Do I really need to know my modes?

[Kael]

Step 1. Learn chord tones, scrap the modal theory.
Step 2......
Step 3. Profit.

 

[Charlzm]

Seems it’s only good for mainly soloing. And fills I guess. Your thoughts? And jazz I guess. I play for my church and doesn’t seem like I need it much. But I guess good to know anyway as a bassist. That’s why I wonder what your thoughts are. Thanks

If you know your modes, you can always have a good idea of what's going to work with the chord changes you're playing.
Not necessary, but knowledge is power.

 

[Nev375]

I went 30 years without understanding modes and then a lightbulb turned on and I figured them out in a very short time.

I immediately wished I had understood them 30 years before.

Take from that what you will.

 

[aprod]

If you are a serious musician, yes. If you are happy plunking out root notes, no.

 

[aprod]

Step 1. Learn chord tones, scrap the modal theory.
Step 2......
Step 3. Profit.

That is a contradictory statement. All modes have an associated chord i.e. D Dorian mode = D-7. It is beneficial to know what mode goes with the chord you are playing. Knowledge is power.

 

[Kael]

That is a contradictory statement. All modes have an associated chord i.e. D Dorian mode = D-7. It is beneficial to know what mode goes with the chord you are playing. Knowledge is power.

Nope. Different way of thinking of and approaching music. Try again.

 

[benchpress11782]

Bassists don't need to retain any theory. The guitarist in your church band can tell you everything you need to know about music. If there's no guitarist, ask the singer. You can probably get by on tab after that.

My theory is 'this': Music is a language, like any other. You can pick up the language just be hearing and practicing it, or you can 'study the book'. Ideally, SURE - everyone would 'study the book' (if, for nothing else, awareness on anything that's been captured). Education in music theory (like anything else) really helps with approach and reasoning*, though it's all something that can be 'felt out' as well.

*I WILL also theorize, though... the more educated you are, the more you can shape your own experience, vice someone else shaping it for you (again, this could apply with anything in life)...

That said... 'all' (not to downplay it) that 'the book' does is put what exists in reality in some kind of order, and on paper. End state, though - if it sounds/feels good... it IS good. Have a blast, either way. Cheers!​

Thanks

 

[Mushroo]

That is a contradictory statement. All modes have an associated chord i.e. D Dorian mode = D-7. It is beneficial to know what mode goes with the chord you are playing. Knowledge is power.

Not-knowledge is power, too.

Dmin7 = D F A C

There are no E, G, or B's in a Dmin7 chord, and therefore we "don't know." We cannot assume 7-note "Dorian mode" just from looking at a 4-note chord out of musical context. And we certainly can't assume that E, G, or B will sound good with the melody and the rest of the instruments in the arrangement, if we've never even heard the song.

Therefore, we keep an open mind, that D Dorian might be a possible fit for Dmin7. But Dmin7 could just as likely be the i chord in D Minor, the ii chord in C Major, or several other possibilities.

Not-knowing is a powerful concept.

 

[wmhill]

 

[benchpress11782]

This is why a good teacher is so valuable. You’re asking strangers on the internet with unknown qualifications and almost no knowledge of you and your situation whether or not you should invest hundreds of hours of your time into learning modes. Does that really make sense?

To me it does.

 

[DJ Bebop]

I myself find it's better to learn all I can about anything I am using than not know about it and just hope for the best

 

[DJ Bebop]

My theory is 'this': Music is a language, like any other. You can pick up the language just be hearing and practicing it, or you can 'study the book'. Ideally, SURE - everyone would 'study the book' (if, for nothing else, awareness on anything that's been captured). Education in music theory (like anything else) really helps with approach and reasoning*, though it's all something that can be 'felt out' as well.

*I WILL also theorize, though... the more educated you are, the more you can shape your own experience, vice someone else shaping it for you (again, this could apply with anything in life)...

That said... 'all' (not to downplay it) that 'the book' does is put what exists in reality in some kind of order, and on paper. End state, though - if it sounds/feels good... it IS good. Have a blast, either way. Cheers!​

 

[mambo4]

Therefore, we keep an open mind, that D Dorian might be a possible fit for Dmin7. But it just could as likely be the ii chord in C Major, the i chord in D Minor, or several other possibilities.

to add to that point, associating Mode X with chord Y limits your choices to diatonic notes
while so much goodness lies in the funky stank of chromatic passages.

Modes are good and useful, but not for telling us exactly what we can/can't play over chords.
Once you get beyond chord tones, the conventions of the rhythmic style has more to say about what sounds "good."
often those conventions will be arguably diatonic modes, but often they will not.

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

I play gospel and I say yes you do need modes. Why wouldn't you want to play fills? The days of playing just root notes are far gone... at least with the gospel music I play. Learn your modes it will take your playing to another level and they are not just for soloing. I even play chords when I'm playing. Just my 2 cents.

 

[MtManiac]

@dkelley is right. You are confusing scales and modes. Modes are generated from a given scale. A mode does not yield a scale. Modes are used for example in chord sequences like ii-V-I within the frame of scale.
You can take the interval sequence of a mode and say it's a scale but it doesn't make it 'usable', 'interesting' or have any harmonic meaning (eg being able to draw harmonious chord sequences from such a scale). Hence a mode is not a scale, though both are intervals sequences.

Modes are scales.

 

[Nine-and-three-Quarters]

Modes are scales.

What he said!

 

[lfmn16]

To me it does.

 

[StatesideRambler]

You may find it useful to think of modes as alternate fingerings for things [scales] that you already play. They don’t give you anything new but they make many things easier to play.

[I really don’t understand people who claim to want to play well but who aren’t interested in learning more about music.]

 

[bassinplace]

You don't "need" to know any theory at all, if you don't want to. But the more of it you know, the greater your knowledge, which is a good thing.

 

[diegom]

I cook because I like to eat. I know what flavors work and which ones I should not mix.
I have not read any textbooks on the subject. I have cooked a lot, I have failed a lot and I remember what I like and what I like to share.

I feel music is a bit like that... Many legends have (or had) no clue about theory. They knew what worked and the remembered it. Perhaps their journey could've been easier and their achievements greater, had they known the "mechanics" of music... instead of a lot of trial-and-error.

YMMV