Bass Modes: Mixolydian

The Mixolydian mode can be (and usually is) described as the “5th mode of the major scale”- which is basically saying that if you take a major scale and start on the 5th note, you’ll end up playing the Mixolydian mode. For example, here are the notes of the C major scale:

C D E F G A B C

Now, lets rearrange the scale to start from the 5th note, G:

G A B C D E F G

This is the “G Mixolydian mode”. Simple, right?

Watch out! This is one of those areas that gets people confused! The G Mixolydian mode has nothing to do with the C major scale at all! The only link between them is that they contain the same notes.

That’s the part that confuses a lot of people. Sure, they contain the same notes, but they are not linked in any other way whatsoever. You can understand this mode far, far better by considering it as a separate scale.

So let’s look at the scale formula. If you’ve been reading any of my posts on scales, you’ll already know how scale formulas work.

Here is the scale formula for the major scale:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

…and every other scale is compared to this. So, here is the scale formula for the Mixolydian mode:

1 2 3 4 5 6 b7

As you can see, the construction of the Mixolydian mode is very similar to that of the major scale- in fact it’s only one note different- the “7″ becomes a “b7″ (a flattened 7th).

By the same logic, if this is the C major scale:

C D E F G A B C

…and we flatten the 7th note (B), we’ll get C Mixolydian:

C D E F G A Bb C

Here is the bass tab of the C Mixolydian mode:


G --------------------7-9-10-
D -------------7-8-10--------
A ------7-8-10---------------
E -8-10----------------------

If you want, you could move this shape so that it starts on the 3rd fret instead of the 8th (so a G instead of a C). Then compare the notes of the new scale to the G Mixolydian example I gave earlier (hint: they should be the same).

Using the Mode

The main bit of music theory that you’ll probably want to know about this mode is that the chord built off the first note is a dominant 7th chord (more on how to build chords). Therefore, if you want to understand the sound of the C Mixolydian mode tabbed above, think of a C7 chord.

Here are the notes of a C7 chord:


G ---------------
D --------8-10---
A ---7-10--------
E -8-------------

This type of chord is the main sort you’ll find in blues jazz music (and styles influenced by either of those)…and so the Mixolydian mode can sound bluesy, or jazzy (depending on the context).

I hope you can experiment with this mode and find some cool ways to use it in your own playing and compositions! As always, any questions? Just leave a comment below.
Rob.

August 9, 2011 at 11:00 pm | Bass Scales | No comments