Play these notes starting on C and you're playing the C major scale (also known as the Ionian mode – the 'first' mode). Start on D and you're playing the second mode (D Dorian, as it happens). By the ...

Like its Lydian cousin, the Mixolydian mode deviates from the major scale by just one note – the major 7th, which is lowered by a semitone to become a minor 7th. It's a crucial difference that gives ...

A lot of the elements that make pop music successful relate to it being catchy and familiar. As a songwriter, there are many ways to engender this feeling in listeners, to do with song structure, ...

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Step 1: The blues scale is a variant of the minor pentatonic scale, which in turn is a cut-down ...