The subject of modes has always bothered me a bit. Why would you tell someone to play E Phrygian instead of just C major? Why complicate a simple scale with 7 modes?

Well, I think the answer is that some song forms coincide with particular modes. Most rock and blues seem to agree with the Dorian mode. A blues rock song based around a D tonal center, having a D, D5, Dm, or D7 as the 1st chord can have a ripping solo in D Dorian, and it makes more sense to call it that than simply C major. Its a song in D so call it by its mode, not its base scale (key?).

Locrian mode does have uses...

it is used as a modulation when soloing with the diminished scale over the harmonic minor in genres as diverse as jazz, blues, and heavy metal. Also, in various sub genres of metal, it is the main key used in many songs; for example, metallica's "enter sandman" is written in E locrian. also, the opposite of my initial back-up may occur: a locrian solo modulating into the harmonic minor and/or phrygian may also be played over a rhythm based on the diminished. You see both examples used in modern rock music.

how do these modes of music help to inspire people??

Why do we use the mode we do? Does a change in mode involve re-tempering the scale? Can a computer change a Beethoven Symphony in a particular key into the same key in another mode and what would it sound like?

It is easier to understand modes (or "method") by examining origins. People of the world (almost universally) accept the 13 steps of the octave as now based on notes determined by the use of the 12th root of 2 (1.05946321). Three main world systems of music have been established by specific selection and exclusion of these 12 notes: Pentatonic (five notes of the octave used by the oriental people), Hexatonic (six notes of the octave used by the people of the Middle East), and Septatonic (seven notes of the octave used by people of Western Europe.

Each of these note systems can be easily understood by the use of a standard 12-hour clock. Pentatonic places the five notes at 1:00, 4:00, 6:00, 8:00, and 11:00. Hexatonic places the six notes at 1:00, 3:00, 6:00, 8:00. 9:00 and 12:00. Septatonic places the seven notes at 1:00, 3:00, 4:00, 6:00, 8:00, 9:00, and 11:00. The missing notes were not named, numbered, or existant in most instruments.

Names were given to each of the notes in the three systems, which, in the case of the septatonic, were letters of the alphabet. The note at 1:00 was given A, the note at 3:00 was named B, and so on around. Going one step further, The vocal solfeggio system was devised as a way to attach a given musical pitch to a given note (rather than just talk about note names and locations. In solfeggio, 1=A=La begins the low-octave note , 3=B=Ti, 4=C=Do, 6=D=Re, 8=E=Fa, 11=G=So, and 13(1)=A=La completes the high octave note.

These notes are the same as the seven strings of an ancient stand-up or lap-top harp, or the white keys of the piano or organ today. It therefore comes as no surprise to realize that musicians did not just form their melodies from one starting point, but increased the variety and interest of music by the simple technique of starting their melodies on any one of the seven notes (or the five or six note systems of the orient and Middle East). An octave started at each of the seven different starting points had its own name, or ”mode”: A=Aeolian, B=Locrian,C= Ionian. D-Dorian, E=Phrygian, F=Lydian, G=Mixolydian-- each scale producing its own flavor of music, dark or light. Octaves started on C, F, and G produced sunny, light-hearted (“major”) music, while octaves starting on A, D, or E produced darker, moody “minor” music. The scale starting on B didn’t seem to go anywhere important, and is essentially a scale without friends, but trying to find some.

Modal music persisted until the introduction of the “black” keys— a simple evolution to allow pitch adjustment for vocalists—at which time the uncomplicated seven-mode system fell apart by having, not the original seven systems but rather gaining 77 more, and being reduced to the now-familiar “Diatonic” scale (the ancient Ionian mode, or Do-Re-Mi-Fa-So-La-Ti-Do) with the incredibly complex key system of sharps and flats. It may come as a surprise, however, to discover that the majority (85%) of the music we listen to today is made of the same exact modal structure (though not necessarily the same ancient starting point in the octave) as music was in the past—identical for the most part, with the exception of the language used to describe it.

The most popular mode (if it can be called that now) is Mixolydian, with its wonderful exclusive inclusion of what we now call the flatted 7th note. No other “major” mode had it, though it exists in the three “minor” modes.

It turns out that the selection of the particular seven notes and the ensuing modal scales found in Western European music was a pure stroke of genius, (although a “cheap parlor trick” for prodigious writing of tunes), giving us the greatest amount of musical enjoyment for centuries. But then, when the “black” keys were introduced around 1300 AD, music was given an astronomical boost in power on the ever-present foundation of modes, from which we may never recover.

I think of modes as distinct keys just like Major and Minor (which are basically just the Ionian and Aeolian modes except Minor usually has a raised 7th). Although some like Dorian and Phrygian may have a minor tonality they are all unique.

I've been struggling to understand the concept of modes and how they are used. do they follow the chord sequences in a song for example or do you choose a mode and play it throughout the piece?

headscratcher.

What are modes used for? If i were to write a song would i use one mode? do they apply to notes or chords?

If you look at the position of the whole tones and the semitones, you will see that as you play each mode, one after the other in order, the semitones (H) are moved one place to the left.

This indicates that to play in a certain mode, all you need to do is play a major scale over one of it's key chords. So you could figure out which mode you are playing when using the C major scale and playing over the chords C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, and Bmflat5.

Best thing is to record yourself playing a particular chord, and then try playing major scales in various different keys over the top of yourself to see what each one sounds like. Then figure out what it's called and why it sounds that way.

think about the white keys (only) of a piano - if you have a keyboard nearby it helps to visualize the whole step and half steps

c to c is a major scale cdefgabc

d to d is dorian mode defgabcd

e to e is phrygian mode efgabcde

f to f is lydian mode fgabcdef

g to g is mixolydian mode gabcdefg

a to a is aeolian mode abcdefga (also known as natural minor)

b to b is locrian mode bcdefgab (not as usable but who am I to judge?)

the minor scale types are

natural minor or aeolian mode

abcdefga

harmonic minor

abcdefG#a

melodic minor

abcdeF#G#a (going up or ascending)

agfedcba (going down or descending)

modes are a variation of a scale.

each scale has 8 tones, and all modes do are alter where the half and whole tones lay in the scale.

there are 7 modes to a scale. they just change what the tones are within the scale according to the whole tone/ half tone pattern.

a way to see how modes sound different is by starting on middle C, and doing a scale upward.

then start on D, and play the WHITE keys only to d again.

Then do it with E, F, G, A, and B. you will be to hear a difference in the way the scale is composed. this is due to the different tonality patterns.

No. From this article, it appears clearly that there are seven modes to a scale. Therefore modes are inherent constituents of a scale and not the same thing.

I don't fully comprehend modes yet but this article has helped a lot in a succinct fashion.

So this is probably a dumb question, but is "mode" just another word for "scale" in music? The words seem to be used interchangeably here.