Practicing Modes.
A great finger-stretching exercise too!
When playing eighth-notes and sixteenth-notes, always remember to use alternate picking. It will absolutely improve your technique.
The “A Mixolydian” Mode.
Check out the first four lessons in this series: “A Ionian”, “A Dorian”, “A Phrygian” and “A Lydian”.
The “Mixolydian” mode is another Major scale, this time it has a “dominant 7th” (vii). This means that this scale is exactly like Ionian mode except that the “VII” is lowered one half step to a “vii”.
Below is the key of “D major”, but the root note starts at the “A” note. This means that “A” is the 5th note in the key of “D major”. It also means that this is called the “A Mixolydian” mode.
Two notes have changed from the “A Ionian” mode. The “A Mixolydian” has moved the “C” up one half step to “C#”, and the “F” is moved up one half step to the “F#”. The rest of the notes in this mode are all natural.
Look at it as the “D major” scale, but instead playing the scale as:
D - E - F# - G - A - B - C#
the root note is “A”:
A - B - C# - D - E - F# - G (The G is the “dominant 7th” in this mode).
The notes in this exercise all exist between frets 4 and 8. Think of it as a five-fret frame. You will need to shift your first finger between frets 4 and 5.
Below is another way to look at the exact same scale as above, only from the perspective of the “Roman numerical” placements on the fretboard.
Notice, the “Mixolydian” mode structure has lowered just one note, (the 7th), one half step from its major position in the “Ionian” mode. So, just like the Ionian mode, the Mixolydian mode is also a “Major” scale.
I - II - III - IV - V - VI - *vii
Again, study this scale and mode structure, because it will be important to know as we move on to other modes in the next articles.
Here is how you practice this scale.
Make sure you set your metronome at 60-70bpm to start. As you get better with the scale, slowly increase the tempo until you can play it clean and correct at 90bpm. Remember to use the proper finger placements for technique.
Stay tuned for more articles on modes and scales coming soon.
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Dave