How To Hear the Modes Without Reading Music

Nov 8


Musical modes are powerful tools that can transform your music by adding depth, color, and variety beyond the basic major and minor scales. If you’ve ever felt that modes like Lydian, Dorian, or Phrygian are beyond reach, or just concepts for the theoretically inclined, you’re in for a pleasant surprise! Learning to hear and understand modes can actually be intuitive and accessible through a few effective ear training exercises. In this guide, we’ll explore how to approach modes through ear training, solfege, and a simple model song.


Why Learn Modes?

Modes unlock new emotional tones and textures, giving musicians the freedom to step outside traditional major and minor tonalities. Each mode can evoke a distinct feeling: Lydian’s brightness, Mixolydian’s playful feel, or Phrygian’s exotic quality. By training your ear to recognize these modes, you’ll be ready to use them for improvisation and composition without getting bogged down by theory.

Step 1: Start with a Familiar Melody

Using a melody you know helps anchor each mode to a recognizable pattern, which is why a model song is key. For this exercise, we’ll use White Coral Bells, an old folk round that touches each note in the major scale.

Step 2: Understand the Modes “Relatively” and “Parallel”

There are two ways to experience modes. The first is the Relative Way — using the same set of notes as the major scale but changing the starting note to experience each mode. The Parallel Way keeps the tonic the same for each mode, adjusting specific notes to bring out each mode’s character.

Step 3: Use Solfege to Internalize Each Mode

Singing in solfege (do, re, mi, etc.) makes it easy to hear the subtle shifts that define each mode. For example:

Lydian: Major with a raised fourth, the brightest of the modes.

Ionian: Your basic major scale.

Mixolydian: Major with a lowered seventh, a little darker than major.

Dorian: A minor mode with a raised sixth a mix of bright and dark.

Aeolian: Your natural minor, getting darker.

Phrygian: Minor with a lowered second, darker still.

Locrian: Phrygian with a lowered fifth. So dark it's strangely bright. Very unstable.

Try It for Yourself!

To really get these modes into your ears, try singing White Coral Bells in each mode using solfege syllables. As you repeat the melody in each mode, notice how it changes the mood and feeling, even though the core melody remains the same.

Practice and Apply

Playing different melodies or improvising in each mode allows you to explore their unique textures. Experiment with a piano or any instrument by holding a note as a drone and playing melodies that begin and end on different scale degrees.

Takeaways

Learning modes isn’t just about theory — it’s about opening up a world of new possibilities in your musical expression. With practice, you’ll start to hear each mode’s unique voice, empowering you to make creative choices in improvisation and composition.

Let’s dive in and let your ears lead the way in discovering musical modes!

Connect with us

Who we are

My mission is to help musicians of all ages and abilities create music in a way that feels natural and true to them.  This means helping them connect both with their ability to understand what they hear as well as with their creative spirit.

Featured links

Get in touch

  • 147 Bolton Street, Portland, ME 04102
  • hans@tuneindigo.com
  • 207-776-9663
Copyright © 2024
Created with