G# Dorian
The G# Dorian mode (also written Ab) — G# A# B C# D# E# F# — shown across the guitar neck.
Also written Ab Dorian. Ab and G# are the same pitch — G# is the spelling in common use.
Tap any note on the neck.
Swipe the neck sideways to see the higher frets.
G# Dorian is the natural minor with one note changed — the 6, E#. That single note is what gives the mode its sound: lean on it and the colour is obvious. Leave it out and the melody alone could pass for plain minor — then it is the chords underneath that keep the mode.
What is G# Dorian?
G# Dorian is the seven notes G# A# B C# D# E# F# — the notes of F# major started from its 2nd degree, G#. Same seven notes as the parent, but with G# as home, so the intervals and the sound are different.
G# Dorian vs G# natural minor
6 of the seven notes are the same. The difference is one note, and that is the whole character of the mode:
- 6 is E# in Dorian, where G# natural minor has b6, E.
Play G# natural minor and G# Dorian back to back over a G#m chord and listen for E# — that is the note to lean on.
Chords in G# Dorian
Stack the mode in thirds and each degree becomes a chord. The home chord is G#m; the rest are the chords of F# major, since the notes are the same — what changes is which one the music rests on. Vamp between G#m and C# and the mode is unmistakable.
G# Dorian on the guitar neck
Because G# Dorian is F# major from its 2nd note, its natural fingering is position 2 of the seven three-notes-per-string shapes of F# major — the shape whose lowest note is G#. Learn that shape with G# as home — start and end on it, over a drone on G# or the vamp above — and you have the mode under your fingers. Play the same shape with F# as home and you hear F# major instead. The other six positions are the fingerings for the other six modes of the same key.
How to practice G# Dorian on guitar
- Loop position 2 of F# major at 60 BPM, starting and ending on G# so your ear hears G# as home rather than F#.
- Hold a G#m chord (or record one) and play the shape over it. Land on E# on the strong beats — that is the sound of Dorian.
- Hear it harmonized in 3rds on the Fretboard: press Play and every note sounds with its partner while the neck lights up.
The tool draws G# Dorian from its own root: the orange dots are on G# and the degrees count from it. The notes are its parent key's, F# major; to hear Dorian, start and end on G#.
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