In order to pull off a convincing solo, you need to draw melodic inspiration from someplace. The question is where. Scales and modes are the central players in this musical drama. Not only do scales and modes provide the content that you need to cull from, they also help you navigate through the chord progression without playing wrong notes. Without using scales or modes, it'd be practically impossible to play a convincing solo in virtually any musical genre.

The essential modes are really just different configurations of the major scale. In fact, they can be constructed out of the major scale, and they are best learned in relationship to it. Figure 11-1 shows all the standard modes related to the C-major scale. Notice the use of Greek names for the modes. The Greeks were among the first to investigate the musical and emotional possibilities of modes. The Greeks named the seven modes after geographic regions or districts in Greece. Pythagoras and his followers were among the first to develop and catalog these modes.

Figure 11-1.

Seven modes in relation to C major

Each mode is a different configuration of the C major scale!

You'll investigate some of these modes on the following pages. When you do, you'll want to practice them in two ways. First, play them using a single position of the major scale. Then play the modes in movable closed positions, which are relative to the tonic of each scale. Figures 11-2 and 11-3 show you what these approaches are like respectively. After you've mastered these figures, use movable closed positions to play the remaining five modes.

Figure 11-2.

C Ionian and D Dorian in one position

Figure 11-3.

C Ionian and D Dorian in different positions

If you wish, you may shift octaves.