Submit your modal piece!
Added 2024-12-31 17:42:22 +0000 UTCNote: Attached in this post is a fixed PDF of the slideshow from yesterday's class (there were a few incorrect symbols, and I've also updated the old post)
Last night, we explored how to bend the Ionian scale into Mixolydian and Lydian. If you missed the lesson, here's a replay: https://youtube.com/live/-cfXGmelPCg?feature=share
This week's goal is to write a short piece that uses 9 notes: the seven notes of major, plus a raised fourth, and a lowered seventh. If you're feeling up to the challenge, you can submit a link to your song via dropbox or google drive, and include a little info too, like the following:
My piece is in G major, and borrows from G mixolydian and G Lydian by using the bVII chord and the II chord. The progression goes like this:
G - Gmaj7 - Em - C - Am - F - G - G
A - C - G - G - A - C - D - D
Here's the link!
I'll be "grading" three random submissions each week. If you just want to submit without having yours chosen, just say the word! And if you'd like to collaborate with others, you can join the Signals Music Discord where several other students have congregated: https://discord.gg/FpPj42yv
Comments
I originally planned to make the solo longer, but kept finding it just buried the articulated rhythm guitar so I gave up on that. I listen to Dream Theater a lot too, so that tends to show without even trying. Thanks for the feedback!
Znernicus
2025-01-06 17:06:56 +0000 UTCHere is my somewhat cringy lofi contribution: Chord progression is roughly: D Major - D Mixolydian - D Lydian - D Major D - A - Bm - G - D7 - C - G - D7 - D - E - A - Bm - G - A - D https://drive.google.com/file/d/17plpjRP-Ob7EhpJ8dJcLALzi4lcPueqc/view?usp=sharing
Niels Provos
2025-01-06 16:24:08 +0000 UTCthanks for catching that. It should be available now.
Michael Smith
2025-01-06 02:02:39 +0000 UTCI think you have access restricted in your submission.
Scott
2025-01-06 02:00:03 +0000 UTCSorry! I submitted my assignment as an email response and not to this thread. I recorded it a couple hours after the stream. I'll attach it here for you all! It's in 6/8, and I recorded a melody/lead over it to try to highlight the changes. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1z6DGk3WIfM2KHrerTwjrG7LXvFXEQXfd/view?usp=drive_link Chords: Dsus2-Dmaj7sus2-B/Dsus2-Dsus2 (6/4) Dsus2-C/Dsus2-B/Dsus2-Dsus2 (6/4) D-D#11-D-D#11 Dsus2-Dmaj7sus2-C/Dsus2-B/Dsus2-Dsus2 (6/4)-D
MindStorM
2025-01-06 00:34:45 +0000 UTCnice work! I do love cheesy dance numbers. your production sounds really good too.
drench toast
2025-01-05 20:48:43 +0000 UTCthanks! I feel like it could stand to be turned down in the mix. or use a less cheesy patch. rookie mistake submitting the moment I was satisfied instead of resting my ears and listening again. live and learn!
drench toast
2025-01-05 20:46:18 +0000 UTCThis is my entry. No melody but a nice chord progression. I don't have too much experience recording, so I spent a lot of time on that aspect. G Em D X3 Dsus2 Dsus4 A bm7 (mixolydian) am7 D7 Repeat until last D7 Dmaj7 (didn’t have time to record this version stayed on D7) (lydian) c#m7 bm7 A E7 (ionian) A7 Dmaj7 Link to file: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e3LIzvduZ5skHF6A512cXE02KYrNTsdk/view?usp=drive_link
Michael Smith
2025-01-05 20:35:32 +0000 UTCThis is great. I’m always a sucker for the minor v, it’s so wistful for longing. And massive props for writing lyrics and singing! You’ve got a great singing voice!
Aaron Shemon
2025-01-05 13:39:03 +0000 UTCThank you!
Patrick
2025-01-05 13:18:09 +0000 UTCBeautiful. Could be the score of a montage in a Disney animated movie.
Scott
2025-01-05 11:53:45 +0000 UTCI agree with you - your guitar playing sounds great on the metal version, but the piano version is beautiful (and is much easier for someone like me that doesn't have an amazing ear to follow the progression). Well done!
Scott
2025-01-05 11:47:53 +0000 UTCLove it. Reminds me of Scissor Sisters, who are awesome
Scott
2025-01-05 11:42:19 +0000 UTCThanks Paul, and I agree re: the v chord. I feel like V is so engrained/common/expected that the v can be a nice reprieve.
Scott
2025-01-05 11:36:32 +0000 UTCThanks for the kind words, Patrick!
Scott
2025-01-05 11:32:09 +0000 UTCAgreed with Patrick, actually the harmony over the v chord is something of a revelation to me, it’s something I’ve heard a lot but I’ve never put a theoretical label on it. Very helpful example!
Paul T
2025-01-05 11:29:00 +0000 UTCHere's a cheesy dance pop song I wrote, performed, and produced. I also attempted to mix it as an extra challenge. Chords: Verse/Chorus/Outro: A - E -F#m - E (x5) B - E -D -E (outro ends with F#m) Bridge: F#m - G - A (x3) D - C#m7 I was trying to use the bVII in the bridge, but it sounds like it could be heard as a modulation to D major instead. Regardless, I like the effect. I also almost sang the b7 in the verse, but it's more of a blue note. Sorry for turning in my assignment last minute, and sorry for going slightly over on time! https://drive.google.com/file/d/186FR55UJ7aKMmcOkJAojXukpH6sZBRDe/view?usp=sharing
Iron Octopus
2025-01-05 11:28:29 +0000 UTCGreat melody!
Paul T
2025-01-05 11:26:37 +0000 UTCLove this, great job!
Aaron Shemon
2025-01-05 01:47:20 +0000 UTCHere's my submission: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BMOo4Teaaz9mESKieJiyv7QWwktXXK-t/view?usp=sharing I'm still learning theory so please correct me if I get anything wrong! Here's my best take on what I was going for: Piece is in Eb Ionian and incorporates Eb Mixolydian and Ab Lydian by using borrowed chords bVII and II. Chords and lead I played live on my Take 5. I played a few of the chords as inversions (I love doing this). Apologies in advance if I call any of them by the wrong name - I said I was still learning! Bass was also Take 5 but sequenced. Drums were sequenced. Progression: A section - Eb Ionian w/ Eb Mixolydian Eb - Gm/D - Cm - Cm Eb - Gm/D - Cm - Db (but fast) Eb - Gm/D - Cm - Db Cm - Gm/Bb - Cm - Db (fast again) B section - Eb Ionian w/ Eb Lydian F/C - Ab/C - F/C - Ab/C - Eb/Bb (no 3/upside down power chord??) - repeat once outro is Eb/Bb repeated a few times, first without the 3, then with it. this inversion keeps the 3 (G) on top, btw, which I hope highlights the major feel. I believe this is how the entire progression would be written in roman numerals, ignoring inversions: I - iii - vi - vi I - iii - vi - bVII I - iii - vi - bVII vi - iii - vi - bVII II - IV - II - IV - I II - IV - II - IV - I I The bass... I knew I wanted a 16th note rhythm to offset the dreaminess of the keys, and I wanted to repeat the same notes over and over to make it no so busy despite the rhythm. A section consists of Bb - Eb - C - Bb movement. It rises up when the chords on top are falling, which I like, before it settles on C to match the root of the chord. At the transition to B section it falls down a bit more before popping back up and hitting the Db for its only taste of Mixolydian on the way to Lydian: Ab - G - C - Db - Eb B section is these notes, not gonna transcribe the rhythm: F - Eb - F - Ab F - Eb - F - Ab - Eb - D - repeat both lines once more each Bass outro is just walking down pieces of the Eb Ionian scale. Lead: I wanted to keep this straightforward since the chords are doing the heavy modal work. It never leaves Eb Ionian scale, mostly uses scale degrees 1, 2, 3, and 5, with as much emphasis as I could muster on the 3 to highlight the "major" vibe. I just improvised the rhythm and melody. Also I'm a sucker for glide on leads. Extra cheese please.
drench toast
2025-01-05 01:10:00 +0000 UTCOk, here's mine. Going in my goal was to use all nine notes as bass notes while making a descending baseline. I also wanted to explore new sounds in my DAW. I think I missed on the assignment since I borrowed another chord, but in the end it was a learning experience and fun. Chords: Cmaj7 - G/B - Bbadd2 - F/A - Ab - Gm7 - D7/F# - D7 - C Please let me know if the link doesn't work. https://drive.google.com/file/d/14IqIUqwn3VSQmLEJv5-yHrR5FlIbVf6A/view?usp=share_link
Aaron Shemon
2025-01-05 00:59:36 +0000 UTCMy section is in G Major. For the melody line I leaned into G, B, D for the Ionian feel, and sprinkled in some natural F to suggest Mixolydian. For the chord progression I used G7 from Mixolydian and Amaj, Dmaj from Lydian. Chord Progression G G G G7 C C G G7 A D G G7 G G G G https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/bg34u9vep868yatdme4vd/GMaj_Mix_Lyd_1.aif?rlkey=boadmzsuzlajgq7aqagqk6l3r&st=pj9po9dy&dl=0 This was a good challenge for me. I don't often write stuff like this and I doubt I would have come up with it had it not been for the assignment. Thanks!
Eric Kirwan
2025-01-04 22:20:37 +0000 UTCThanks Jake for another fantastic lesson. My piece is in E. There are some inversions but I think it goes: Emaj7 Emaj7 C#min7 C#min7 Amaj7 Amaj7 Emaj7 Dmaj7 Emaj7 Dmaj7 E F# C#m C#m E F# C#m C#m https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Cy0LHdb_1fc9oZIqDdoOkAlE4vCIUR8K/view?usp=sharing EDITed to correct a transcribing error.
Thomas Fender
2025-01-04 21:19:16 +0000 UTCThe tone and progression gives me dream theater vibes, but maybe I've been listening to them too much lol. I would've liked to hear more of the solo, other than that, this sounds very nice, and I love how you blended the notes.
Patrick
2025-01-04 20:54:39 +0000 UTCI love it! Emotional and I like your singing. The part movements felt natural
Patrick
2025-01-04 19:35:50 +0000 UTCHello. For my piece, I made two versions as I think my original piece doesn't feel right (I'm basic in production/engineering). I made a piano version that I think sounds a lot better with the same progression, and I included a midi file for that. I had an idea of using extensions to outline modes and make them weird, so I did things like a IV4 to outline Mixolydian, or iii9 to outline Lydian. I kept the extension idea to a tiny amount to make it more simple. I'm not sure if that's how modes would work though. When Jake said to consider what happens to those scales when you shift the degrees I instantly thought of Mixolydian b6 and Lydian dominant, and I added them into the outro. I saw an opportunity to do chromatic mediant type movements with the modes. For example, bVII to II giving a III movement. Chords: Verse [Ionian, Mixoldian, Lydian] B - D#m - E x2 B - C#m(b13) - E(add4) - A#m Chorus [Same modes in verse] A - G#m - F#m - A C# - F#m - F# - B Outro [Ionian, Lydian, Mixoldyian b6, Lydian dominant] B - D#m(add9) - E - Em D#+ - F#minmaj7 - B Original Piece: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xlxRyTQWrSBJIJ6OeYPu_sS2e1WCHg8b/view?usp=sharing Piano Version: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1CkFhhRW4Jhthw9fOfJDEPrUhXU-SVhwV?usp=sharing
Patrick
2025-01-04 19:18:33 +0000 UTCIt does! Excellent work!
Steve K
2025-01-04 16:01:56 +0000 UTCAh, Kemper always sounds great.
Aaron Shemon
2025-01-04 16:00:48 +0000 UTCThanks Aaron, all the tones are straight out of my Kemper unit. This is way outside of what I normally do so I was just browsing through the stock tones until I found one that fits. Maybe I should have written them down! I think the main ingredient in the jangly rhythm tone was using the split coil on the bridge pickup, it really caught the Strat vibe I was looking for.
Paul T
2025-01-04 15:16:32 +0000 UTCSounds great! (What VST do you use for guitar?)
Aaron Shemon
2025-01-04 14:59:03 +0000 UTCMuch appreciated Scott!
Paul T
2025-01-04 14:33:58 +0000 UTCVery impressive, Paul. Your playing, and this motif, sound great.
Scott
2025-01-04 12:09:00 +0000 UTCMy piece is in C Major. I have been learning to sing recently, so using this exercise as an excuse to practice that. I initially left the lead guitar out, but decided to keep it in to help accentuate the borrowed chords; making sure to hit the 'character' notes of the particular mode. The intro is straight major, Part A shifts to mixolydian (via the v chord) and Part B shifts to lydian (II and vii chords). https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/oog4x7ssqgehod1ax0i4l/Move-Fast-Think-Less.mp3?rlkey=x7hwml8pmizr3jvd60nri01m9&st=88y04hkq&dl=0 Cheers!
Scott
2025-01-04 11:52:40 +0000 UTCI had a hard time keeping this under 1 minute haha. My progression is meant to be in E major, although sometimes the borrowed chords make it feel ambiguous where the tonal center is, at least to my ear. https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/fn98etvvivh6l8yl84kmq/Lesson1.mp3?rlkey=9xpcf6dzffogvcuwbwaf6abqh&st=b46sglkf&dl=0 Chords: C#m E C#m E B Dmaj9 B A F# G#m9 A Dmaj7 C#something (I don't know what this chord is called) Bm E B Asus2 E C#m E C#m E Dmaj9 Emaj7
Znernicus
2025-01-04 05:51:54 +0000 UTCRusty with Google Drive too. Thanks for letting me know. It should work now.
Gamp
2025-01-03 12:58:43 +0000 UTCAccess denied! Did you want others to hear your piece? Or it might just be me doing something wrong!
Steve K
2025-01-03 10:03:56 +0000 UTCHi folks. I'm mega-rusty with recording skills (and my guitar playing even more so), but here goes nothing: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FgWt49zjSuYvz7JbjctHKxM5-xTVsipi/view?usp=sharing It's in F, with measures 7-8 in Mixolydian (Eb) and 13-14 in Lydian (Bnatural). F-Am-Bb-Gm F-Bb-Eb-Cm Dm-Bb-F-C Em-G-C7-F
Gamp
2025-01-03 03:45:30 +0000 UTCHi Jake! Here’s my submission, it’s in B major and the chords are: (E - B - F# - G#m) x3 E - B - F# - Asus2 B - B(add#11) - B - B(add#11) C#m - F# - G#m - E - C#m - F# - A - A - B https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/uneyrk80lm6b29ylh2lb8/Modal-Mixture-Week-1.mp3?rlkey=amiv7n456l2cjl5zi3titkqeo&st=mf71iboc&dl=0 I experimented a bit using a sus2 on the bVII in the first section and I liked how it sounded compared to the regular old major chord. I tried to go for a strong lydian tonality right off the bat in the next section by adding the raised 4 to the tonic chord then moved right to the ii chord afterwards to show we’re back to “regular” major. Feels like a bit of a shoehorn move but I’ve enjoyed experimenting with things I wouldn’t usually do. I used the bVII again later for a little more mixolydian feel, that tonality was definitely a lot easier to work with in this style.
Paul T
2025-01-02 22:20:04 +0000 UTCHi Jake, Thanks for the first part of this series. I learned a lot from doing the first exercise, and I am looking forward to the next lesson. My piece is supposed to be in C, but the last 8 bars of Lydian ended up feeling like G Major (rookie error!). I decided to submit it anyway! https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XWOwIMG6Q_lfetpalcsxt554mFhaNZrm/view?usp=sharing
Steve K
2025-01-02 10:24:36 +0000 UTCHi, Jake, My piece is in G: ( G Am Bm C | G Am F D ) * 3 G A G A G https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hs80t5PU1dVpCcTN2yrg8KFSbqHLXXlt/view?usp=sharing
Alan Zeleznikar
2025-01-02 04:12:00 +0000 UTCHappy New Year! This was a great lesson, thank you very much! It made very much sense to me because it was presented in a way that met my low level of theory, so I was very excited to work on the exercise. This is my homework in E major: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nHPhraAJHpIqdDbcRAQpvV4pStWYmN9k/view?usp=sharing It's a bit longer than 1 min because I couldn't resist adding an intro, but I was having too much fun with it.
John
2025-01-01 20:10:35 +0000 UTCThat was fun! Great lesson, I hope I can catch the next one live if it's at a more Europe-friendly time. :) Anyway here's my piece: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aULdXSChuhkFoBzk_hefjjAK0mLiUVC0/view?usp=sharing The chords are: A - A - D - A - E D - A - A - E - G - D - A - B7 - D - G - A - F#m - D - E It's mostly in A major, borrowing the G from mixolydian to make it cooler and a B7 from lydian to give it a little lift. Because that's how it works, you know? Seriously though, I had a lot of fun and definitely need to use modal mixture more often because it's awesome. Happy new year!
ExcellentHummingbird
2025-01-01 14:55:54 +0000 UTCGreat lesson, I thought I'd watch it in chunks, but I ended up watching the whole video in one sitting. I will definitely do the "homework" even if I don't submit anything. 🎉👯Best new years eve in a long time 🥳🎊 Thank you✌️✌️
Tommy Dahlman
2024-12-31 23:26:27 +0000 UTC
