E dorian
E natural minor with one note raised: C♯. Seven notes: E F♯ G A B C♯ D. The same notes as D major, centred on E.
- Parent key
- D major Same notes
- Colour note
- C♯ The raised 6th
- Repeating chords
- Em – A i – IV
Across one chord in different positions. Down one place, every chord of the mode. | ||||
| iVampEmE · G · B | ||||
| iiF♯mF♯ · A · C♯ | ||||
| ♭IIIGG · B · D | ||||
| IVVampAA · C♯ · E | ||||
| vBmB · D · F♯ | ||||
| vi°C♯°C♯ · E · G | ||||
| ♭VIIDD · F♯ · A |
Light up
What makes it dorian
Natural minor, with the 6th raised
One note separates E dorian from E natural minor: C becomes C♯. Over the same root, that turns Em – Am into Em – A.
E natural minor
- E
- F♯
- G
- A
- B
- C
- D
E dorian
- E
- F♯
- G
- A
- B
- C♯
- D
Hear the difference
One chord that says dorian
Em6 holds C♯, the colour note. Play it to hear those notes together.
The brightness ladder
Seven modes on E
From brightest to darkest, each row lowers one note of the row above. Dorian is row 4 of seven.
↑ Brighter
- E lydianEF♯G♯A♯BC♯D♯♯4
- E ionian (major)EF♯G♯ABC♯D♯—
- E mixolydianEF♯G♯ABC♯D♭7
- E dorianEF♯GABC♯D♭3 ♭7
- E aeolian (natural minor)EF♯GABCD♭3 ♭6 ♭7
- E phrygianEFGABCD♭2 ♭3 ♭6 ♭7
- E locrianEFGAB♭CD♭2 ♭3 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7
Darker ↓
Jam along
Three drills over the vamp
Play over the repeating Em – A chords with a metronome. The neck highlights the notes to aim for, with C♯ ringed.
- The vamp, with a clickEm – A, two bars each, in frets 2–6. Strum on the beat.80 bpmLevel 1
- Scale over the vampUp the scale and back down, one note a beat, while Em – A sounds. Stay in frets 2–6.80 bpmLevel 1
- Land on the colour noteOver A, aim for C♯. It is the note that makes it dorian.80 bpmLevel 2