In this video you can hear me playing a piece of music I improvised and named Finding the Thermal Glide. Whilst improvising this music, at times it felt like a fast climb with a moment of weightlessness at the top, before deciding which direction to drift, or seeing which direction the currents carried me — pausing at the apex to wait for the wind to catch me. It brought to mind the image of a bird, initially fighting gravity, flapping her wings in her upward ascent, then finding momentum, and then discovering and aligning with the natural thermals, and soaring on the wind current. At times she comes down again to earth, dropping altitude, drifting out of the bright sky to the darker valleys, before making the climb again.  

The currents and undercurrents took me through various modal colours which I followed to see where they would drift, with their differing levels of light and weightlessness, such as in the Lydian modes; and darkness and gravity, such as in the Aeolian modes. 

Modes Used, Note Names and Parent Scales

Mode Used	Note Names	Parent Scale	Modal Relationship
G Major (Ionian)	G – A – B – C – D – E – F♯	G Major	1st Mode of G Major
G Aeolian (Natural Minor)	G – A – B♭ – C – D – E♭ – F	B♭ Major	6th Mode of B♭ Major
F Lydian	F – G – A – B – C – D – E	C Major	4th Mode of C Major
F Lydian ♯2	F – G♯ – A – B – C – D – E	A Harmonic Minor	6th Mode of A Harmonic Minor
E Mixolydian ♭6	E – F♯ – G♯ – A – B – C – D	A Melodic Minor	5th Mode of A Melodic Minor
D Aeolian (Natural Minor)	D – E – F – G – A – B♭ – C	F Major	6th Mode of F Major
B♭ Lydian	B♭ – C – D – E – F – G – A	F Major	4th Mode of F Major
B♭ Lydian ♯2	B♭ – C♯ – D – E – F – G – A	D Harmonic Minor	6th Mode of D Harmonic Minor

Interval Formulas

Major (Ionian) Mode Formula

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7

(Root, Major 2nd, Major 3rd, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th, Major 6th, Major 7th)

Learn more about major scales

Aeolian Mode Formula

1 – 2 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – ♭6 – ♭7

(Root, Major 2nd, Minor 3rd, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th, Minor 6th, Minor 7th)

Learn more about the Aeolian mode aka natural minor scale

Lydian Mode Formula

1 – 2 – 3 – ♯4 – 5 – 6 – 7

(Root, Major 2nd, Major 3rd, Augmented 4th, Perfect 5th, Major 6th, Major 7th)

Learn more about the Lydian mode

Lydian ♯2 Mode Formula

1 – ♯2 – 3 – ♯4 – 5 – 6 – 7

(Root, Augmented 2nd, Major 3rd, Augmented 4th, Perfect 5th, Major 6th, Major 7th)

Learn more about the Lydian sharp 2 mode

Mixolydian ♭6 Mode Formula

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – ♭6 – ♭7

(Root, Major 2nd, Major 3rd, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th, Minor 6th, Minor 7th)

Learn more about the Mixolydian flat 6 mode

Further Reading and Listening

Learn more about modes here: Complete Guide to Modes of the Major, Melodic Minor, and Harmonic Minor Scales

Stardust in a Teardrop — Improvisation in G Aeolian, G Phrygian, E♭ Ionian Augmented & G♭ Lydian

The Butterfly’s Path — Improvisation in F♯ Dorian, D Lydian ♯2, F♯ Lydian & F Aeolian

A Lyric Without Words — Improvisation in D♭ Ionian (Major) & B♭ Aeolian