Lydian Mode on guitar

Lydian is the major scale with a raised fourth, a bright, floating sound used in film music and dreamy guitar pieces.

Play the A Lydian Mode on the fretboard in Guitar Upscale

About the Lydian Mode

Lydian is the fourth mode of the major scale. F Lydian has the notes of C major, played from F.

The raised 4th removes the one note in major that pulls down, so the scale seems to float. Film composers use it for wonder and flight.

Joe Satriani's "Flying in a Blue Dream" and the theme from The Simpsons are well known examples. Use it over a major 7th chord, or over a major chord that moves to the major chord a whole step up.

Intervals from the root

Chords in the A Lydian Mode

Stack every other note of the scale and you get one chord on each note. These chords sound at home with the scale, so they make good progressions.

Same notes, another starting note

Start the A Lydian Mode on another of its notes and you get these scales:

• From degree 2 (B): B Mixolydian Mode
• From degree 3 (C#): C# Natural Minor scale
• From degree #4 (D#): Eb Locrian Mode
• From degree 5 (E): E Major Scale
• From degree 6 (F#): F# Dorian Mode
• From degree 7 (G#): G# Phrygian Mode

Lydian Mode in every key

More Major scales

• Major Scale (Ionian)
• Harmonic Major
• Major Pentatonic
• Dominant Pentatonic
• Lydian Augmented
• Mixolydian Mode
• Lydian + b2