My first interaction with the musical term modes was Leonard Bernstein’s brilliant Young People’s Concert, also called What is a Mode? In that show, Bernstein showed how modes are an essential part of what makes modern music, meaning pop and rock music, tick. This was central to Bernstein’s point during this amazing show, which is available on Youtube, and he punctuated his discussion with multiple examples of pop music from the time that used modes. Today, on this Patreon sponsored episode, I was asked to go through all of the modes and show how they have been used in classical music. Much of my show today is modeled on and takes its inspiration from that Bernstein Young People’s Concert, and I’ll be peppering clips from that show throughout my own exploration. As Bernstein says, the common practice period of classical music, starting with Haydn and ending sometime early in the 20th century, didn’t feature a lot of modal music, though that doesn’t mean it was completely absent. So today I’ll explain what modes are, and we’ll go through each of the so called church modes, explaining their characteristics, and then showing you examples throughout musical history of exactly how these modes were used by the great composers. This show might seem a bit technical, but I think there’s a lot of really interesting and fascinating stuff here, so stick with me, and let’s explore modes together. Join us!
Sibelius Symphony No. 5
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5, Part 2
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5, Part 1
Ysaye Sonatas for Solo Violin
Mahler Symphony No. 1, Part 2
Mahler Symphony No. 1, Part 1
The Music of Heinrich Schutz (and Brahms!)
Bartok Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celeste
Bach Transformed
Mendelssohn Symphony No. 3, "Scottish"
Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances
Shostakovich Symphony No. 11, "The Year 1905"
Sticky Notes Vs. Wagner w/ Rafael Payare
Elgar: Enigma Variations
Fantasia 2021: 7 Pieces to Get You Started with Classical Music
Debussy La Mer
Mozart Symphony No. 41, "Jupiter"
Schumann Symphony No. 2
Brahms Symphony No. 2
How to Understand(and Enjoy!) Atonal Music, Part 2: The Wars of the 1950s
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