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Adding modes to my playing?

#201
Whousedtoplay said:
The song has just two chords: Abmin9 and Bmin7(11).
All the notes of the melody are strictly from the Db Mixolydian scale:
Click to expand...

(Back by popular demand - LOL! :roflmao:)

If all the notes from the Tyla's song, "Water" are from Db Mixolydian, then, we can deduce that the paternal scale is Gb major - Db Mixolydian is the 5th mode of the Gb major scale (or F# major.)

Therefore, instead of playing Abmin9 - Bbmin7, I've "reharmonized" it to
B (Cb) - C#(Db) in Verse
and
B (Cb) - C#(Db) - C#(Db) - F#(Gb)in Chorus.

And it fits.
And we don't have any Modal composition, just IV - V - and I.
 
#202
Whousedtoplay said:
Another Tyla's song with a simple but, kind of, interesting chord vamping.

That song got my attention due to its subtle (percussion-based) rhythmic pattern.
The original bass line from that song is not bad, but the percussion part allows me to "imagine/re-imagine" a new and subtle bass rhythmic "breathing." And it's NOT about "what-other-notes" to play, it's about rhythmically-nuanced, subtle bass pattern based primarily on the root, the 5th, and Octave.
With Bbmin7(11), it OK to incorporate Eb as 11th.

The song has just two chords: Abmin9 and Bmin7(11).
All the notes of the melody are strictly from the Db Mixolydian scale:

View attachment 5357094
The first chord is Abmin9, otherwise could be written as Bmaj7/G# (for pop musicians.)
The Ab minor scale has all the notes from the melody but AVOID (absent) Fb

View attachment 5357100
The second chord is Bbmin7(11).
The Bb minor scale has all the notes from the melody but AVOID(absent) C.


View attachment 5357101
Is that vamping of just two chords - Abmin9 - Bbmin7 an example of Modal composition?
Where is our tonal center - Bb minor?

P.S. I have used the video without visual "attractiveness" in order to focus on Music.

Click to expand...


I see this one as a I-II progression in Ab Dorian. But both chord have equal ‘weight’.
 
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#206
mambo4 said:
Since any of the 7 modes use the same notes
One can argue for all of them in some sense
Or none of them - Sometimes a 2 chord vamp is just a 2 chord vamp.

The only salient question should be how does it sound?
It's Dorian if it sounds Dorian.
So, what does Dorian sound like?
Ask Beato
Click to expand...


As I've said, the song is tonal - the melody clearly shows it, but, due to "new pop ideas," the arrangers have decided to "reharmonize" that song.

Let's just don't pay attention (for now) to those 2 vamping chords.
The melody emphasizes the Db (or C#) Mixolydian scale.
It means, our parental scale is F# (Gb) major.

The Chorus melody have the following notes:
Phrase 1: Ab - Bb - Eb - Eb
Phrase 2: Ab - Bb - Eb - Db
Phrase 3: Ab - Bb - F - F - F - F - Gb as our note, Finalis.
We have that "leading tone" of F moving to Gb - it sounds "very tonal."

As I've mentioned before, Gb (or F#) is our parental scale, but the song was "modernize"/reharmonized to add some "new cool" flavor.
Gb (F#) major as our Tonic chord.

If we "assume" that it's Ab Dorian, then, we should hear
(1.) that characteristic Dorian Modal note - the major 6th note - in the melody or, at least, in the chord.
There is no F (6th) note with Abmin7, and
(2.) Abmin6 (as a chord) sounds "not good."
The melody - as Dorian - does not end on Ab; therefore, I can't say, it's Ab Dorian.

The second vamping chord - Bbminor as iii - belongs to the Gb tonic chord group.
Those iii and vi chords function as Tonic Prolongation.

TonicProlongation.png



From the chart above, we can see that ii - Abmin - belongs to the group Pre-Dominant chords; therefore, we can replace/substitute that Abmin with Cb (or B) chord easily.
 
#207
Let's continue with learning Modes from new pop songs.
Here is a "spaciously-dream pop" song, The Dream by Still Corners.
It's in A minor.
We have a simple chord progression:
Emin6 x 4
Bmin x 2
A x 2.

While we are in Emin6, we have that Dorian mode.
1.) The E Dorian characteristic note - scale degree 6 - is used "profusely" in the melody.
2.) The melody emphasizes the tonic note of E Dorian

 
#208
Another new pop song, with just two chords - Gmin7 and F, "Can't get enough" by "rejuvenated" Jennifer Lopez.
While in Gmin7, the melody strongly emphasizes that tonic note of G Dorian, plus, includes the 6th - E.
The song is solidly tonal, but we can say, "It's G Dorian when in Gminj7."
The song has a simple bass-line of the Root - 5th - and (sliding) to 9th.

(That "voice telephone Intro" has reminded me of the similar intro from, "Hotel Crazy" - Robbie Williams.)

 

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