I was asked to write up a brief summary of my understanding of Model Playing for a guitar course I am attending. If you see anything wrong please hollar.

Modal Playing – A Riddle Wrapped in a Mystery Inside an Enigma.

Different scales evoke different stories. In week 5 we learned the Major and Mixolydian shapes on the fretboard for both these scales.

The Mixolydian is made by flatting the seventh of the corresponding Major Scale. This results in different notes, but more importantly, a different interval sequence between the notes which results in different harmonized chords.

However, there are other scales (Shapes) we play on the guitar which would give us the exact same notes as A Mixolydian?

Mode Harmonized Chords Notes
D Ionian Scale I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii(dim) D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#
E Dorian Scale i, ii, III, IV, v, vi(dim), VII E, F#, G, A, B, C#, D
F# Phrygian Scale i, II, III, iv, v(dim), VI, vii F#, G, A, B, C#, D, E
G Lydian Scale I, II, iii, iv(dim), V, vi, vii G, A, B, C#, D, E, F#
A Mixolydian Scale I, ii, iii(dim), IV, v, vi, VII A, B, C#, D, E, F#, G
B Aeolian Scale i, ii(dim), III, iv, v, VI, VII B, C#, D, E, F#, G, A
C# Locrian Scale i(dim), II, iii, iv, V,VI, vii, C#, D, E, F#, G, A, B

Since all these scales have the same notes, how do we say we are playing any one mode? Is it the order of the notes we play? – NO! Model playing requires selection of harmonized chords which emphasis the root (the one chord) as presented in the Backing Track!

The characters (notes) in each story (scale) have a unique relationship (interval) associated with the main character (the root). The backing track must specify, via the harmonized chords, the root which has a unique relationship (attraction) with each of the characters in the scale.

So if the backing track is A mixolydian, and you know a killer C# Aeolian lick or an F# Phrygian groove, have at it. You will still be speaking Mixolydian.

Dan, BIAB2024, SoundCloud Win11, i7(12thGen), 32GB, 1TB SSD(M.2 NVMe SSD), 2TB Libraries, 1 TB(WD-Black), 2TB SSD(M.2 NVMe SSD)Data, Motu Audio Express, Keystation 61, SL88 Studio, Reaper