Here is a video capturing a freeform improvisation of mine which I named Dulcamara. Dulcamara means bittersweet, and comes from the bittersweet nightshade vine (Solanum dulcamara). It is a plant that initially tastes intensely bitter, but then there is a sweet lingering aftertaste. In European folklore and witchcraft it was used as a protective charm against misfortune, and in medieval bridal wreaths it was used to symbolise enduring love and fidelity. It’s symbolic for the duality of life and human experience, where pain can co-exist with joy, and poison with comfort. Bitter ordeals can sometimes be intertwined with the lingering sweetness of strength and insight gained. Just as the bittersweet nightshade grows by water watching the fluidly shifting shape of the stream, we are subject to the flow of time, reflecting on the inevitable transitions, and the bittersweetness of what is changed forever.
I started this improvisation in B Dorian — to my ear, the Dorian mode has bittersweetness in its combination of a sorrowful minor 3rd degree and a warm, lifted major 6th degree. To me, this can sound wistful.
I then modulated to E Mixolydian flat 6. The Mixolydian flat 6 mode has duality in its hybrid major-minor sound, due to the bright major 3rd degree and melancholy minor 6th, making it like a mirror image of the Dorian mode with its minor 3rd + major 6th — like a reversed reflection in the stream. This duality can sometimes give the Mixolydian flat 6 mode a bittersweetness too, along with a magical half-light sound.
Next I moved to E major (Ionian). The major or Ionian mode can be bright and hopeful, but when used with the minor quality chord vi and add9 chords (on the subdominant), as I did here, it can take on a more yearning and nostalgic quality.
Then I shifted to G sharp Aeolian (natural minor). The Aeolian mode tends to be sorrowful and elegiac, and when combined with the brightness of the Ionian mode, this can result in yet more bittersweetness.
I then briefly visited B Mixolydian flat 6, which took on more bitter darkness than the earlier E Mixolydian flat 6 mode due to the deeper register of the particular melody that appeared.
Then the music returned to and closed in the warm and wistful B Dorian mode.
Mode Table
| Mode Used | Note Names | Parent Scale | Modal Relationship |
|---|---|---|---|
| B Dorian | B, C♯, D, E, F♯, G♯, A | A Major | 2nd mode of A Major |
| E Mixolydian ♭6 | E, F♯, G♯, A, B, C, D | A Melodic Minor | 5th mode of A Melodic Minor |
| E Major (Ionian) | E, F♯, G♯, A, B, C♯, D♯ | E Major | 1st mode of E Major |
| G♯ Aeolian | G♯, A♯, B, C♯, D♯, E, F♯ | B Major | 6th mode of B Major |
| B Mixolydian ♭6 | B, C♯, D♯, E, F♯, G, A | E Melodic Minor | 5th mode of E Melodic Minor |
Interval Formulas
Dorian Mode Formula:
1 – 2 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – ♭7
(Root, Major 2nd, Minor 3rd, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th, Major 6th, Minor 7th)
Mixolydian ♭6 Mode Formula:
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – ♭6 – ♭7
(Root, Major 2nd, Major 3rd, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th, Minor 6th, Minor 7th)
Major (Ionian) Mode Formula:
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7
(Root, Major 2nd, Major 3rd, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th, Major 6th, Major 7th)
Aeolian Mode Formula:
1 – 2 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – ♭6 – ♭7
(Root, Major 2nd, Minor 3rd, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th, Minor 6th, Minor 7th)
Further Reading and Listening
Learn more about modes here: Complete Guide to Modes of the Major, Melodic Minor, and Harmonic Minor Scales
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