Which mode is described as flat 2, 3, 5, 6, 7?

Which mode is described as flat 2, 3, 5, 6, 7?

• A. Locrian
• B. Aeolian
• C. Ionian mode
• D. Phrygian

Answer: (B)

Modes are scales built by starting on a different degree of the major scale, so they share the same notes but present them in new order. Describing a mode by which degrees are lowered relative to the major scale is a clear way to hear its character. If the second, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh degrees are all lowered by a semitone, you get a pattern of 1, b2, b3, 4, b5, b6, b7. That exact collection of intervals defines the Locrian mode. In contrast, Aeolian lowers only 3, 6, and 7 (1, 2, b3, 4, 5, b6, b7), Phrygian lowers 2, 3, 6, and 7, and Ionian lowers none. So the described flats correspond to Locrian, not Aeolian.

Modes are scales built by starting on a different degree of the major scale, so they share the same notes but present them in new order. Describing a mode by which degrees are lowered relative to the major scale is a clear way to hear its character. If the second, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh degrees are all lowered by a semitone, you get a pattern of 1, b2, b3, 4, b5, b6, b7. That exact collection of intervals defines the Locrian mode. In contrast, Aeolian lowers only 3, 6, and 7 (1, 2, b3, 4, 5, b6, b7), Phrygian lowers 2, 3, 6, and 7, and Ionian lowers none. So the described flats correspond to Locrian, not Aeolian.