G Aeolian, often called the Natural Minor Scale, is the sixth mode in a major scale and often sounds similar to a minor scale due to its flattened sixth tone.
Modes can be formed from any major scale and begin at the sixth scale degree. They consist of interval patterns in which root notes move to various scale degrees.
Scales
The G Aeolian Mode is one of the most beloved scales in Western music. Using all notes found within a major scale but adding flattened 3rd and flat 6th to create darker and melancholier tones than other modes, making this form particularly beloved by modern pop, rock, and other genres of music.
G minor is the relative minor key of G major and can be used with any chord progression containing its root note – making it an invaluable scale to know for playing various styles of music.
As with any minor scale, it is crucial to understand the differences in its chords and how they sound. This differentiation lies in tension of chords which affect your tone – for instance the G Aeolian chord has minor tension which tends to sound saddened whereas minor minor scale has major tension which sounds angry or passionate.
To master the G Aeolian Scale you must learn both its intervals and key signature. There are five CAGED positions which can be played either parallel or derivative to create minor scales – this will enable you to play this mode with ease on guitar.
Aeolian mode is another very popular choice in music today as its haunting melody offers an emotive yet mournful quality to songs in this mode. Similar to Dorian in many respects, Aeolian has an altered sixth note which gives its mournful sound more depth – something modern music fans frequently utilize this mode for. These songs tend to have more melancholic or contemplative messages.
Songs written in this mode include Eleanor Rigby, All Along the Watchtower and Sultans of Swinging; however this doesn’t indicate that these tunes were always written this way as it is entirely possible that their writers simply wrote what sounded good!
Chords
The G Aeolian chord is one of the most prevalent chords and can be found across several genres. This chord, as well as its associated mode, are frequently seen in songs written in minor keys; indeed it often serves as the V or IV chord for these types of songs; in major keys this chord would usually use another tone (such as E instead of Dm in A Minor key).
The G aeolian scale features two flats and is keyed C minor, and our virtual piano above displays all its notes. You can click any note to hear it played; additionally you can change its clef. For more information about mode theory please see our article about modal theory.
As you start learning guitar, it is essential that you become acquainted with all of the different modes and how they relate to each other. This is particularly true of minor modes as these can be used to produce an array of melodies and harmonic patterns.
One easy way to identify any minor mode is to look three frets up from where you started playing – for instance if starting on A aeolian then the notes that correspond with it will be C major and vice versa – this concept applies across any minor mode.
Once you know which notes make up the G Aeolian Scale, you can start creating triad chords that fit their harmonic scale. To do this, remembering the root of each chord and adding in appropriate intervals (such as for minor triads containing the root as its tonic and fifth as perfect fourths above it) are keys steps towards success.
An effective way to do this is with a guitar scale calculator like JGuitar. Once open, simply select your mode from the drop-down list, which will then display on the fretboard with all notes from that mode highlighted on fretboard. Next use “start fret” option to highlight finger patterns for playing that mode and once familiar try playing up and down neck of guitar as this will help develop feel of musicality of each mode and musical quality of each musical scale.
Intervals
When playing scales and modes, it is crucial to understand intervals. An interval refers to two notes that sound either together (harmonically) or separately (melodically), as well as any changes between normal intervals that augment or diminish them; such as larger or smaller than usual measurements between 1-12. Each type of interval has its own distinctive sound; scales or modes are built based on this sequence.
G Aeolian scale intervals consist of minor seconds. Though sounding harsher than their major second counterparts, minor seconds are still melodic enough to play as part of an Aeolian minor scale for an authentic experience.
The Aeolian scale features a minor sixth, distinguishing it from both Dorian and Phrygian which contain major sixths. A minor sixth acts more like natural minor scale than major sixth scales when creating melodic chords; therefore it’s important to practice switching back and forth between Aeolian, Dorian, and Phrygian scales so you can hear their differences clearly.
To determine what mode a particular note belongs in, the interval formula can help. You simply need to know what key corresponds with that note you’re starting on; for example if starting on G Aeolian you would need to know that C major is its key.
Once you know your key, it becomes much simpler to figure out which notes will make up a mode. To do this, you’ll need to know where the mode starts on and the octave breaks are located; if they lie between G and F for example, then notes 1-13 will form its basis.
Use the interval formula to quickly figure out what notes you need for building a mode. This tool is particularly helpful if you don’t already know Major or minor scales; its formula shows which intervals to use as well as how many there are per scale and its length.
Keys
At its core, the G Aeolian mode consists of seven white/natural notes in its diatonic scale form. As with all modes derived from major scale, it features no flats or sharps. Furthermore, unlike most minor scales it features a flattened 6th note for added darkness or depth in music compositions.
People often refer to it as the minor blues scale. Additionally, this scale is often chosen when playing modal jazz music such as Milestones by Bill Withers where melodies are often written using keys derived from Aeolian modes and then harmonized using chords from minor scales.
Many songs that use minor keys will utilize Aeolian mode, since it corresponds to natural minor scale. Unfortunately, many songs incorporate various minor scales – melodic minor and harmonic minor among others – making its use hard to detect.
When learning this mode, it’s essential to approach its learning in terms of intervals rather than letters. That means calculating each note in the scale before identifying which ones have an octave higher counterpart – this will enable you to easily recognize which chords fit with this scale and how to play them.
An accessible chart of modes that displays note positions can also prove invaluable – this can assist with creating scales on your own or playing them over chords, as well as showing how they relate to one another and differ from a major scale.
This chart displays the notes of the G Aeolian mode in both treble and bass clefs, so that you may select either by clicking on its diagram. Furthermore, it also displays fingerings for each note so you can learn it more efficiently and accurately. In order to gauge its tone better it might also help if you try playing an A7 chord over this scale so you can hear how it sounds.