In this lesson, we are going to return to the Ionian mode of the C major scale. And what we want from this mode is its shape. Because with this shape, we can see what happens as we keep the shape the same but move it to different places along the neck. In the process of doing this, we are going to find that there are major scales, other than C major. We will also realize that these scales contain sharp and flat notes which are not found in the set of notes that compose the C major scale.

IONIAN MODE OF THE C MAJOR SCALE:
E8i, E10m, E12p
A8i, A10m, A12p
D9i, D10m

Before we start playing around with moving this shape up and down the neck, I want you to memorize a simple sequence of notes.

F, C, G, D, A, E, B, F sharp, C sharp


If you will notice, C is seven half steps above F. And G is seven half steps above C. And D is seven half steps above G and so on. And in past lessons, we learned that if we take any note and move up seven half steps, we have moved a perfect 5th interval. Consequently, this list of notes we are learning is often refered to as the circle of fifths.

If you can remember that the key of F has one flat, namely a B flat, then we can use the circle of fifths to predict from here how many sharps are in the other keys. Starting on the note C in our list, we move two notes to the left. Since there is no note to the left of the F note in our list, we say the key of C has no sharps or flats. And we already know this to be true from our extensive study of the notes in the C major scale and its modes in previous lessons. The next note in our list is G, so moving two notes to the left, we learn that the note F is sharp in the key of G. Thus, G major should contain the notes,


THE G MAJOR SCALE
G, A, B, C, D, E, F sharp

Which is what we get, when we play the Ionian shape starting with the G on the 3rd fret of the low E string.

E3, E5, E7
A3, A5, A7
D4, D5

We note that D4 is an F sharp. In fact, it is the only sharp note, so our method works so far to predict the sharps that appear in the key of G. If you are not clear about this, use your knowledge of the Chromatic scale to go back and check each note of the G Ionian mode. Make certain that F sharp is the only sharp in this scale.


The next note in our list is D. Moving two notes to the left lands us on C. So, the key of D major has an F sharp and a C sharp. Note, the rule is that after you move two notes to the left, that every note in our list that resides even further to the left of the note we land on is also going to be sharped as well in that key.


THE D MAJOR SCALE:
D, E, F sharp, G, A, B, C sharp

E10, E12, E14
A10, A12, A14
D11, D12

And again, we note that A14 is an f sharp, and D11 is a C sharp. So, again our method worked to determine the sharps in the key of D Major. Again, if you are in doubt about this, then simply use what you know about the Chromatic scale to identify every note in the D Ionian mode above and prove to yourself that D Major only has the two sharps F sharp and C sharp.


Next, we have the note A in our circle of fifths. Moving two notes to the left lands us on the G note. So, in the key of A major, we have an F sharp, a C sharp, and a G sharp


THE A MAJOR SCALE
A, B, C sharp, D, E, F sharp, G sharp

E5, E7, E9
A5, A7, A9
D6, D7

E9 is a C sharp, A9 is an F sharp, and D6 is a G sharp. So, once again, we notice that our method works perfectly to predict the number of sharps in the key of A major.


The next note in our circle of fifths is E. Moving two notes to the left lands us on D. So, the key of E major has an F sharp, C sharp, G sharp, and a D sharp.


THE E MAJOR SCALE
E, F sharp, G sharp, A, B, C sharp, D sharp

E0, E2, E4
A0, A2, A4
D1, D2

E2 is an F sharp, E4 is a G sharp, A4 is a C sharp, and D1 is a D sharp. So, once again, our method works perfectly to predict the sharps in the key of E Major.


The next note in our circle of fifths is B. And moving two notes to the left lands us on A. So, the key of B major has an F sharp, C sharp, G sharp, D sharp, and A sharp.


THE B MAJOR SCALE
B, C sharp, D sharp, E, F sharp, G sharp, A sharp

E7, E9, E11
A7, A9, A11
D8, D9

E9 is a C sharp, E11 is a D sharp, A9 is an F sharp, A11 is a G sharp, and D8 is an A sharp. So, once again we see that our method works perfectly to predict the sharps in the key of B Major.


The next note in our circle of fifths is an F sharp. Moving two notes to the left lands us on E. So, the key of F sharp major has F sharp, C sharp, G sharp, D sharp, A sharp, and E sharp.


THE F SHARP MAJOR SCALE
F sharp, G sharp, A sharp, B, C sharp, D sharp, E sharp

E2, E4, E6
A2, A4, A6
D3, D4

E2 is F sharp, E4 is G sharp, E6 is A sharp, A4 is C sharp, A6 is D sharp, D3 is E sharp, and D4 is F sharp. Again, we see that our method works perfectly to predict the sharps that appear in F sharp major.


Finally, the last note in our circle of fifths is C sharp. Moving two notes to the left lands us on B. Thus, C sharp major has F sharp, C sharp, G sharp, D sharp, A sharp, E sharp, and B sharp.


THE C SHARP MAJOR SCALE
C sharp, D sharp, E, sharp, F sharp, G sharp, A sharp, B sharp

E9, E11, E13
A9, A11, A13
D10, D11

E9 is C sharp, E11 is D sharp, E13 is E sharp, A9 is F sharp, A11 is G sharp, A13 is A sharp, D10 is B sharp, and D11 is C sharp. And again we see that our method works perfectly to predict the sharps in the key of C sharp Major.


But, why is all this important? Well, it is important because when someone tells you that a song is in the key of G, you can use your circle of fifths to rapidly figure out that F is sharp in G Major. From there, you can also quickly figure out that the Diatonic progression in G Major is as follows:

I. G Major 7th
II. A minor 7th
III. B minor 7th
Iv. C Major 7th
V. D Dominant 7th
VI. E minor 7th
VII. F sharp minor 7/flat 5


Or, if someone tells you that they are playing in the key of E, you can use your circle of fifths to quickly determine that the key of E has 4 sharps, namely F sharp, C sharp, G sharp, and D sharp. So, the Diatonic progression in E Major is given as follows:


I. E Major 7th
II. F sharp minor 7th
III. G sharp minor 7th
IV. A Major 7th
V. B Dominant 7th
VI. C sharp minor 7th
VII. B minor 7/flat 5


This is simply one of those times it is worth it to go ahead and crack the whip and make an extra special effort to understand the basic theory behind how to identify key signatures. In a real band situation, you will want to know what your other band members are talking about when they say that they ar jamming in the key of B. If the theory is too much to take in at this point, not all is lost. Remember, you can find the B note on the E string. And you know the shape of the Ionian mode. So, you just move the whole Ionian shape back a half step and start it on the B note on E7 instead of the C note on E8. And knowing that shape and the note you are supposed to start on, will at the very least get you in the ball park where you need to be to play lead in the key of B.

For homework, I want you to spend more time studying these key signatures. Take the time to write out each major scale in your notes and the diatonic progression that goes along with it. Practice using your circle of fifths to predict where the sharps are in each key signature. Also, if you go to my profile page and check out my videos in my content section, you will notice that there are two videos by Joe Satriani and 3 videos by Vinnie Moore on the subject of modes. I picked these videos because they are relatively short and also because I think that they convey in a very applied way how the modes are useful to your playing. Now, it is likely that you will not understand every detail and concept covered in these videos, but I feel that they go a long way to putting much of the information about modes into perspective. So, I encourage everyone to watch them all the way through at least once. And my more advanced students will probably find it useful to watch them over again a number of times. A warning about the Vinnie Moore lesson is that he does not call the fifth chord in the diatonic progression a Dominant chord. I'm honestly not certain why that is. I assume it is because he simply forgot to be clear on the matter.


Corey J. Bray