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Greetings to the curious, unconventional, free-thinking musicians! This is where you'll find my diagrams and thoughts on music, theory, and songwriting. Let's geek out together and have some fun!
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MODES // PLAYLIST

--- VIEW POST ---
FOR TABLE OF CONTENTS AND LINKS

All posts about modes -- including relative and parallel modes, along with chords and progressions based on these modes.

-- RELATIVE --

6 | Relative Mode Tables
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/698850/6-relative-mode-tables

89 | The 7 Relative Modes (an Easy Way to Picture Them)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1605515/89-the-7-relative-modes-an-easy-way-to-picture-them

-- PARALLEL --

22 | The 7 Parallel Modes (table)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1086416/22-the-7-parallel-modes-table

91 | Parallel Modes and the Connections between Keys
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1605649/91-parallel-modes-and-the-connections-between-keys

111 | Circle of Fifths - modes intro
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1898726/111-circle-of-fifths-modes-intro

122 | Parallel Mode Labels
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/2004473/122-parallel-mode-labels

150 | Modes - Relative vs. Parallel
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/2716388/150-modes-relative-vs-parallel

157 | Intro to Modes in the Circle of Fifths
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/2857592/157-intro-to-modes-in-the-circle-of-fifths

-- IONIAN --

4 | Ionian Mode Chords (table)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/684705/4-ionian-mode-chords-table

-- DORIAN --

3 | Dorian Mode Chords (table)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/681478/3-dorian-mode-chords-table

31 | Intro to the Dorian Mode
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1209698/31-intro-to-the-dorian-mode

30 | Dorian Mode Patterns (piano)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1221789/30-dorian-mode-patterns-piano

33 | Dorian Mode Chords - quick overview
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1257507/33-dorian-mode-chords-quick-overview

146 | Extended Chords - D Dorian
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/2558609/146-extended-chords-d-dorian

192 | Dorian mode progressions
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/3548627/192-dorian-mode-progressions

-- PHRYGIAN --

2 | Phrygian Mode Chords (table)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/678051/2-phrygian-mode-chords-table

32 | Intro to the Phrygian Mode
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1244442/32-intro-to-the-phrygian-mode

37 | Phrygian Mode (piano)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1295101/37-phrygian-mode-piano

60 | Phrygian Dominant Chords
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/1525258/60-phrygian-dominant-chords

-- LYDIAN --

17 | Lydian Mode Chords (table)
https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/958787/17-lydian-mode-chords-table

00:00:25
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What else you may like…
Videos
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350 | Extended chords explained

Extended chords are easy to understand -- once you know about the Circle of Thirds.

Essentially, fancy extended chords are built by adding notes incrementally from a key's Circle of Thirds. By including ever more intervals of a third, you can play increasingly more complex harmonies.

Had I only known this in the beginning!

Without the Circle of Thirds, exotic chord names seem mysterious and complicated. WITH the Circle of Thirds, however, everything clicks into place.

🎥 This short video gives you the gist.

For more details on the construction of these chords, check out Lesson 17 in the course: https://mikegeorge.locals.com/post/6051473/296-lesson-17-pdf-video

And the PDF referenced is ChordBook 2 here: https://shop.mycolormusic.com/products/colormusic%E2%84%A2%EF%B8%8F-guitar-chordbook-modebook-bundle

00:00:57
345a | Theory Course LIVE - heads up

Hey! Join Sunday's stream for the first in the Theory Course LIVE series.

We'll be going through the course lessons page-by-page, playing the exercises, etc. -- with questions, answers, and sidebars along the way. It's a new and insightful look into music theory.

(The live stream link referenced in this video is actually in the NEXT post.)

00:00:58
341a | How Modes Change a Song (video)

Why do modes seem confusing? There are a couple of reasons:

1) Because they're often depicted using traditional notation. This is a problem because the linear structure of notation distorts the inherently cyclical nature of music. So the way modes are typically pictured is warped.

2) Because different song examples are commonly used to illustrate the sonic qualities of the respective modes. But that's like comparing apples to oranges, in a way. So the point of the comparison gets lost.

So this video demonstrates how the various modes alter the sound of a single song -- using the ChordMap to visualize the changes.

The accompanying chord diagrams are in the follow-up post (341b). Cheers.

00:06:54
351 | Your first learning method

QUESTION: How did you first learn to study music?

346 | Is notation theory?

TRUE OR FALSE: Growing up, you thought that "music theory" and "music notation" were essentially the same thing.

Has anyone ever tried using Grok 3 AI to explain how modes work? It does not do a good job at it all. Watch Mike's video because humans rock! Lol.

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349 | Theory Course LIVE - Session 2

This is the second session of the music theory course - LIVE.

Time: Sunday, April 20 at 10:00 a.m. (UTC-6)

Link to join:

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345b | Theory Course LIVE - Session 1

This is the first session of the music theory course - LIVE.

Time: Sunday, April 13 at 10:00 a.m. (UTC-6)

Link to join:

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To read the rest of this article and access other paid content, you must be a supporter
Read full Article
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342 | Live Stream - 6 April 2025

Hello -- join the live stream Sunday, April 6 @ 10:00 a.m. MDT (UTC-6).
We're talking about music theory, songwriting, and more.

Here's the link to join:

Only for Supporters
To read the rest of this article and access other paid content, you must be a supporter
Read full Article
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