Mixolydian & Mixolydian ♭6 Trilogy
Lately I have enjoyed exploring the lyrical sweetness of the Mixolydian mode, but today I felt more drawn to the magical, strange and unsettled sound of the Mixolydian ♭6 mode instead. Here is an improvisation, which (as usual) took me where I wasn’t expecting. Often it is interesting to just play and see what happens, instead of forcing the direction — that’s often how the most authentic expression comes out. This piece felt like it was searching for resolution, but never quite found it, reflecting the hallmark ambiguity of modal music.
This is part of a series of three pieces that belong together, starting with Displaced, followed by Intermezzo in B♭, and ending with this one.
Structure, Texture and Modes Used
This improvisation starts with fast, high register ascending arpeggios, in the D Mixolydian ♭6 mode; followed by rhapsodic spread (or rolled) four-part chords making use of more range of the piano; before settling into a section that involves melody voiced through the top notes of chords. I freely explored harmonies that were diatonic to the Mixolydian ♭6 mode, instead of following a set chord progression. This involved a few upper extensions (including a lot of 9ths, which are a sound I’m very drawn to) and lots of inversions as opposed to all root position chords, resulting in a slightly melodic bass movement.
Next I repeated the high register fast ascending arpeggios idea but in D Aeolian (after playing a pivot chord that connected both D Mixolydian ♭6 and D Aeolian). The key tried to drift back to D Mixolydian ♭6 for a moment, but then became more firmly established in D Aeolian. After this fast ascending arpeggio sequence, I played a melodic section with a similar texture to the earlier Mixolydian ♭6 section (melody voiced through top notes of chords).
Within this section, the key slipped into F major (Ionian), which is the relative major of D natural minor (Aeolian).
Again, I freely explored chords that were diatonic to the D Aeolian mode and F major, as opposed to following a pre-determined chord progression. I just followed my ear, finding the harmonies that were in my head.
Next came a reprise of the fast ascending arpeggios in the D Mixolydian ♭6 mode, followed by a coda, also within D Mixolydian ♭6.
Modes — Explanation and Table
D Mixolydian ♭6 is the 5th mode of the G melodic minor scale, and D Aeolian is the 6th mode of the F major scale.
| Mode | Parent Scale | Notes | Character |
| D Mixolydian ♭6 | G melodic minor (ascending) | D – E – F♯ – G – A – B♭ – C | Dark-bright hybrid — major yet with a darkened colour from the flat 6 and 7, unsettled and exotic, strange and mysterious. |
| D Aeolian | F major | D – E – F – G – A – B♭ – C | Natural minor colour — introspective, lyrical, elegy-like. |
| F major / Ionian | F major | F – G – A – B♭– C – D – E | Bright, happy, depending on context can be lyrical and bittersweet or nostalgic (as in this piece). |
You can learn more about modes in general here: Complete Guide to Modes of the Major, Melodic Minor, and Harmonic Minor Scales
Listen to more improvisations using the Mixolydian ♭6 mode, Ionian mode (major), or the Aeolian mode.
