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Lydian is the fourth mode of the major scale on the guitar — when the 4th scale degree functions as the tonic. Because it centers on a major chord, it’s considered a major key. Rarely do you hear a song that’s completely in Lydian mode. Instead, this mode usually occurs only temporarily in a song, until the music moves to a more stable tonic like I.

Here you see what happens to the G major scale when you reorganize its notes and chords, beginning with the 4th degree, C, to produce C Lydian mode:

G major
1-2-3-4-5-6-7
G-A-B-C-D-E-Fs
I-ii-iii-IV-V-vi-viif5
G-Am-Bm-C-D-Em-Fsmf5
C Lydian
1-2-3-s4-5-6-7
C-D-E-Fs-G-A-B
I-II-iii-sivf5-V-vi-vii
C-D-Em-Fsmf5-G-Am-Bm

The most defining characteristic of Lydian mode is its sharpened 4th, which is why many musicians think of it as a major scale with a sharpened 4th. Here you see C Lydian taken from its parent major scale, G.

[Credit: Illustration courtesy of Desi Serna]
Credit: Illustration courtesy of Desi Serna

You can play C Lydian anywhere on the fretboard as long as you use notes and chords from the G major scale and center on C. You can also move the pattern around the fretboard to play Lydian mode in other keys.

Here is a new major scale pattern that begins on the 5th string. Here, the parent major scale is C and the mode is F Lydian. Again, this is just a starting point. You find the same notes and chords elsewhere on the fretboard, and you can move this pattern around to play in other keys.

[Credit: Illustration courtesy of Desi Serna]
Credit: Illustration courtesy of Desi Serna

Here are a few sample chord progressions and songs based on the 4th degree of the major scale:

“Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac
Fmaj7-G6
I-II in F Lydian (IV-V in the C major scale)
“Just Remember I Love You” by Firefall
Fmaj7-G6
I-II in F Lydian (IV-V in the C major scale)
“Jane Says” by Jane’s Addiction
G-A
I-II in G Lydian (IV-V in the D major scale)
“Here Comes my Girl” by Tom Petty
A-B
I-II in A Lydian (IV-V in the E major scale)
“Man on the Moon” by R.E.M.
C-D
I-II in C Lydian (IV-V in the G major scale)
“Hey Jealousy” by Gin Blossoms
D-E-Fsm-E
I-II-iii-II in D Lydian (IV-V-vi-V in the A major scale)
“Space Oddity” by David Bowie
Fmaj7-Em
I-vii in F Lydian (IV-iii in the C major scale)

About This Article

This article is from the book:

About the book author:

Desi Serna, hailed as a music theory expert by Rolling Stone magazine, is a guitar player and teacher with over 10,000 hours of experience providing private guitar lessons and classes. He owns and operates one of the most popular guitar theory sites on the web, guitar-music-theory.com.

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