Learn › Modal Chord Progressions: One Chord Change per Mode
New Released in April 2026
Modal Chord Progressions: One Chord Change per Mode
Modal chord progressions get their colour from one special chord. You do not need scales to hear a mode: loop the home chord with the one chord that holds the mode’s special note, and the sound is there. Here is that pair for five modes.
No account, no download. The demo has limited content. Advanced features are in ChordRunner Premium.
- MIDI keyboard
- Digital or acoustic piano
- Guitar
- Computer, phone or tablet
Five modes, five chord pairs
- Dorian: Dm to G (i to IV). A minor home with a major IV, bright for a minor key.
- Mixolydian: G to F (I to bVII). Major home with a flat 7th chord, a rock and folk sound.
- Lydian: C to D (I to II). Major home with a major II, floating and dreamy.
- Phrygian: Em to F (i to bII). Minor home with a half step above, dark and tense.
- Aeolian: Am F G Am (i bVI bVII i). The natural minor, epic and serious.
Why one chord is enough
Each mode differs from major or minor by one or two notes. The chord pair above puts that note in plain sight: the B in G (Dorian on D), the F in F major (Mixolydian on G), the F# in D major (Lydian on C). Loop it and the ear locks onto the colour.
Modal Chord Progressions: One Chord Change per Mode
ChordRunner is a browser game that teaches piano and guitar chords: a chord appears on screen, you play it on a real instrument, and your runner jumps.
Play the demoKeep it modal
- Stay on the home chord most of the time.
- Avoid the major V to i cadence; it pulls you back to plain major or minor.
- Use a drone or a held bass note on the home chord.
Loop a mode
Type Dm G into ChordRunner and it loops while you play it on a MIDI keyboard or a piano or guitar through the microphone (advanced feature in ChordRunner Premium). You can also keep random chords inside a chosen key and scale, a quick way to get used to each family.
The levels in ChordRunner
- Beginner: major, minor, augmented and diminished chords.
- Intermediate: adds sus2 and sus4.
- Advanced: adds 6th, 7th and 9th chords.
- Pro: adds 11th, 13th and altered chords; an adaptive mode adds the next family when you are ready.
Common questions
What is a modal chord progression?
A progression that stays on a home chord and repeats the one chord that carries the mode’s special note, like Dm to G for D Dorian.
What is a Dorian chord progression?
Minor home chord to major IV, for example Dm G or Am D. The major IV holds the raised 6th that makes Dorian.
What chords are in Mixolydian?
The major chords I, IV and bVII, plus minor v. In G Mixolydian: G, C, F and Dm.
Which instruments work?
A USB MIDI keyboard, detected automatically, or a piano or guitar through the microphone. Everything runs in Chrome or Edge on a computer, tablet or phone.
How is this different from apps where you tap the screen?
Tapping trains your eyes and fingers on glass. Here you press real keys or fret real strings, and the game hears the actual notes, so what you practise is exactly what you will play on your instrument.
Is everything in the demo?
The demo has limited content. Advanced features are in ChordRunner Premium.
Your instrument is the controller.
ChordRunner is a browser game that teaches piano and guitar chords: a chord appears on screen, you play it on a real instrument, and your runner jumps. MIDI keyboard or microphone, both work.
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