Lydian, Phrygian and Locrian

Switch on the E drone (your open sixth string works just as well) and listen to these two melodies. Both start and end on E.

Drone: E2

The first seems suspended in mid-air, like film music just before something wonderful happens. The culprit is the A♯ held for two beats. The second sounds dark, with an almost painful rub between F and E: a half step above the tonic. One is Lydian; the other, Phrygian.

Compare E Ionian with E Lydian:

Formula: 1 2 3 ♯4 5 6 7. It is the brightest mode because it lowers nothing: it has every major degree and raises one more. In the major scale the fourth sits a half step above the third and “wants” to fall onto it; it is an awkward passing note over the tonic chord. The ♯4 removes that rub: now third and fourth are a whole step apart, and the tonic chord can carry the ♯4 without tension (Emaj7♯11).

Drone: E2 Play: Perfect fourth: falls back to the third Play: Augmented fourth: keeps rising and floats

The classic Lydian vamp is I–II: a major chord on the tonic and another major chord a whole step higher, with the bass glued to the tonic. In E, Emaj7 and F♯/E: the F♯ major chord holds the A♯ as its third.

1. 1Emaj7Imaj7
2. 2F♯/EII/1
3. 3Emaj7Imaj7
4. 4F♯/EII/1

String 6, Fret 4: G♯2 · 3 · Third

Compare E Aeolian with E Phrygian:

Formula: 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7. The ♭2 sits right on top of the tonic, a half step away, and casts a shadow over it: any melody that falls from F to E sounds like a dramatic ending. E Phrygian uses the notes of C major, so on the guitar it lives on the open strings: the most “guitaristic” mode of all.

String 6, Open: E2 · 1 · Root

Its giveaway chord is ♭II: F over a tonic of Em. Metal boils it down to the essentials: the open E string with palm muting and stabs on fret 1. This riff is original:

1. 1Emi
2. 2F♭II
3. 3Emi
4. 4F♭II

Flamenco Phrygian

In flamenco, the tonic of the cadence is a major chord on E, and the typical cadence descends Am – G – F – E. The notes stay Phrygian, except for the G♯ of the final chord: that mix, 1 ♭2 3, is Phrygian dominant, which you will meet properly with harmonic minor.

1. 1Amiv
2. 2G♭III
3. 3F♭II
4. 4EI

The seventh mode starts on B if you use the notes of C major. Formula: 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7. It has Phrygian's ♭2 and, on top of that, ♭5: the diminished fifth.

That ♭5 changes everything. The perfect fifth is the interval that steadies a tonic the most; without it, Locrian's tonic chord is Bm7♭5 (B–D–F–A), a half-diminished chord that sounds like a question, not an answer. Listen to the chord and then to a phrase that tries to stay on B:

Play: Bm7♭5: Locrian's “tonic” Drone: B2

Do you notice? The phrase ends on C and the ear breathes a sigh of relief, as if it had finally got home. With Locrian, the ear always suspects that the real tonic is somewhere else.

You already know the two remaining modes well:

• Ionian is the major scale. It is the reference for the major family: Lydian raises its 4 and Mixolydian lowers its 7.
• Aeolian is the natural minor. It is the reference for the minor family: Dorian raises its 6 and Phrygian lowers its 2. Next to Dorian, its trademark is the ♭6, which gives it a more melancholy tone.

With that the archipelago is complete. Look at the map: three major islands, three minor ones, and Locrian set apart.

Where each extreme lives

The two extreme modes thrive in very different habitats. Lydian shines at slow tempos and in open textures: long-ringing chords, sustained notes, reverb, clean guitar. Its enemy is haste: if the ♯4 flashes by as a quick passing note, you barely notice it. Phrygian works the other way round: it loves short, repetitive riffs, a hard rhythm and endings on the tonic, because its power lies in the ♭2–1 rub repeated over and over. In both cases the rule is the one you learned with Dorian and Mixolydian: the characteristic note has to sound where the ear will notice it.

Play: The ♭2–1 rub, repeated: Phrygian's engine

Practice

Riff and phrases in E Phrygian

80–110 BPM8 min

1. Play the riff palm-muting the open E and letting the fret 1 and 3 notes ring. Start at 80 BPM.
2. Over the vamp, improvise in first position. Every phrase ends by falling from F to E (on string 1 or string 4).
3. Move up to 100 BPM once the riff comes out three times in a row without mistakes.

1. 1Emi
2. 2F♭II
3. 3Emi
4. 4F♭II

Goal: Play the Phrygian riff cleanly at 100 BPM, then improvise 8 bars over Em–F, ending every phrase with the F–E half step.

Practice

Make the ♯4 float

60–80 BPM7 min

1. Play the “Island 1” melody with the vamp.
2. Improvise in fourth position. Natural A is banned: if you play it, Lydian vanishes.
3. Try ending phrases on A♯ instead of E: Lydian can take suspended endings.

1. 1Emaj7Imaj7
2. 2F♯/EII/1
3. 3Emaj7Imaj7
4. 4F♯/EII/1

Goal: Improvise 8 bars over Emaj7–F♯/E in which A sharp sounds at least once as a long note (two beats or more) over each chord.

Self-assessment

Listen to this phrase from E. Which mode is it?

Listen

ALydianBMixolydianCPhrygianDDorian

What is Lydian's characteristic note?

A♭7B♯4C6D♭2

Why does Locrian almost never work as a tonal centre?

AIts tonic chord is half-diminished, with no perfect fifthBIt has too many notesCIt only exists in medieval music

Listen to this chord on E. Which mode does it suggest?

Listen

ADorianBLydianCAeolianDPhrygian

Which vamp, with the bass on the tonic, is typically Lydian?

Ai–♭IIBI–♭VIICi–IVDI–II

Optional reinforcement in the portalCompare the modes on E in the modes tool(opens in a new tab)