Easy way to remember the Modes

[Yossi]

I came up with a mnemonic device to remember the modes.
It helps me so I thought that I would share it.

I own (Ionian) a house.
So I go through my door (Dorian)
And I head for my Fridge (Phrygian)
Then I open the lid (Lydian)
There is quite a mix under the lid (Mixolydian)
I find the ale (Aeolian) that I was looking for.
Then I lock (locrian) the fridge.

Copyrite 2005 Yossi

 

[Kappy]

hehe....cute.

please don't throw sausage pizza away...o wait..wrong place, that's the mnemonic for remembering the 7 layers of the TCP/IP stack (physical, datalink, transport, session, presentation, application).

How about Please Exhume My Dead Aunt Sally...o wait..wrong again, arithmetic order of operations. (Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction)

O gosh, I'm out of musical mnemonics!

 

[GeraldCleveland]

How about:

I Dont Play Like Mr Alex Lifeson

That 's how I learned to remember then.

 

[Yossi]

Originally posted by GeraldCleveland
How about:

I Dont Play Like Mr Alex Lifeson

That 's how I learned to remember then.

I had a hard time with the Greek words, (It's Greek to me)
So I came up with a device that would help not only remember the order but the name as well. If I knew the names then sure, one letter would suffice to remind me of the order.

I own = Ionian
Door= Dorian
etc.

By the way, I also don't play like Alex Lifeson, though I wish I could.

Yossi

 

[Yossi]

Originally posted by Pearly Gator
Very nice, Yossi. Got any shortcuts for learning the actual scales?

Signed,

Pathetic Guitarist

I mean....

PG

I am using a couple of books that are very helpful. One is "Fretboard Logic" that follows a CAGED system. That shows that there are repeating patterns both up and down the fretboard. There are also patterns that repeat themselves going across the fret board. The point being that it is sometimes easier to visualize shapes than words.
My favorite book is Matt Smiths Chop Shop book. I wish I had that book years ago. Check it out.
I remember the order of wholesteps and half steps of the major scale by the piano keyboard. Whole, Whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. Sort of like a full house in cards too.
Hope that helps.

Yossi

 

[spencerbk]

I can't wait until you do the modes of the melodic minor scale!

 

[Pointbreakd]

Fretboard logic=awesome

 

[adamquek]

Originally posted by Pearly Gator
Very nice, Yossi. Got any shortcuts for learning the actual scales?

Signed,

Pathetic Guitarist

I mean....

PG

My guitar teacher gave me a great exercise for remember all the modes of the Major scale. I play it as a warm daily, and it works wonders.

Every scale has 2 "basic" shapes, a vertical one, where you stay in one position, and a horizontal one where you ascend up to the next position. Just learn the shapes one by one, and start playing a vertical, the a horizontal, and repeat until you've gone up an octave. Eg for G major, play F# locrian (v, h), G ionion (v, h) etc until you get up an octave. Along the way, I started thinking in terms of stacked 4ths and the really helped be get my head wrappe d around it. Basically if you're playing 3 note per string shapes in the major scale, there's only 3 shapes you need to know.
W W (eg 1 3 5) - Ionian (1 2 3 4 5 6 7), Lydian (1 2 3 #4 5 6 7), Mixolydian (1 2 3 4 5 6 b7)
W H (eg 1 3 4) - Dorian (1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7), Aeolian (1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7)
H W (eg 1 2 4) - Phrygian(1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7), Locrian (1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7)

I started out visualizing stacked 4ths eg Ionian -> Lydian -> Locrian

Eventually by playing those over and over again and listening to the intervals I managed to get my head wrapped around playing then in 1 octave. If I do runs that go over more than an octave though, I revert back to think in terms of stacked 4ths because it makes the shapes easier to remember.

 

[adamquek]

Another interesting thing that worked for me is the revelation that ALL the "minor" modes ie dorian, phrygian and aeolian contain the minor pentatonic shape with a couple of extra notes.

Minor pentatonic -> 1 b3 4 5 b7
Phrygian -> add b2 and b6
Dorian -> add 2 and 6
Aeolian -> add 2 and b6

 

[willie johnson]

I'm new to the gearpage and find it fasinating. But, I must admit that I have no earthly idea what you guys are talking about. I've been playing the guitar for more than 40 years (30 of them professionally). I learned to play by ear and did eventually create a system for myself based on shapes (in an effort to better understand the fretboard) . I can't read a note of music and still have never had a lesson but I can say after 40 years I know the neck of a guitar like the back of my hand. I understand how things work but could never begin to verbalize it. I often regret not getting more formal training but more often I'm grateful for being able to just pick up the guitar and play it without thinking at all. I'll keep tuned in the hopes that maybe I'll be able to absorb what you guys are saying.

Willie

 

[adamquek]

Just a note on the number system that I use

If you take a major scale and you take all the intervals, I name the 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. ie root, major 2nd, major 3rd, perfect 4th, perfect 5th, major 6th, major 7th. Everything else I see a variation from the major scale. Hence the lydian is a major scale with a #4 (augmented 4th)

 

[adamquek]

Originally posted by Old Tele man
...also simple to remember:

3-note: I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii

4-note: IM7, ii7, iii7, IVM7, V7, vi7, vii7

...where: UPPER-case = major, and LOWER-case = minor

I agree except

vii = m7b5 (half diminished)

 

[Yossi]

Originally posted by willie johnson
I'm new to the gearpage and find it fasinating. But, I must admit that I have no earthly idea what you guys are talking about. I've been playing the guitar for more than 40 years (30 of them professionally). I learned to play by ear and did eventually create a system for myself based on shapes (in an effort to better understand the fretboard) . I can't read a note of music and still have never had a lesson but I can say after 40 years I know the neck of a guitar like the back of my hand. I understand how things work but could never begin to verbalize it. I often regret not getting more formal training but more often I'm grateful for being able to just pick up the guitar and play it without thinking at all. I'll keep tuned in the hopes that maybe I'll be able to absorb what you guys are saying.

Willie

Welcome to the Gear Page, Willie!
I am also in 1st grade with music theory and modes, etc and I've been playing for over 30 years. I find it fascinating that there is an infinate amount of knowlege. I hope to grow in leaps and bounds once I get some of this new stuff integrated into my playing.

Best of luck!

Yossi

 

[willie johnson]

As I mentioned earlier, when you all start talking about music theory, modes, etc., its all greek to me. But for someone like me ( been playing for forty years, know the guitar inside and out, can play any style as long as I know what key you're in, etc.) do you think that there's any value for me to learn theory? I played professionally for over 30 years and it was not unusal for another guitar player to catch me coming off stage and ask "what did you just play?" and my answer was always....I don't know! Another issue for me is that I'm also a song-writer and over the years I've had the opportunity to play with many musicians who were classically trained. When we would get into the studio and I would explain to them, as best I could, what I wanted them to do
they would say "you can't do that" and I would say "sure I can ...watch! Its been the subject of many laughs over the years. Also, I was recently in a studio situation with a piano player who had the reputation of being a great sight reader. The song being recorded was an old Beatles tune with which he was not familiar but he had the sheet music. He made several attempts to "peck" it out and finally said I'll have to hear ir first to get an idea of how it goes. Well, I thought to myself, if I was in the same situation and I could hear it once, I could play it too.

 

[KHK]

Originally posted by willie johnson
As I mentioned earlier, when you all start talking about music theory, modes, etc., its all greek to me. But for someone like me ( been playing for forty years, know the guitar inside and out, can play any style as long as I know what key you're in, etc.) do you think that there's any value for me to learn theory? I played professionally for over 30 years and it was not unusal for another guitar player to catch me coming off stage and ask "what did you just play?"

No value at all...

 

[jaymc69]

As I mentioned earlier, when you all start talking about music theory, modes, etc., its all greek to me. But for someone like me ( been playing for forty years, know the guitar inside and out, can play any style as long as I know what key you're in, etc.) do you think that there's any value for me to learn theory? I played professionally for over 30 years and it was not unusal for another guitar player to catch me coming off stage and ask "what did you just play?" and my answer was always....I don't know! Another issue for me is that I'm also a song-writer and over the years I've had the opportunity to play with many musicians who were classically trained. When we would get into the studio and I would explain to them, as best I could, what I wanted them to do
they would say "you can't do that" and I would say "sure I can ...watch! Its been the subject of many laughs over the years. Also, I was recently in a studio situation with a piano player who had the reputation of being a great sight reader. The song being recorded was an old Beatles tune with which he was not familiar but he had the sheet music. He made several attempts to "peck" it out and finally said I'll have to hear ir first to get an idea of how it goes. Well, I thought to myself, if I was in the same situation and I could hear it once, I could play it too.

I've heard and read this response to this conversation (theory or no??) before. It seems that you are either A) fishing for a compliment because of your oh so impressive, unreferencable claims, or B) you are arguing that theory is not necessary because check out all of my famous recordings and see for yourself...

Is that it?

I'm a hack guitar player myself, and stumble through Giant Steps and my Birdland is sort of embarrassing, but I believe that the more I know about the theory that underlies the harmonic 'quikcrete' of a song, the better improvisational choices I make when I get to take my turn at the melody line.

Just my 2 cents. I'm really not sure what or where your 2 cents worth was to be found...

 

[guitarjazz]

How 'bout the order of modes, from bright to dark? That would be more useful than just listing them up the major scale.

 

[Jon C]

I've heard and read this response to this conversation (theory or no??) before. It seems that you are either A) fishing for a compliment because of your oh so impressive, unreferencable claims, or B) you are arguing that theory is not necessary because check out all of my famous recordings and see for yourself... Is that it? I'm a hack guitar player myself, and stumble through Giant Steps and my Birdland is sort of embarrassing, but I believe that the more I know about the theory that underlies the harmonic 'quikcrete' of a song, the better improvisational choices I make when I get to take my turn at the melody line. Just my 2 cents. I'm really not sure what or where your 2 cents worth was to be found...

This is your 2nd post and you're already mired in odious snarky sniping? ...

Why the need to slag the PP? ... very unattractive ... Well done and wtf ... ;-o

 

[GLB98]

This is your 2nd post and you're already mired in odious snarky sniping? ...

Why the need to slag the PP? ... very unattractive ... Well done and wtf ... ;-o

Never mind the thread is 10 years old.

 

[kimock]

How 'bout the order of modes, from bright to dark? That would be more useful than just listing them up the major scale.

Yeah, and how 'bout the mixed modes from bright/dark to dark/bright?