jenorma1 - Posted - 05/10/2015:  19:59:37

There are plenty of great posts here about modal theory that explain the derivation of the modes and specify the sequences of whole and half steps necessary for their creation - however, the purpose of this post is to provide examples of modal playing and spark a discussion about the emotions that each mode evokes, thereby enlightening the occasions for their use.  To that end, I put together seven recordings of Coleman's March (normally in D major; aka ionian mode) where this fiddle tune is transposed into each of the seven modes that can be derived from the major scale (attached below).  I'd love to get a discussion going about what feelings can be associated with each mode.  

To keep this somewhat grounded in theory, its interesting to divide them into major (those with a major third and perfect fifth that could be played over a major triad), minor (those with a minor third and perfect fifth that could be palyed over a minor triad), and other (aka locrian, which has a minor third and flattened fifth and therefore fits best over a tritone rather than a standard minor triad).

My two cents (prepare for sweeping generalizations!):

The major modes:

ionian (major scale) - obviously its hard not to hear this as happy (Cripple Creek) though the right melody played slowly enough it can be...wistful? Longing?  Coleman's march (in its natural mode of ionian) always sounded this way to me.

lydian (major scale with a sharp 4th) - sounds either hopeful or dreamlike. The first four tones of this scale are whole steps apart so you can be led into thinking that you're in for a whole tone scale at the beginning of a tune like coleman's march.  The whole tone scale is often used for "dream sequence" transitions in movies and sitcoms.  Interestingly the simpsons theme is in lydian, but so (I think...) is the fiddle tune I know as "John Sharp's tune."

mixolydian (major scale with a flattened 7th) - The flattened seventh definitely gives a blues vibe (Old Joe Clark, Sandy Boys, etc).  Coming as late in the melody as it does in Coleman's march makes it little more surprising and gives a hint of melancholy to an otherwise happy piece.

The minor modes:

Aeolian (natural minor) - Just as its obvious to call ionian "happy", you could easily call aeolian "sad."  To me, aeolian is kind of unintersting on coleman's march - perhaps a harmonic minor scale (minor with a raised 7th "leading tone") would be a little better to my ears?  Obviously there are plenty of great minor tunes out there, however ("falls of richmond" comes to mind!)

Phrygian (minor scale with a flattened 2nd) - definitely sounds in some way exotic (though that could be conditioning from mass media once again...). Seems like what you would hear in the background in a movie about ancient Egypt.  The flattened 2nd would likely do that to my ears at the front of any scale....something about starting on a semitone.

Dorian (minor scale with a sharp 6th) - The sharp sixth is enough to get this one out of "purely sad" territory and make it pretty interesting.  Scarborough Fair is one of the better known songs in dorian mode.  To me, dorian mode is a mixed emotion scale - pensive, undecided?  

Other (aka Locrian - minor scale with a flattened second and a flattened fifth):

While the minor third definitely gives this scale a minor "feel," the flattened fifth makes it somehow lean sinister rather than just mopey.  The root chord in this mode (the "tritone") is a minor third along with a flattened fifth (really two minor thirds on top of one another) and has always been described as "demonic."  I agree with this description and would add "chaotic" to the mix.

Anyways, I had a blast making these recordings and pondering this over - just nice to try to drill these into my head beyond the somewhat mathematical series of whole and half steps.  Have fun listening to these and feel free to let me know what you think as well!

Edited by - jenorma1 on 05/14/2015 07:19:29

Coleman's March - D Ionian (Major)	Coleman's March - D Dorian	Coleman's March - D Phrygian	Coleman's March - D Lydian
Coleman's March - D Mixolydian	Coleman's March - D Aeolian (Natural Minor)	Coleman's March - D Locrian

Zephinie - Posted - 05/10/2015:  23:37:42

Thanks so much for sharing this! I've never really seen a take on the modes quite like this, very interesting.

Johnk - Posted - 05/11/2015:  03:02:01

Very helpful - thank you!

minstrelmike - Posted - 05/11/2015:  08:52:47

The emotional impact and interpretation is debatable.

The reason music is written with the Aminor scale pre-eminent was because in the 1100s, we European humans used the minor scale to worship God. The major scale was the work of the devil.

You can of course say happiness is related to earthly desires versus heavenly ones if you wish, but I don't think there is anything intrinsically happy/sad/joyous in a specific music scale that would work across multiple cultures. If that statement is true, then it means the effect of music on our souls isn't physiological, but is cultural, is trained to be ingrained by what we hear growing up.

There are many historical treatises on the emotional effects of the different modes.

Banjophobic - Posted - 05/11/2015:  09:19:29

The actual 'mood' if music/modes open to individual interpretation. I can hear a gypsy jazz tune played in a minor mode and it makes me happy and wat to dance. I can then hear a ballad played in a supposedly 'happy' major key, but feel really sad. There are sweeping generalizations about the emotional context of keys/modes but thats all they are..generalizations.

Laurence Diehl - Posted - 05/11/2015:  09:39:00

I think this is a totally legit approach. After all - why bother with modes at all unless you are trying to apply some kind of particular emotion (or perhaps I would call it a "flavor") to a tune. And hearing the modes as compared to the reference in Ionian mode really demonstrates that flavor well. People may have different emotional responses to these modes, but what matters is the intent of the player at that point in time. It is easy to see how (for instance) applying the mixolydian mode to a major key tune will instantly give it that "Little maggie" kind of sound. Some of the other modes are more shocking, and less useful I think, in the type of music that most of us play. I will probably be staying far away from Locrian mode but I suppose it is nice to know that it exists. 

jenorma1 - Posted - 05/11/2015:  11:45:36

Thanks for the responses guys!

For a little backstory, I decided to make these recordings after watching the following youtube video where Joe Satriani talks about modal theory:

youtube.com/watch?v=i43DIwB6Pok

He says that when he first learned the modes "it was impressed upon him that he might want to develop his own opinion about each one of the modes."  I realized that while I could probably pick them out on banjo (though certainly not as well has he does on guitar!), I didn't really have strong opinions of why I would want to use them - just trying to get myself there and grow a little in the process!

While its true that the emotions (Laurence - I love the term "flavor" instead!!) people associate with the modes varies by cultural upbringing and even by the individual or musical context, I guess that's what makes the discussion interesting!  I gave you my take but I'd love to hear YOUR personal associations with each mode - why would YOU consider using each one?  What did coleman's march in lydian spark for you? What would you try to evoke by flattening the 7th of a scale, or the 2nd when writing a melody? etc etc... 

And yes, it is hard to generalize an entire scale into a few words since there are an infinite number of phrases that could be written in each one....still fun to do though!

Thanks again for listening - this is the first batch of recordings that I've posted to the hangout and its great to see that they're well received!

Laurence Diehl - Posted - 05/11/2015:  13:02:35

I wanted to add that the response to these 'novel' sounds can change over time and prolonged exposure. When I first heard improvised jazz it sounded very tense to me, and crazy. Same thing with altered chords, which are intentionally unresolved but now I hear them as a thing of beauty. Who knows, maybe I could like the Locrian mode given enough time. But it is about relationships, in this case how the mode relates to the root scale which is why I thing this is a worthy exercise.

Lew H - Posted - 05/11/2015:  13:31:21

Jeff,  Fabulous!  I posted "Cripple Creek" in four modes a while back, but I was just guessing about what I was doing, and calling them by "lay" names--major, minor, sawmill, etc. This is far superior, and shows a lot of musical ability and knowledge.  That did result in me reading a bit more about modes.  I think that mountain dulcimer players may have a better understanding (or more widespread one) than we banjoists do because their fretboards have the full and half steps built in.  I think they retune the drones for different modes (but I'm guessing again!).

I agree with you and Laurence that the mode does have a major impact on the emotional flavor of a tune.  It's not the only factor, of course.  An Aeolian  tune played super fast won't likely sound sad, but an Ionian tune played slowly could sound sad. I'm sure other factors affect the emotional flavor as well, but the mode is a big one.  If you just play a minor chord and a minor one, then ask a listener which sounds sadder, I think the overwhelming majority will pick the minor.

Thanks for what seems to me to be an extensive amount of work getting this tune down in the different modes and posting! 

jenorma1 - Posted - 05/11/2015:  13:49:32

Hey Lew - I came across you're Cripple Creek post when I was getting ready to post this one - I thought it sounded fabulous! You're right that it was not the same batch of scales I'm using here but seems like we were going for the same type of journey and your playing was awesome! Thanks for your comments!

Laurence - you're totally right about your acceptance of these things changing over time. As I was learning Coleman's in the different modes the "wrong notes" (their deviations from the more familiar scales) would completely stick out to me - my goal here was to get more comfortable playing, but more importantly hearing, these scales so that the notes no longer sound "wrong." The thought process kind of reminds me of learning a really crooked fiddle tune - the first 100 times you hear it it just doesnt make sense - the beat/rhythm sounds "wrong" - but eventually it just clicks and you cant imagine it any other way - hopefully I'll get a similar sensation playing in/listening to tunes in these modes over and over.

That being said - (as you mentioned) I'm not sure I'll ever get there with Locrian :)

mmuussiiccaall - Posted - 05/11/2015:  14:03:43

I remember when I first heard THE DOORS - LIGHT MY FIRE that during the guitar solo the guitar switched from A Dorian to A Aeolian (moving the F# to F natural in this case) that it was a shock to the ear. It takes a little time for the musical ear to adjust.

Paul Roberts - Posted - 05/15/2015:  09:45:26

jenorma1 - Posted - 05/15/2015:  20:22:04

That guy plays the heck out of that thing - really beautiful!  If I'm not mistaken the cumbus is Turkish?  

The only thing I know about Turkish music is that it was imitated by Mozart and other composers on occasion (at least Turkish Marches were) - this made me think our scales were compatible....this piece seems to lean on something with a flat 2nd - phrygian or something like it?  However - it also veers into microtones so I'm guessing what Mozart did was a very westernized imitation of Turkish music...perhaps you can enlighten me a little more?

Thanks for sharing!