Modes of the Melodic Minor

Today, I'd like to discuss the modes of the Melodic Minor Scale. A few weeks ago we discussed "Modes" when they relate to the major scale. Theoretically, you can create "Modes" from any existing scale by building new scales from each degree of that original scale. The modes of the major scale are the most basic of modes. In Jazz music, another scale that is very popular to create modes from is the Melodic Minor Scale. Today I'll show you what those modes are.

Melodic Minor

 The basic melodic minor scale. The jazz version descends the same way as it ascends, unlike the classical version, which descends like a natural minor scale. No different from the major scale, with the exception of the third note.

Dorian b2

Building off the second degree of the melodic minor scale, we have the Dorian b2 scale. The name is pretty self-explanatory if you are familiar with the modes of the major scale. It's a dorian scale (the second mode of the major scale), which consists of a minor third and flatted seventh note, but this mode also adds in the flatted second note. 

Lydian Augmented

 The third melodic minor mode is Lydian Augmented. Very similar to the Lydian scale, which is the fourth mode of the major scale (Basially a major scale with a sharped 4th note), but this one also adds a sharped 5th note.

Lydian Dominant

 The fourth mode is Lydian Dominant. Also building off the Lydian scale as the last mode does, this time adding a flatted seventh note.

Mixolydian b6

 The fifth mode is Mixolydian b6. This takes the 5th mode of the major scale, Mixolydian, which already has a flatted seventh note in it, and adds a flatted sixth note as well.

Aeolian b5

The sixth mode is Aeolian b5. This takes the Aeolian scale, also known as the "Natural Minor" scale (6th degree of the major scale), and adds a flatted sixth note to it. 

Altered Scale / Super Locrian Scale

 And last, but certainly not least, as this scale is probably the most popular of the melodic minor modes, is the Altered scale, also known as the "Super Locrian" scale. This scale is like a Locrian scale (seventh mode of the major scale), with the addition of the flatted fourth note. Some people will call this note the major third and when building chords, it definitely can function as a major third, as the corresponding chord for this scale usually serves a "Dominant" function prior to a resolution. But upon further examination, this note as it relates to the other notes in the scale, is actually a flatted fourth note because there already exists a flatted third note and a flatted fifth note surrounding it. One easy way to look at this scale is to think of the first four notes like the beginning of a diminished scale (If you don’t know the diminished scales I will get into them in a later post) and the second half is like a whole-tone scale (consisting of whole tones). One of my personal favorite scales to run up and down the keyboard.

Enjoy! Let me know how you guys do with these scales!