Whether you’re writing, soloing, or jamming, modes will add depth and creativity to your guitar playing.

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Combine modes with their harmonized chords to create modal progressions or melodies.

Modes open up a world of musical expression, helping you break out of standard patterns and explore the subtle colors of harmony and melody.

How to Apply to your practise:

Experiment by playing a mode (e.g., E Phrygian) over its corresponding chord (e.g., Em or Em7).

Practice improvising within each mode to get a feel for its distinct character.

C Ionian: C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, Bdim (triads)

C Ionian 7th chords: CM7, Dm7, Em7, FM7, G7, Am7, Bm7b5

By playing these chords, you can harmonize melodies in the same mode or create progressions that reflect the unique sound of each mode.

Chords in the Modes:

Each mode also contains all the chords that harmonize the scale.

These chords are derived by stacking the 1st, 3rd, and 5th notes (triads) or adding the 7th note for richer, jazzy chords:

For example:

To play D Dorian, use the same notes as the C major scale but start from D and focus on its tonal center.
Similarly, for G Mixolydian, start on G and let that note guide your phrasing and feel.

Using Modes in Shapes:

You can play these modes in any shape of the major scale. The key is to start and emphasize a different tone of the scale to highlight the mode you want to use.

C Ionian (Major): Starting from C
D Dorian: Starting from D
E Phrygian: Starting from E
F Lydian: Starting from F
G Mixolydian: Starting from G
A Aeolian (Minor): Starting from A
B Locrian: Starting from B

Each mode creates a unique mood and sound based on its starting note and interval structure.

Before I get started, check out my free chord and scales kit for guitar resources, charts and more!

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You can find more resources like this on my page if youd like (including my essential music theory guide)

Best of luck 🫡

I find apreggios and 7th chords a great way to incorporate this stuff into your playing.

Learn chord inversions and practise hitting arpeggios over chord progressions to maximize your efforts.

Applying this “theory” to your practise takes a bit more work.
Memorizing the relationships between intervals and how the work together to form harmony is the next step.

I say the main one because you can create 7 scales out of this - Major (I) Minor (VI) and the other 5 modes.

So right there, you have a plethora of sounds and combinations you can work into solos or chord progressions.

Truth is, theres only a few things you really need to understand to play what you want.

First off - the diatonic scale. Its 5 Whole steps and 2 half steps. The main one being the Major scale.