on our last video we took a look at the Dorian mode and gave you a six-step exercise to practice
the scale. well today, we're going to take a look at the mixolydian mode in a tonal context. the
mixolydian and Dorian scales are very much related to one another. while Dorian is the perfect scale
for minor seven chords, the mixolydian scale is perfect for dominant chords, and in two five
progressions both scales are made up of the same exact notes, because Dorian and mixolydian are
the second and fifth mode of the major scale. I'm going to dip into the two five progression later
on in the video, but for now let's start with step one like we did with dorian. let's play the
major scale starting on the root and then, the exact same notes starting on the fifth degree.
now, I want you to think of the steps formula of the mixolydian scale, that's:
W W H W W H, and then W. and pay attention at where the half steps are in the scale.
also think of the intervals that you are playing. mixolydian is: 1 2 3 4 5 6 and
b7. you can see it as a major scale with a b7, instead of a maj7. so in step two,
we're playing the mixolydian scale in all keys by thinking of these properties.
Play the mixolydian scale in all keys. we should take a look at where we can use this mode for
improvisation. as I mentioned before, in a 2-5, the mixolydian mode is built with the same set
of notes as the Dorian mode. so in a Dm7 to G7 progression we can use Dorian over the Dm
and mixolydian over the G7. it's important to notice that these are 2-5's targeting a
major chord. for 2-5's in minor, we're better off with other variations of mixolydian, such
as :the mixolydian b9 b13, and others, that we'll discuss later in other videos. in fact, in a 2-5,
we can just think of, and play, the mixolydian scale on the V7 and completely ignore the Dorian
scale. but I want you to really understand why this is the case. the reason might seem obvious,
since both scales are made up of the same notes. in a Dm7 G7 progression, D Dorian contains the
same notes as G mixolydian. so at first glance it might seem evident that just playing D Dorian or G
mixo on a 2-5 would yield the same results. but that's not the case. each note in a mode offers
a different amount of tension, and this is an essential concept to grasp if you want to master
your lines when you improvise. but be very careful with this concept because the tension-release
contour of the notes in a mode is completely different when we play in a tonal context versus
playing in a modal context. this Dorian-Mixo duality, that I'm talking about right now,
works best in a tonal context. before we dive deep into this concept, I want you to practice the
following step. step three: over a 2-5 progression play the iim7 arpeggio and resolve the b7,
of the m7 chord, to the 3rd of the V chord. on a Dm7 to G7 we're going to play this...
take it for a spin across all keys...
to understand why mixo can replace Dorian-Mixo in a 2-5 progression, we have to look at the purpose
of the ii chord in a 2-5. actually with that last step you've just trained your ears to understand
the use of the ii chord in a 2-5 progression. the b7 in a ii chord wants to move to the 3 of the
V chord. the C and Dm7 wants to resolve to the B of the G7. This creates a subdominant-to-dominant
contour. the V chord's purpose, or any other dominant function's purpose for that matter,
is to add tension to the progression, and the related ii in a 2 5 is used as a ramp to get to
that V chord with ease. In other words, the ii chord smooths out the tension release contour
within the progression. this technique is so effective that we can always interpolate a related
ii chord of any dominant chord. and that works for any dominant chord, primary or secondary.
For example on this C7, we can interpolate the related ii (G m7.)
C7 is a V7/IV, and we can smooth out the contour by interpolating the ii/IV right in front of it.
On the other hand, every time we see a 2-5, we can consider the ii as a chord that was interpolated,
and completely replace it with just the V chord. So, in this Am7 to D7,
we can see the Am7 as an interpolated ii, and replace the entire measure with just the D7 chord,
and only think of D mixolydian for the entire measure. So in step four, we're going to practice
thinking mixolydian over a 2-5 progression. And let's add a chromatic passing tone between the 1
and the b7. This is known as a Bebop scale, but I want you to see it as a mixolydian with a passing
tone. So we're completely ignoring the Dm7, and just thinking of a G mixolydian. as we
did on the Dorian mode, adding a passing tone gives us a line in which the chord tones of our
dominant chord land on the downbeats, while the other tones are on the up-beads - functioning
as passing tones. And this is a defining characteristic of any Bebop scale. Step
five: now practice the same scale going up.
step six: let's start on the nine and add another chromatic passing tone...
on step 7, we're going to target two essential notes in the mixolydian scale: the 9th and the
13th. these two tensions contain the best mixolydian colors for jazz improvisation...
So, there you have it hope that was helpful hope you learned a thing or two about the mixolydian
scale and how to use it to improvise if you're not a member yet I encourage you strongly to
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