{{Short description|Musical mode}} {{More citations needed|date=October 2021}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2023}} '''Mixolydian mode''' may refer to one of three things: the name applied to one of the ancient Greek ''harmoniai'' or ''tonoi'', based on a particular [[octave species]] or [[musical scale|scale]], one of the medieval [[musical mode|church modes]], or a modern [[mode (music)|musical mode]] or [[diatonic scale]], related to the medieval mode. The Hypomixolydian mode of medieval music, by contrast, has no modern counterpart.
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> { \key c \mixolydian \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 7/4 c4^\markup { Modern C Mixolydian scale } d e f g a bes c2 } } </score>}}
==Greek Mixolydian== The idea of a Mixolydian mode comes from the music theory of [[ancient Greece]]. The invention of the ancient Greek Mixolydian mode was attributed to [[Sappho]], the {{nowrap|7th-century-B.C.}} poet and musician.<ref>[[Anne Carson]] (ed.), ''If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho'' (New York: Vintage Books, 2002), p. ix. {{ISBN|978-0-375-72451-0}}. Carson cites [[Pseudo-Plutarch]], ''On Music'' 16 (1136c Steph.), who in turn names [[Aristoxenus]] as his authority.</ref> However, what the ancient Greeks thought of as Mixolydian is very different from the modern interpretation of the mode. The prefix ''mixo''- ({{math|μιξο}}-) means "mixed", referring to its resemblance to the [[Lydian mode]].
In Greek theory, the Mixolydian ''tonos'' (the term "mode" is a later Latin term) employs a scale (or "[[octave species]]") corresponding to the Greek [[Hypolydian mode]] inverted. In its [[diatonic genus]], this is a scale descending from ''paramese'' to ''hypate hypaton'': in the diatonic genus, a [[whole tone]] (''paramese'' to ''mese'') followed by two conjunct inverted [[Lydian mode|Lydian]] [[tetrachords]] (each being two whole tones followed by a [[semitone]] descending). This diatonic genus of the scale is roughly the equivalent of playing all the [[white notes]] of a piano from B to B, which is also known as modern [[Locrian mode]].
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> { \key e \locrian \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 7/4 e4^\markup { Greek Mixolydian tonos (diatonic genus) on E } f g a bes c d e2 } } </score>}} In the [[chromatic genus|chromatic]] and [[enharmonic genus|enharmonic]] genera, each tetrachord consists of a [[minor third]] plus two semitones, and a [[major third]] plus two [[quarter tone]]s, respectively.<ref>[[Thomas J. Mathiesen]], "Greece", ''[[The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians]]'', 2nd edition, 29 vols., edited by [[Stanley Sadie]] and [[John Tyrrell (musicologist)|John Tyrrell]], (London: [[Macmillan Publishers]], 2001), 10:339. {{ISBN|1-56159-239-0}} {{OCLC|44391762}}.</ref> {{Block indent|<score sound="1"> { \key e \locrian \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 7/4 e4^\markup { Greek Mixolydian tonos (chromatic genus) on E } f fis a bes ces d e2 } } </score>}}
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> { \key e \locrian \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 7/4 e4^\markup { Greek Mixolydian tonos (enharmonic genus) on E } eih f a aih bes d e2 } } </score>}}
==Medieval Mixolydian and Hypomixolydian== The term ''Mixolydian'' was originally used to designate one of the traditional ''harmoniai'' of Greek theory. It was appropriated later (along with six other names) by 2nd-century theorist [[Ptolemy]] to designate his seven ''tonoi'' or [[transposition (music)|transposition keys]]. Four centuries later, [[Boethius]] interpreted Ptolemy in Latin, still with the meaning of transposition keys, not scales.
When chant theory was first being formulated in the 9th century, these seven names plus an eighth, Hypermixolydian (later changed to Hypomixolydian), were again re-appropriated in the anonymous treatise ''Alia Musica''. A commentary on that treatise, called the ''Nova expositio'', first gave it a new sense as one of a set of eight diatonic [[octave species|species of the octave]], or scales.<ref>[[Harold S. Powers]], "Dorian", ''[[The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians]]'', 2nd edition, edited by [[Stanley Sadie]] and [[John Tyrrell (musicologist)|John Tyrrell]] (London: Macmillan Publishers, 2001).</ref> The name ''Mixolydian'' came to be applied to one of the eight modes of medieval church music: the seventh mode. This mode does not run from B to B on white notes, as the Greek mode, but was defined in two ways: as the diatonic octave species from G up one octave to the G above, or as a mode whose final was G and whose [[ambitus (music)|ambitus]] runs from the F below the final to the G above, with possible extensions "by licence" up to A above and even down to E below, and in which the note D (the tenor of the corresponding seventh psalm tone) had an important melodic function.<ref>[[Harold S. Powers]] and Frans Wiering, "Mixolydian", ''[[The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians]]'', 2nd edition, 29 vols., edited by [[Stanley Sadie]] and [[John Tyrrell (musicologist)|John Tyrrell]], 16:766–767 (London: [[Macmillan Publishers]], 2001), 767. {{ISBN|978-1-56159-239-5}}.</ref> This medieval theoretical construction led to the modern use of the term for the natural scale from G to G.
The seventh mode of western church music is an [[authentic mode]] based on and encompassing the natural scale from G to G, with the [[perfect fifth]] (the D in a G to G scale) as the dominant, [[reciting note]] or ''tenor''.
The [[plagal mode|plagal]] eighth mode was termed ''Hypomixolydian'' (or "lower Mixolydian") and, like the Mixolydian, was defined in two ways: as the diatonic octave species from D to the D an octave higher, divided at the mode final, G (thus D–E–F–G + G–A–B–C–D); or as a mode with a final of G and an ambitus from C below the final to E above it, in which the note C (the tenor of the corresponding eighth psalm tone) had an important melodic function.<ref>[[Harold S. Powers]] and Frans Wiering, "Hypomixolydian", ''[[The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians]]'', 2nd edition, 29 vols., edited by [[Stanley Sadie]] and [[John Tyrrell (musicologist)|John Tyrrell]], 12:38 (London: [[Macmillan Publishers]], 2001) {{ISBN|978-1-56159-239-5}}.</ref>
In the [[Common practice period]], the Hypomixolydian is notably used in the ''Andante maestoso'' of Beethoven's renowned [[Symphony no. 9 (Beethoven)|Ninth symphony]] finale, through male chorus' [[plainchant]] [[intonation (music)|intonation]] of the "Seid Umschlungen, Millionen" and "Brüder, Uber'm Sternerzelt" episodes.<ref> Esteban Buch, Beethoven's Ninth: a political history, 2003 </ref> The mode is featured again in the following double [[fugue]], when the plainchant-like "Seid Umschlungen, Millionen" theme gets combined contrapuntally with the Ode to Joy melody.<ref> Esteban Buch, Beethoven's Ninth: a political history, 2003 </ref>
==Modern Mixolydian== The modern Mixolydian scale is the fifth [[Mode (music)|mode]] of the [[major scale]] ([[Ionian mode]]). That is, it can be constructed by starting on the fifth scale degree (the [[Dominant (music)|dominant]]) of the major scale. Because of this, the Mixolydian mode is sometimes called the ''dominant scale''.<ref>Dan Haerle, ''Scales for Jazz Improvisation'' (Hialeah: Columbia Pictures Publications; Lebanon, Indiana: Studio P/R; Miami: Warner Bros, 1983), p. 15. {{ISBN|978-0-89898-705-8}}.</ref>
{{Block indent|<score sound="1"> { \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c'' { \clef treble \time 7/4 g4^\markup { Modern G Mixolydian scale } a b c d e f g2 } } </score>}} The Mixolydian scale has the formula
{{block indent|1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, {{music|flat}}7, 8}}
That is, the scale has the same series of [[major second|tones]] and [[minor second|semitones]] as the major scale, but with a [[minor seventh]]. As a result, the seventh scale degree is a [[subtonic]], rather than a [[leading-tone]].<ref name="berle1997p33">{{Cite book|last=Berle|first=Arnie|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5YpeM9mTRIAC&pg=PA33|title=Mel Bay's Encyclopedia of Scales, Modes and Melodic Patterns: A Unique Approach to Developing Ear, Mind and Finger Coordination |chapter=The Mixolydian Mode/Dominant Seventh Scale |page=33 |date=1 April 1997|publisher=Mel Bay Publications, Incorporated|isbn=978-0-7866-1791-3|language=en}}</ref> The [[subtonic|flattened seventh]] of the scale is a tritone away from the [[mediant]] ([[major-third]] degree) of the [[key (music)|key]]. The order of whole tones and semitones in a Mixolydian scale is
{{block indent|whole, whole, half, whole, whole, half, whole}}
In the Mixolydian mode, the [[tonic (music)|tonic]], [[subdominant]], and [[subtonic]] [[triad (music)|triads]] are all [[Major chord|major]], the [[mediant]] is [[Diminished triad|diminished]], and the remaining triads are [[Minor chord|minor]]. A classic Mixolydian chord progression is I-{{music|b}}VII-IV-V.<ref name="Serena"/>
The Mixolydian mode is common in non-classical harmony, such as [[folk music|folk]], [[jazz]], [[funk]], [[blues]], and rock music. It is often prominently heard in music played on the [[Great Highland bagpipe]]s.
{{quote|[In the blues progression, for] example [often] uses D Mixolydian triads ... over the D7 [tonic] chord, then uses G Mixolydian triads ... over the G7 [subdominant] chord, and so on.<ref>Harrison, Mark (2008). ''Stuff! Good Piano Players Should Know'', p. 78. Hal Leonard. {{ISBN|9781423427810}}.</ref>}}
As with natural and harmonic minor, Mixolydian is often used with a major seventh degree as a part of the dominant and [[perfect cadence]]s. "[[Wild Thing (The Troggs song)|Wild Thing]]" by [[The Troggs]] is a, "perfect example", while others include "[[Tangled Up in Blue]]" by [[Bob Dylan]], "[[Straight Shooter (Bad Company album)|Shooting Star]]" by [[Bad Company]], and "[[Bold as Love (song)|Bold as Love]]" by [[Jimi Hendrix]].<ref name="Serena">Serena, Desi (2021). ''Guitar Theory For Dummies with Online Practice'', p.168. Wiley. {{ISBN|9781119843177}}.</ref>
[[Klezmer]] musicians refer to the Mixolydian scale as the [[Adonai malakh mode]]. In Klezmer, it is usually transposed to C, where the main chords used are C, F, and G7 (sometimes Gm).<ref>Dick Weissman and Dan Fox, ''A Guide to Non-Jazz Improvisation: Guitar Edition'' (Pacific, Missouri: Mel Bay Publications, 2009): p. 130. {{ISBN|978-0-7866-0751-8}}.</ref>
To hear a modern Mixolydian scale, one can play a G-major scale on the piano, but change the F{{music|sharp}} to F{{music|natural}}.
==Notable music in Mixolydian mode== {{Unreliable sources|section|date=August 2024}} <!--Include sources with songs you add to this list. Songs added without sources will be deleted.-->
===Traditional=== *"[[Old Joe Clark]]"<ref>Wendy Anthony, "[http://archive.mandolinsessions.com/feb07/Anthony.html Building a Traditional Tune Repertoire: Old Joe Clark (Key of A-Mixolydian)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303174840/http://archive.mandolinsessions.com/feb07/Anthony.html |date=3 March 2016 }}", ''Mandolin Sessions'' webzine (February 2007) |(Accessed 2 February 2010).</ref><ref name=EschlimanNov2009>Ted Eschliman, "[http://www.mandolinsessions.com/?p=460 Something Old. Something New] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304000530/http://mandolinsessions.com/?p=460 |date=4 March 2016 }}", ''Mandolin Sessions'' webzine (November 2009) (Accessed 2 February 2010).</ref><ref>Micheal Houlahan, Philip Tacka (2015). ''Kodály in the Fifth Grade Classroom'', p.104. Oxford. {{ISBN|9780190236243}}.</ref><ref>Houlahan, Michael and Tacka, Philip (2008). ''Kodaly Today'', p.56. Oxford. {{ISBN|9780198042860}}.</ref> *"[[Gleanntáin Ghlas' Ghaoth Dobhair]]" (<small>English: [[Gweedore]]'s Green Glens</small>), also called "Paddy's Green Shamrock Shores" – A traditional Irish [[folk song]], composed by [[Proinsias Ó Maonaigh|Francie Mooney]] (Proinsias Ó Maonaigh).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thesession.org/tunes/5936|title=Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore|date=5 July 2006 |via=thesession.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.scoreexchange.com/scores/69169.html|title = Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore - Download Sheet Music PDF file}}</ref> Recorded by the band [[Altan (band)|Altan]], with Mooney's daughter Mairéad on lead vocals, on their album ''[[Runaway Sunday]]'' (1997). Recorded by [[The Corrs]] as "Erin Shore" on their album Forgiven Not Forgotten (1995). *"[[She Moved Through the Fair]]" – A traditional Irish folk song.<ref>{{cite book |first=Patrick |last=Allen |author-link=Patrick Allen (music educator) |title=Developing Singing Matters |year=1999 |publisher=[[Heinemann (book publisher)|Heinemann Educational Publishers]] |location=[[Oxford]] |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=pUycX 22] |isbn=0-435-81018-9 |oclc=42040205}} {{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Sometimes called "Our Wedding Day" and sung with different lyrics, such as by vocalist Anne Buckley in [[Michael Flatley]]'s ''[[Lord of the Dance (musical)|Lord of the Dance]]'' (1996). *"The [[Wexford Carol]]" * "[[Green Bushes]]" * And countless [[Irish traditional music|Irish]], [[Music of Scotland|Scottish]] and [[Cape Breton fiddling|Cape Breton]] [[Jig|jigs]], [[Reel (dance)|reels]], [[Highland Fling|highlands]] and other dance tunes recorded in the mode.
===Classical=== *"Fughetta super: Dies sind die heilgen zehn Gebot" in G major from [[Clavier-Übung III|''Clavier-Übung III'', BWV 679]] by [[Johann Sebastian Bach]]<ref name="Harmony 1941 pp. 29">[[Walter Piston]]. ''Harmony'' (New York: W. W. Norton, 1941): pp. 29–30.</ref><ref name="Hello"/> *[[Piano Concerto (Grieg)|Piano Concerto in A minor]], third movement, by [[Edvard Grieg]]<ref name="Harmony 1941 pp. 29"/> *''[[Concerto in modo misolidio]]'', P 145 (1925) by [[Ottorino Respighi]]<ref>[https://www.naxos.com/mainsite/blurbs_reviews.asp?item_code=8.220176&catNum=220176&filetype=About%20this%20Recording&language=English "Concerto in Modo Misolidio for Piano and Orchestra – Three Preludes on Gregorian Themes"] by Adriano, English adaptation by David Nelson, [[Naxos Records]] cat. 8.220176 (1986)</ref><ref name="Hello"/> * Et resurrexit from [[Ludwig van Beethoven|Beethoven's]] [[Missa solemnis (Beethoven)|Missa solemnis]] *''Surgam et circuibo civitatem'' by [[Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina|Palestrina]]<ref name="Hello">{{Cite web|date=24 October 2021|last=Farrant |first=Dan |title=12 Examples Of Songs In The Mixolydian Mode|url=https://hellomusictheory.com/learn/songs-in-the-mixolydian-mode/|access-date=31 January 2023|language=en-GB}}</ref>
===Popular=== *"[[Sweet Child o' Mine]]" by [[Guns N' Roses]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sweet Child O' Mine by Guns N' Roses Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis – Hooktheory |url=https://www.hooktheory.com/theorytab/view/guns-n-roses/sweet-child-o-mine#:~:text=About%20The%20Key%20Of%20C,key%20of%20C%E2%99%AF%20Mixolydian. |access-date=2023-06-28 |website=www.hooktheory.com}}</ref> *"[[Thunderstruck (song)|Thunderstruck]]" by [[AC/DC]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Thunderstruck by AC DC Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis – Hooktheory |url=https://www.hooktheory.com/theorytab/view/ac-dc/thunderstruck#:~:text=About%20The%20Key%20Of%20B,the%20key%20of%20B%20Mixolydian. |access-date=2023-06-28 |website=www.hooktheory.com}}</ref> *"[[You Really Got Me]]" by [[the Kinks]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygn7ORgPbEE|title=Leonard Bernstein on Rock Music|date=12 March 2009 |via=YouTube}}</ref> *"[[I Feel Fine]]" by [[the Beatles]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYmzVHRAo94|title=The Mixolydian Mode--The Sound of Rock|date=17 February 2020 |via=YouTube}}</ref> *"[[Express Yourself (Madonna song)|Express Yourself]]" by [[Madonna]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Express Yourself by Madonna Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis |url=https://www.hooktheory.com/theorytab/view/madonna/express-yourself |access-date=15 April 2024 |website=HookTheory.com}}</ref> *"[[Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)]]" by [[the Beatles]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYmzVHRAo94&t=106s|title=The Mixolydian Mode--The Sound of Rock (at 1:46)|date=17 February 2020 |via=YouTube}}</ref><ref name="Workshop">Kachulis, Jimmy (2004). ''The Songwriter's Workshop'', p.39. Berklee Press. {{ISBN|9781476867373}}</ref> *"[[Royals (Lorde song)|Royals]]" by [[Lorde]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rebelmusicteacher.com/blog/2016/3/23/mixolydian-mode-in-royals|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202203803/http://www.rebelmusicteacher.com/blog/2016/3/23/mixolydian-mode-in-royals|url-status=usurped|archive-date=2 December 2021|title = Getting Really Medieval?: Mixolydian Mode in Lorde's "Royals"| date=2 May 2016 }}</ref><ref name="Hello" /> *"[[Born This Way (song)|Born This Way]]" by [[Lady Gaga]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Born This Way by Lady Gaga Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis |url=https://www.hooktheory.com/theorytab/view/lady-gaga/born-this-way |access-date=15 April 2024 |website=HookTheory.com}}</ref> *"[[Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)]]" by [[Beyoncé]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=0rRKBXQotnA|title = Why 'Single Ladies' is so cool | Q+A| date=18 March 2019 |via = YouTube}}</ref> *"[[Clocks (song)|Clocks]]" by [[Coldplay]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rebelmusicteacher.com/blog/2018/8/20/changing-the-mix-mixolydian-mode-in-coldplays-clocks|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410093342/http://www.rebelmusicteacher.com/blog/2018/8/20/changing-the-mix-mixolydian-mode-in-coldplays-clocks|url-status=usurped|archive-date=10 April 2019|title=Changing the Mix: Mixolydian Mode in Coldplay's "Clocks"|website=Rebel Music Teacher|date=20 August 2018 }}</ref><ref name="Hello" /><ref name="Tales" /> *"[[Happy Together (song)|Happy Together]]" by [[the Turtles]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hooktheory.com/theorytab/view/the-turtles/happy-together|title=Happy Together by The Turtles Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis – Hooktheory|website=hooktheory.com}}</ref> *"[[Epistrophy (composition)|Epistrophy]]" by [[Thelonious Monk]]<ref name="Colours">Gross, David (1997). ''Harmonic Colours in Bass'', p.28. {{ISBN|9781576239353}}.</ref> *"[[Freedom Jazz Dance]]" by [[Eddie Harris]]<ref name="Colours" /> *"[[Dark Star (song)|Dark Star]]" by [[Grateful Dead]]<ref name="Hello" /><ref name="Tales" /> *"[[L.A. Woman (song)|L.A. Woman]]" by [[the Doors]]<ref name="Hello" /><ref name="Tales" /> *"[[All Blues]]" by [[Miles Davis]]<ref name="Hello" /> *"[[If I Needed Someone]]" by [[the Beatles]]<ref name="Tales">{{Cite web|title=7 songs featuring Mixolydian mode |url=https://musictales.club/article/7-songs-featuring-mixolydian-mode|access-date=31 January 2023|website=Music Tales |year=2020}}</ref> *"[[Marquee Moon (song)|Marquee Moon]]" by [[Television (band)|Television]]<ref name="Tales" /> *"[[Sweet Home Alabama]]" by [[Lynyrd Skynyrd]]<ref name="Tales" /> *"[[Revelation Song]]" by [[Jennie Lee Riddle]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.steadyprintshop.com/who-is-the-original-singer-of-the-revelation-song|title=Who is the original singer of the Revelation Song|website=steadyprintshop.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Revelation Song {{!}} Official Song Resources on SongSelect® |url=https://songselect.ccli.com/songs/4447960/revelation-song/viewchordsheet |website=songselect.ccli.com}}</ref> *"[[Gold Rush (song)|Gold Rush]]" by [[Taylor Swift]] Verses in A Mixylodian *"[[A&W (song)|A&W]]" by [[Lana Del Rey]]<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-04-10 |title=A Composer Breaks Down The Music Theory Behind Lana Del Rey's "A&W" |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2219705/lana-del-rey-aw-music-theory/columns/in-theory/ |access-date=2025-09-25 |website=Stereogum |language=en}}</ref>
==See also== *[[Harikambhoji]], the equivalent scale in [[Carnatic music]] *[[Khamaj]], the equivalent scale in [[Hindustani music]] *[[V–IV–I turnaround]], a common [[chord progression#Minor and modal progressions|modal chord progression]] when spelled as I–{{music|flat}}VII–IV{{citation needed|date=October 2012}} *[[Backdoor cadence]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *Hewitt, Michael. ''Musical Scales of the World''. The Note Tree. 2013. {{ISBN|978-0957547001}}.
==External links== * {{Commons category-inline|Mixolydian mode}} * [https://gosk.com/scales/mixolydian-scale-for-guitar.php Mixolydian scale on guitar]
{{Modes}} {{Authority control}}
[[Category:Modes (music)]]