 12.31.17  4:29 pm Oh, ok. Playing the different modes while keeping the root the same is actually a big help in hearing the different qualities of each one. Thanks! But, wouldn't thinking in terms of modes mostly come in handy when you have a song where the harmony is just kind of vamping on 1 chord for a long time (or maybe multiple chords, but that change slowly.. as in, one chord every few bars or whatever)?
yes, i would say so. a famous example is "so what" by miles davis. (dorian). another example would be "the way you make me feel" by michael jackson which i just realized is a bar by bar chord rip of "on broadway" (mixolydian) or at least before they go to the 4 chord it just vamps on mixolydian. dorian and mixolydian are really the main ones that you are going to find useful in "music." lydian, like i said, comes in handy if you want to create the childlike wonder found in the opening of a 1990s steven spielberg movie, and "ionian" and "aeolian" are just another name for regular major and regular minor. the other remaining 'strange' ones are not so useful because if u are gonna be strange you are better off being strange on your own without restriction