7th chords.

[00:13:14]Dorian works great over minor 7th chords.

[00:13:22]Friian also works over minor 7 chords.

[00:13:29]Lydian works beautifully over major 7th chords with that dreamy sharp fourth.

[00:13:41]Mixelyian works perfectly over dominant seventh chords, which is why it's everywhere in blues, rock, and country music.

[00:13:53]Aolon like Dorian and Friian also works over minor 7th chords.

[00:14:04]And Lorian really only works over minor 7 flat 5 chords, which is why most guitarists learn it once and then just forget about it.

[00:14:19]And the reason these chords work with these modes is because the notes inside the chord are already found naturally within the formula for the mode itself.

[00:14:28]Now, at this point, you are probably wondering, if you just told me that Dorian, Friian, and Aolon all work over minor 7th chords, how do I know which one to use? And that is a good question.

[00:14:40]The answer is it depends on the surrounding harmony. In other words, the other chords in the progression help determine which mode is going to be most appropriate for you to use. Now, modal chord progressions are a whole other topic that I can make a separate video on. So, if you want something like that, maybe I can make something next week.

[00:14:59]But, um, actually, you know what? Let me just give you an example because this is important. And then we'll get to the pentatonic stuff, which is honestly the most exciting part of all of this. So, let's compare Dorian and Aolon. We'll do this in a minor.

[00:15:15]because I like that key. So, two progressions, right? Progression one is a minor 7 to D minor 7.

[00:15:23]And progression two is A minor 7 to D7.

[00:15:30]So, which mode pairs best with which progression? Well, aolon is the best fit for the first progression because the flat 6 in a aolon is the note F, which also exists as the flat third in the D minor 7 chord.

[00:15:52]And Dorian works better over the second progression because Dorian's natural sixth is F sharp which matches the major third found in the D7 chord. Okay. Anyway, let me know if you want a deeper lesson on modal chord progressions and maybe I can do that next week. Now I want to talk about modes and pentatonic scales because personally I do not visualize modes as like giant three note per string pattern.

[00:16:26]What I like to do is I visualize the major pentatonic minor pentatonic or a combination of those two five note scales. I visualize them and I color them in with the extra notes from the mode that I happen to be playing with.

[00:16:40]And this is also another topic that deserves a separate video, but let me give you a quick example using the Dorian mode. So earlier we looked at the Dorian formula. I'll play this um in the key of A. Okay. So we just play Dorian in one string. 1 2 flat 3 4 5 6 flat 7.

[00:17:03]Okay. So I'm in a Dorian. Now I'm going to show you a lick in a Dorian soon. Now the formula for the minor pentatonic scale is 1 flat 3 4 5 to flat 7. Can you see that the minor pentatonic is baked in to the dorian mode, which means if you already know your minor pentatonic boxes, you're really not that far away from being able to solo with a mode like Dorian. And you don't have to, you know, learn a bunch of three note per string patterns to do it either. Instead, you can think of Dorian as the minor pentatonic and then learn how to color in that minor pentatonic with those two extra notes from Dorian. Those two notes are the natural second and natural sixth. So, here's a lick where I'm visualizing two A minor pentatonic boxes and coloring them in with those extra Dorian notes for a funky sound.

[00:18:11]All right. So that started in box four of our A minor pentatonic.

[00:18:41]Then I added in Dorian's natural sixth on the high E string and the natural second on the B string.

[00:18:54]Then I moved down to box three and then I added in that natural sixth on the G string and the natural second on the D string.

[00:19:12]And that is really how I think about modes when I improvise. Not as giant three note per string patterns, but as familiar pentatonic frameworks with extra color notes added in around those boxes. Right? Again, there is a lot more that I could say about this and I will probably make a dedicated video on it because honestly, this is where modes started feeling genuinely usable to me instead of just theoretical. when I started learning about this years ago.

[00:19:39]But if you're hungry to learn more right now, this is exactly the sort of thing that I focus on inside my course 8020 lead guitar mastery, which teaches you how to improvise musically with the four highest leverage major scale modes. Not all seven because not all seven modes were created equally. There are four that have a lot more utility than the other three. Anyway, combining those four modes with pentatonics is a huge focal point in the modules of 8020. So, if this way of looking at modes resonated with you, then I will leave a link to that below. Anyway, I think we have covered enough for today, guys. If you enjoyed this video, please like and subscribe for more content like this in the future. Leave a comment below if you've got suggestions for future lessons, and I will see you in the next one.