Modes and Scales

Floyd222 · 02-05-2010, 12:46 AM

I'm pretty sure I understood everything you said, but let me ask my question in another way. The song Light my Fire, is said to be written in Dorian mode. The chords in the verses according to this tab are Am and F#, and in the Chorus GAD and ends with GAE.
So if this is played in an E Dorian scale, then the verses are a IV-II progression and the chorus is a III-IV-VII / III-IV-I progression. According to wiki (not always best reference) this is written in Dorian, why couldn't it be in Ionian (Major) with a verse being V-III and a chorus being IV-V-I / IV-V-II. What rules are set in place for this to be called Dorian and not Ionian. Is it just the fact that it ends on the tonic, or are there other rules set it place?

02-05-2010, 12:46 AM	#3 (permalink)
Floyd222 Groupie Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 2	I'm pretty sure I understood everything you said, but let me ask my question in another way. The song Light my Fire, is said to be written in Dorian mode. The chords in the verses according to this tab are Am and F#, and in the Chorus GAD and ends with GAE. So if this is played in an E Dorian scale, then the verses are a IV-II progression and the chorus is a III-IV-VII / III-IV-I progression. According to wiki (not always best reference) this is written in Dorian, why couldn't it be in Ionian (Major) with a verse being V-III and a chorus being IV-V-I / IV-V-II. What rules are set in place for this to be called Dorian and not Ionian. Is it just the fact that it ends on the tonic, or are there other rules set it place?