INTERMEDIATE LEVEL COURSE
GUITAR SCALES for a
CHORD PROGRESSION
using a single scale position
There are Five lessons with Scale Diagrams for this Course that are presented after this yellow section to first understand The Modes.
Music is a science best understood with Modes and the following illustrations of a house explain them based on chords from the C Major scale.
A video link of this explanation is at the end of page if preferred.
There are seven Modes that are based on the Major scale but have different starting Notes producing different moods.
The natural Minor scale is the same as the sixth one.
Guitar Modes are the best way to find scales for Chord Progressions especially if the first chord does not suit the Major scale or the Minor scale.
Each Mode can be illustrated using rooms in a house.
(Their Scale Diagrams are in the lessons section after).
For a piece of music in the Key of C Major or A Minor there are seven main musical Notes: a b c d e f g
Each Note has a chord named after it expressed in capitals: A B C D E F G
This family of seven chords can be seen to exist in a House where each chord has its own Room.
A piece of music can commence with the chord from any room.
Each chord in the House suggests a sequence of the Notes from the Major scale, starting with the same Note as the chord and is called a Mode.
The House has three levels with a sunny side and a shady side, plus an Attic.
Each level has a sunny Room and a shady Room.
A seventh Room is the rarely used darker Attic.
The three sunny Rooms are cheery Major chords called C F and G
The three shady Rooms are sombre Minor chords called Am, Dm and Em.
The Attic is a slightly scary Half-Diminished chord called B Minor Flat 5 (Bmb5).
There is a Tree House alongside the third level sunny Room to represent Jazz Blues music as it includes Notes that are outside the House, particularly a Minor scale Note that is less disagreeable with the Major chord of that Level.
The Leaves on the tree represent all twelve Notes that exist, used especially in Blues Jazz music.
A piece of music often commences on the ground level either in the sunny Major chord Room with its IONIAN Mode sequence of Notes. . . . . .
. . . . . .or often a piece of music can commence in the shady Minor chord Room with its AEOLIAN Mode sequence of Notes.
But sometimes a piece of music can commence in Rooms on the other levels, particularly the second Level shady Minor chord Room with its DORIAN Mode . . . . . .
. . . . . .and the third level sunny Major chord Room with its MIXOLYDIAN Mode.
However the less common second level sunny Major chord Room with its LYDIAN Mode has launched some very popular songs too.
Commencing music in the third level shady Minor chord Room with its PHRYGIAN Mode can be exotic and Spanish sounding.
The darker Attic Room with its LOCRIAN Mode is not where music will usually commence.
Sometimes a shady Minor chord Room has a light switched on and becomes an artificially sunny Major chord called a Major V (Major Fifth) or relative Major III (Major Three).
Its Mode is altered and represented by Light Rays out of the window because one Note does not belong inside the House.
Only the PHRYGIAN Room and AEOLIAN Room have lights.
Their altered Modes are called PHRYGIAN DOMINANT and AEOLIAN DOMINANT.
Sometimes a Major chord can occur in a piece that is the MIXOLYDIAN Room of another Housecalled a Secondary Dominant or other Rooms called a Borrowed Chord.
Usually the Mode of a commencing chord Room can be used to pass through other chord Rooms unless it reaches a Minor chord Room with the light switched on, where one Note in the Mode is moved up a Semitone for the duration.
More Notes will need to be moved for Rooms used from another House.
Diminished chords are represented by a Storm Cellar under the House because they include Notes from outside the House.
Diminished chords are newly identified for this Course as having Altered Modes that can often be different depending on the following Mode.
Augmented chords are represented by a Fire Ladder mounted on the front of the House as they include Notes from outside the House.
Augmented chords are newly identified for this Course as having Altered Modes that can often be different depending on the following Mode.
The next illustration shows all twelve Houses named after the twelve Notes that exist, represented in a circle as they can repeat both higher or lower.
A piano has black Notes that represent Notes between the seven main Notes and these Houses similarly have a Black Roof.
Finally the Spiral Slide in the middle of the Trees represents Notes moving up or down in pitch called Portamento.
LESSONS and the SCALE DIAGRAMS
Here are five lessons relating to the illustrations above
Lesson 1
THE MODES
As explained above, there are seven main Modes which are based on the Major scale but starting on different Notes to produce different moods.
Their names in order are - Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian and Locrian.
Three of the following Scale Diagrams are based on chords of A Minor and three on C Major (being its relative as the Notes are the same).
They can be shifted up or down the fretboard to the fret on the ‘e’ string with the same Letter Name of the commencing chord for a Chord Progression if it is not A Minor or C Major.
The seventh one is based on the chord of A Minor b5 but it is a rare Mode.
Often the Scale will not change from the commencing chord during a Chord Progression but the new method in this Course will easily identify when a scale needs to be modified (usually only slightly) to remain in the same Scale Position.
SEE HERE the Scale Diagrams for the first six Modes using only three strings and called Partial Modes.
The A Aeolian suits practise over ‘Like A Hurricane’ by Neil Young.
The C Ionian suits practise over ‘Like A Rolling Stone’ by Bob Dylan.
The A Dorian suits practise over ‘Oye Como Va’ by Santana.
The C Lydian suits practise over ‘Man On The Moon’ by REM.
The A Phrygian suits practise over a Spanish style of the chords A Minor to Bb Major.
The C Mixolydian suits practise over ‘Rock And Roll’ by The Velvet Underground.
PRACTISE will be more effective with Backing Track videos from MEMBERS section after Sign Up.
SEE HERE the Locrian Mode based on the A Minor b5 chord, though usually not used to commence a piece of music.
LEARN MORE to apply these Scales after Sign Up and payment to access the MEMBERS section which includes Scale Demonstration videos, Backing Track videos and downloadable Scale Sheets.
Lesson 2
MAJOR V and MAJOR III scales
These slightly modified scales are used when a Major chord has been switched from its usual Minor chord in the House (or Key, the traditionally name).
This becomes obvious if using a Mode during a Chord Progression and a wrong Note is encountered on the ‘b’ string, which is moved up one fret for the duration of this ‘special’ Major chord called a Major V (Major Fifth) or Major III (Major Three).
The Major V can occur after a commencing Minor chord and the Major III can occur after a commencing Major chord.
If the commencing Mode is Aeolian then the modified scale is called a Harmonic Minor.
If the commencing Mode is Ionian then the modified scale is called a Harmonic Major.
If the commencing Mode is Dorian, the modified scale is called a Melodic Minor.
If the commencing Mode is Lydian, the modified scale is called a Melodic Major.
The following Scale Diagrams are for two possible E Major V chords in A Minor, and two possible E Major III chords in C Major (that can be shifted up or down the fretboard to the fret on the ‘e’ string with the same Letter Name of the commencing chord if it is not A Minor or C Major).
SEE HERE the modified scales for the two types of E Major V chords when there is an A Minor commencing chord, and their relative E Major III chords when there is a C Major commencing chord (to be substituted for the duration of these special Major chords).
These same Notes are also in E Phrygian Dominant Modeand E Aeolian Dominant Mode respectively.
The A Aeolian version suits the E Major in ‘House Of The Rising Sun’ by The Animals.
The C Ionian version suits the E Major in the chorus of ‘Space Oddity’ by David Bowie.
The A Dorian version suits the E Major in ‘Oye Como Va’ by Santana.
The C Lydian version suits the E Major in the chorus of ‘ I am The Walrus’ by The Beatles.
LEARN MORE to apply these scales after Sign Up and payment to access the MEMBERS section which includes Scale Demonstration videos, Backing Track videos and downloadable Scale Sheets.
Lesson 3
SECONDARY DOMINANT/BORROWED CHORD scales
These scales appear conventional but are called Limbo (an invented name) as they are used alternatively in this Course to remain in the same Scale Position during a Chord Progression when a ‘very special’ Major chord is encountered, as it does not belong in the House (or Key of the piece).
Sometimes the very special Major chords are called a Secondary Dominant or could be a Borrowed Chord.
The following Scale Diagrams are for a Chord Progression with a commencing chord of C Major but can be shifted up or down the fretboard, relative to the fret on the ‘e’ string with the same Letter Name of the commencing chord if it is not C Major.
SEE HERE the three possible Limbo Modes to substitute (depending on taste) during a ‘very special’ Major chord to remain in the same Scale Position during a Chord Progression. For example a ‘very special’ A Major following a commencing Chord of C Major, or a ‘very special’ A Major that is a commencing chord with C Major chord following.
The A Mixolydian version especially suits an A Major if it follows a C Major in Lydian Mode.
Try this over the chorus in ‘Children Of The Revolution’ by T Rex, or vice versa over the commencing A Major of chorus of ‘Are You Gonna Be My Girl’ by Jet.
SEE HERE the two possible Limbo Modes to substitute in order to remain in one Scale Position during an alternative ‘very special’ A Major 7 Chord (Borrowed Chord) in a Chord Progression with a commencing chord of C Major, or else an alternative ‘very special’ A Major 7 commencing chord with a C Major chord following.
LEARN MORE to apply these Scales after Sign Up and payment to access the MEMBERS section which includes Scale Demonstration videos, Backing Track videos and downloadable Scale Sheets.
Lesson 4
DIMINISHED AND AUGMENTED scales
It is significant that John Lennon employed these chords in some of his legendary songwriting.
These revolutionary scales were newly identified in this Course as Altered Modes with Stacked Thirds and No Consecutive Semitones (NCS).
The following Scale Diagrams are for Chord Progressions with a commencing chord of A Minor or C Major (but can be shifted up or down the fretboard to the fret on the ‘e’ string with the same Letter Name as the commencing chord if it is not A Minor or C Major).
SEE HERE some examples of Partial Scales for an A Diminished chord and an A Augmented chord in association with the three different Modes for an A Minor chord, also the three different relative Modes for a C Major chord.
LEARN how to apply all forty nine scales for the three Diminished Chords and the four Augmented Chords after Sign Up to the MEMBERS Section.
Lesson 5
PENTATONIC scales
Pentatonic Scales have five Notes that are the most important and will always sound good during a Chord Progression unless a Major Chord is encountered that is a special Major chord and only a slight modification is required.
However an extreme Key Change may require a change of Scale Position.
SEE HERE the twoPentatonic Scales for a Chord Progression with a commencing chord of A Minor or C Major (and can be shifted up or down the fretboard to the fret on the ‘e’ string with the same Letter Name as the commencing chord if it is not A Minor or C Major).
SEE HERE the two modified Pentatonic Scales for the special Major chords, related to A Minor and C Major commencing chords, being E Major V and E Major III chords (and can be shifted similarly).
SEE HERE the three possible Limbo Basic scales for a ‘very special’ Major Chord that is A Major (and can be shifted similarly).
Limbo Basic is an invented name because they have five Notes but are not conventional Pentatonic Scales.
SEE HERE the Blues Pentatonic scale for Blues in A Major. The Notes with an arrow are dissonant so must be bent up to be correctly in tune.
There are many Blues Jazz scales featured in the ADVANCED LEVEL COURSE.
FURTHER LEARNING available with Sign Up for MEMBERSHIP and payment of USD$25 which provides access to Additional Course Materials for applying these complete Modes and other scales.
They are Scale Demonstration videos for fingering and sound, Backing Track videos for practise, and downloadable Scale Sheet collections for reference.
Here are examples of a SCALE DEMONSTRATION video and BACKING TRACK video for the A Aeolian partial Mode which also includes the Ionian partial Mode (being its Relative).
MODES ILLUSTRATED YouTube video version