Here is another unplanned, unexpected improvisation — as usual, unedited and recorded in a single take.
This improvisation begins with a slow progression in F Aeolian. The right hand moves between triads, single-line melodies, and occasional harmonic sixths or thirds, while the left hand uses varied broken-chord patterns. The overall character of this opening is mournful and introspective.
Listen to another recent improv of mine using the Aeolian mode: Aeolian Nocturne in G — Improvisation with G Aeolian, Dorian and Phrygian Modes
A more unsettled section follows. Deep bass octaves add weight with occasional darkness while the right hand plays fast four-note arpeggios that turn over within each chord of a different progression, still within F Aeolian. The texture is more insistent and urgent.
The harmony then shifts into D♭ Lydian, built on a progression of I – II. The right hand plays large four-part Lydian chords over an ostinato in the bass, creating a spacious but tense sound that feels suspended and continues the unsettled character. Learn about Roman numerals in chord naming here.
A lyrical and more grounded A♭ major (Ionian) section follows, with both hands outlining interlocking arpeggios and a melodic line in the upper voice.
The Lydian sequence returns, followed by the F Aeolian fast arpeggiated progression, before the music closes with the slower F Aeolian progression from the opening, but with melodic variation (this is, after all, improvised).
Modes used, their notes, and parent scales
| Mode | Parent Scale | Relationship to Parent Scale | Notes Used | Formula (relative to tonic) |
| F Aeolian | A♭ Major | 6th mode of A♭ Major | F – G – A♭ – B♭ – C – D♭ – E♭ | 1 – 2 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – ♭6 – ♭7 |
| D♭ Lydian | A♭ Major | 4th mode of A♭ Major | D♭ – E♭ – F – G – A♭ – B♭ – C | 1 – 2 – 3 – ♯4 – 5 – 6 – 7 |
| A♭ Ionian (Major) | A♭ Major | 1st mode (parent scale itself) | A♭ – B♭ – C – D♭ – E♭ – F – G | 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7 |
All three tonal centres—F Aeolian, D♭ Lydian, and A♭ major—are derived from the same parent scale, A♭ major, which gives the improvisation a sense of internal coherence despite its contrasting colours and textures. Each shift of mode reframes the same collection of notes from a different perspective, moving from the darker sixth degree (F Aeolian) to the bright but unstable fourth degree (D♭ Lydian) and then to the home key of A♭ major before retracing its steps.
Although fully improvised, the piece feels circular, as if drawn by gravity back to its starting point — the music moves as if held in its own orbit — with a quiet gravitational pull that keeps each section connected to the next, and each mode orbiting the parent scale. The shifts through different modes feel like changing perspectives within the same tonal field. Like an orbiting body that never quite escapes its centre, the piece seems to explore distance and return, motion and stillness, circling something not quite fully known, held together by an unseen balance.
To learn more about modes, read my Complete Guide to Modes of the Major, Melodic Minor, and Harmonic Minor Scales
For another improvisation using Lydian modes listen to The Silver Branch — Improvisation in C♯ Aeolian & Dorian ♭2, F Lydian ♯2, F Lydian & B Lydian
Listen to another improvisation using the Aeolian mode: Smarrito e Lontano — Improvisation in B♭ Aeolian & G♯ Mixolydian ♭6
You might also like Aeolian Nocturne in G — Improvisation with G Aeolian, Dorian and Phrygian Modes
