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 Aeolian” Mode.
Check out the first five lessons in this series: “A Ionian”, “A Dorian”, “A Phrygian”, “A Lydian” and “A Mixolydian”.
The “Aeolian” mode is not only another minor scale, it is known as the “relative minor” to the major key. That means that “A Aeolian” can also be thought of as simply “A minor”, which is the relative minor to the key of C Major.
Clear as mud?
The “Aeolian” mode has a “minor 3rd“, a “minor 6th” and a “dominant 7th” (vii).
Below is the key of “C major”, but the root note starts at the “A” note. This means that “A” is the 6th note in the key of “C major”. It also means that this is called the “A Aeolian” mode.
Look at it as the “C major” scale, but instead playing the scale as:
C - D - E - F - G - A - B (Relative major in C)
the root note is “A”:
A - B - C - D - E - F - G (Relative minor in A)
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 “Aeolian” mode structure has two minor positions and a dominant 7th: “iii, vi and vii”.
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 one more article in this series on modes and scales. It will be the diminished mode called the “Locrian” scale.
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Dave