Brightness and Darkness in Chords, Scales and Modes – DBQ (The Dorian Brightness Quotient) @QJamTracks

Uploaded October 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago

Wat is brightness and darkness in music and how is this established in chords, scales and in particular the modes? What is the connection between dark and bright, major and minor, flats and sharps, Ionian and phrygian? All these questions and more get answered in this guitar tutorial about this music theory subject. Did you know that the major scale is not the brightest scale out there? Did you know that the mirror image of Ionian is Phrygian and that the G major key is brighter than the C major key? What causes gravitational Pull and what is the consequence? And what about the Dorian Brightness Quotient or short the DBQ? Ever heard of negative harmony? A concept by Ernst Levi and adopted by Jacob Collier who mad lot’s of video about negative harmony. So you see: lots to learn in this guitar lesson.

0:00 Introduction
1:12 Bright and dark in chords
3:12 Circle of fifths
6:00 Bright and Dark in Modes
8:11 Gravitational Pull
10:09 Modes in the circle of fifths
10:54 Dorian Brightness Quotient
11:51 Inversion of Modes
14:03 Conclusion

You can support me on my patreon page (also for tabs of the licks played in this video): patreon.com/QJamTracks

Artwork: (c) 2020) Rob van Hal

Used:
Ibanez JEM 7vb (www.Ibanez.com)
Ibanez RT
Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com)
Schecter Banshee GT FR (schecterguitars.com/)
Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com)
Castilla Classical Guitars
Samson Concert 99 Wireless system
Rode Microphone
Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com)

Social Media/contact:
patreon.com/QJamTracks
facebook.com/QJamTracks
instagram.com/QJamTracks
youtube.com/QJamTracks

(c)2020 Rob van Hal, Netherlands

Subjects in this video:

Brightness and darkness in music,
Bright and dark in music,
Dorian Brightness Quotient,
DBQ,
Bright chords,
Bright scales,
Bright modes,
Dark modes,
Dark scales,
Dark modes,
Dark music,
Bright music,
Gravitational pull,
Dark and Bright modes,
Phrygian,
Lydian,
Dorian,
Mixolydian,
Locrian,
Ionian,
Circle of fifths,
Music theory lesson guitar,
Music theory

$Brightness and Darkness in Chords, Scales and Modes – DBQ (The Dorian Brightness Quotient) Wat is brightness and darkness in music and how is this established in chords, scales and in particular the modes? What is the connection between dark and bright, major and minor, flats and sharps, Ionian and phrygian? All these questions and more get answered in this guitar tutorial about this music theory subject. Did you know that the major scale is not the brightest scale out there? Did you know that the mirror image of Ionian is Phrygian and that the G major key is brighter than the C major key? What causes gravitational Pull and what is the consequence? And what about the Dorian Brightness Quotient or short the DBQ? Ever heard of negative harmony? A concept by Ernst Levi and adopted by Jacob Collier who mad lot’s of video about negative harmony. So you see: lots to learn in this guitar lesson. 0:00 Introduction 1:12 Bright and dark in chords 3:12 Circle of fifths 6:00 Bright and Dark in Modes 8:11 Gravitational Pull 10:09 Modes in the circle of fifths 10:54 Dorian Brightness Quotient 11:51 Inversion of Modes 14:03 Conclusion You can support me on my patreon page (also for tabs of the licks played in this video): www.patreon.com/QJamTracks Artwork: (c) 2020) Rob van Hal Used: Ibanez JEM 7vb (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez RT Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Schecter Banshee GT FR (www.schecterguitars.com/) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Samson Concert 99 Wireless system Rode Microphone Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) Social Media/contact: www.patreon.com/QJamTracks www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2020 Rob van Hal, Netherlands Subjects in this video: Brightness and darkness in music, Bright and dark in music, Dorian Brightness Quotient, DBQ, Bright chords, Bright scales, Bright modes, Dark modes, Dark scales, Dark modes, Dark music, Bright music, Gravitational pull, Dark and Bright modes, Phrygian, Lydian, Dorian, Mixolydian, Locrian, Ionian, Circle of fifths, Music theory lesson guitar, Music theory$

Traffic Jam - And Merry Christmas To You All

All About The SECONDARY DOMINANT (and SPICE UP your songwriting!)

$One shape for all guitar arpeggios: Pure Magic! Playing arpeggios on a guitar can be challenging. With this little trick you can play all 7th guitar arpeggios with just one shape copy and then repeated over three octaves. Impress yourself and your friends with this awesome guitar concept and technique every guitarist should know! Gear: Ibanez JEM 7v (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Rode Microphone Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark III Social Media/contact: www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2018 Rob van Hal, Netherlands Photos used in this video: Ed Sheeran: Eva Rinaldi from Sydney, Australia [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons Other (CC0 license) photos: www.pexels.com and www.pixabay.com$ $Backing Track VAMP - Practice the A Melodic Minor Scale Backing track download: https://www.patreon.com/posts/55449668 Artwork: Rob van Hal Cover Photo: https://pixabay.com/nl/photos/branden-incenses-reizen-india-asia-1119244/ by https://pixabay.com/nl/users/devanath-1785462/ Used for recording: Ibanez JEM 7v (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Samson Concert Wireless Microphone system CR99 Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) QJamTrack Uses: BIAS FX II Cakewalk by Bandlab Social Media/contact: www.patreon.com/QJamTracks www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2020 Rob van Hal, Netherlands$ $How to improvise with the Amazing Whole Tone Scale – Explanation, Examples and ideas for Guitarists! In this guitar lesson you learn to use the modern sounding whole tone scale over dominant and minor chords to create really amazing and colourful guitar solos full of tension and release. A practical guitar lesson with lots of examples in different styles and the music theory you need for the whole tone scale. See how easy it is to use this scale on the guitar to stand out and create modern and juicy sounds. Level 5 (of 6) 👉Free PDF with whole tone scale patterns: https://www.patreon.com/posts/whole-tone-scale-143113686 E-book How To Use The Whole Tone Scale : https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/how-to-use-the-whole-tone-scale-guitar-lesson Tablature, diagrams, examples and backing tracks of this guitar tutorial will be available on my Patreon page: https://patreon.com/QJamTracks *Chapters 0:00 Introduction 0:57 What is a whole tone scale 3:03 The augmented triad 3:54 Harmonic device 5:17 Over dominant chords 6:04 4 whole tone ideas 7:54 Examples over dominant chords 9:30 Whole tone scale over a 12-bar Blues 10:57 Over minor chords 12:50 Final Thoughts 👉JazzDuets Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@UCqimxUbWsE26KSpx2_OcmmA *Crystal Clear E-BOOKS with audio files:* https://qjamtracks.shopify.com *Social Media/contact: * https:// facebook.com/QJamTracks https:// instagram.com/QJamTracks https:// youtube.com/QJamTracks *Strandberg Guitars* https://strandbergguitars.com *Fractal AxeFx II* https://www.fractalaudio.com *Neural DSP Plini X Plugin * https://neuraldsp.com/ (c)2025 Rob van Hal, Netherlands$ $E Phrygian Dominant BACKING TRACK – The Dark Oriental Become a Patreon and receive tabs, scales and arpeggios patterns in PDF and download MP3 files of the backing tracks: www.patreon.com/qjamtracks 0:05 - What is the phrygian dominant scale 0:33 - C major pentatonic scale patterns 0:54 - E minor pentatoinic scale patterns 1:12 - E phrygian dominant scale patterns 1:44 - C major scale patterns (3 note per string) 1:57 - G# diminished arpeggio 2:04 - Steve Vai signature lick (F lydian / C major) 2:18 - Dominant (half-whole tone) diminished scale 2:54 - C major arpeggio An exotic modulating Rock guitar backing track, filled with improvisation ideas, scales and arpeggios presented on screen. An educational and enhanced guitar backing track video to practice the Phrygian Dominant scale, diminished arpeggio, major7 arpeggio, a Steve Vai signature lick, diminished scale and pentatonic scales. For guitarists who want to improvise in different keys and modes. This awesome modal backing track let ‘s you play different scales, which are visualized onscreen. Excellent for improvising, learning modes, scales, chords, licks and arpeggios. This Q JAM TRACKS jam track provides a visual representation of the chords and scales in diagrams as they appear in the backing track. Extra theoretical information is shown in the video. It is a high quality backing track and handy tutorial (lesson) at the same time. Artwork: Rob van Hal Photos: Pixabay CC0 licenced photo’s (www.pixabay.com) Used: Ibanez JEM 7v (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Samson Concert Wireless Microphone system CR99 Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) Social Media/contact: www.patreon.com/QJamTracks www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2020 Rob van Hal, Netherlands$ $Beautiful & Heavenly Guitar Backing Track in A, Am, E and G An educational and enhanced guitar backing track in A major, A minor, E major and G major for guitarists who want to improvise with major and minor scales, pentatonic scales, harmonic minor scale and arpeggios. This beautiful Backing track modulates over different keys. Excellent for improvising, learning modes, scales, chords, licks and arpeggios. This Q JAM TRACKS jam track in provides a visual representation of the chords and scales in diagrams as they appear in the music. Extra theoretical information is shown in the video. It is a high quality backing track and handy tutorial (lesson) at the same time. Artwork: (c) 2019) Rob van Hal Photo: Image of stone statue by Karina Cubillo https://pixabay.com/photos/cemetery-peace-angel-sculpture-1655378/ Used: Ibanez JEM 7v (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Rode Microphone Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) Social Media/contact: www.patreon.com/QJamTracks www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2018 Rob van Hal, Netherlands$ $Master Your Rhythm: Secrets to Perfect Time Feel - PART 2 Improving Time Improving Time Feel & Rhythm – Crystal Clear - PART 2 In this guitar tutorial you’ll learn how you can improve time feel and rhythmic abilities in a conceptual way and practical way. In this part 2 of the tutorial we are going to look at syncopation and special rhythm that you’ll come across in many genres and styes. Besides the syncopated rhythms we will explore the after beat, the triplet, the sextuplet, the shuffle and hemiola. I’ll show you rhythmic examples of songs like Beat it by Michael Jackson, A Forest by The Cure, Dust in the Wind by Kansas, La Grange by ZZ Top, Enter sandman and The Four Horsemen by Metallica. 0:00 Introduction 00:58 Syncopation 3:18 4 types of syncopation 3:46 Playing off the beat 5:06 Rests on the beat 6:03 Tie notes 6:53 Syncopation by dynamics 8:31 Common syncopation 8:47 Singer songwriter pattern 10:28 Travis Picking 12:14 16th note strum 13:40 Playing before the beat 15:45 The After Beat and SKA 17:08 The Hemiola 18:13 The Triplet and sextuplet 20:07 The Shuffle 22:59 Conclusion *E-book Time Signatures and Rhythm - Part 1* https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/time-signatures-and-rhythm-part-1 *E-book Time Signatures and Rhythm - Part 2* https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/time-signatures-rhythm-part-2 **FREE DOWNLOADS:** 16th note exercises (PDF and Guitar Pro): https://www.patreon.com/qjamtracks/posts/16th-note-rhythm-169482700 PATREON You can support me on my patreon page (also for tabs of the licks played in this video): www.patreon.com/QJamTracks Artwork: (c) 2021) Rob van Hal Used: Strandberg PROG NX (www.strandbergguitars.com) Ibanez JEM 7vb (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez RT Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Schecter Banshee GT FR (www.schecterguitars.com/) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Samson Concert 99 Wireless system Oktava MK 012 Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) Neural DSP Plini Social Media/contact: www.patreon.com/QJamTracks www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2021 Rob van Hal, Netherlands PHOTO’s: Dave Mustaine: Mario from Madrid, Spain, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Eddy van Halen: Anirudh Koul from Montreal, Canada, CC BY 2.0 httpscreativecommons.orglicensesby2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Carl Lender, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Kirk Hammet: Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Megadeth: Kreepin Deth at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Metallica: Kreepin Deth, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Michael Jackson: Daniele Dalledonne from Trento, Italy, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons ZZ Top: Rickmkent, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons$ $Backing Track - Soaring though ALL the MODES This backing track travels every four bars to another mode with root A. So you can practice the A Ionian mode, A dorian mode, A Phrygian mode, A Lydian mode, A mixolydian mode, A Aeolian mode and A locrian mode. All in one guitar backing track. This backing track is part of the video guitar tutorial ‘Modes Explained Effective and Crystal Clear’ (https://youtu.be/QT4p_BzfToU) in which I explain exactly what modes are for entry level musicians. If you like you can support me on my patreon page for exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/qjamtracks Social Media/contact: www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks All audio created and played by me (Rob van Hal) I use: Ibanez JEM 7v (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Rode Microphone Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) (c)2018 Rob van Hal, Netherlands$ $SIMPLE 4-note ARPEGGIOS for SOPHISTICATED sounds! In this tutorial you’ll learn 3 very simple arpeggio shapes to create some very interesting and sophisticated sounds that you can use in Jazz, Fusion and Rock improvisations and compositions. The 3 shapes are based upon the Maj7, Maj7b5 or Maj7#11 and Maj7#5 arpeggio. Using them in the right way will enable you to play modal instantly. From simple major and minor sound to modes of the major scale (dorian, phrygian, lydian, mixolydian and Locrian) to the beautiful modes of the melodic minor scale like Lydian augmented and Lydian dominant. E-book with audio files: https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/e-book-easy-arpeggios-for-sophisticated-sounds Other E-books with audio files: E-BOOK - Easy arpeggios for sophisticated results https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/e-book-easy-arpeggios-for-sophisticated-sounds E-BOOK - Improvising over dominant 7 chords (using scales) https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/e-book-improvising-over-dominant-chords E-BOOK - Modes of the major scale crystal clear https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/e-book-modes-of-the-major-scale-crystal-clear E-BOOK - Exotic Pentatonic scale for Guitar https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/exotic-pentatonic-scales-for-guitar E-BOOK - Modes of the harmonic minor scale https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/modes-of-the-harmonic-minor-scale E-BOOK - Secrets of outside playing https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/secrets-of-outside-playing E-BOOK - Superimpose Pentatonic scales https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/superimpose-pentatonic-scales-for-rock-fusion-and-jazz E-BOOK - Traids and inversions for Guitar https://qjamtracks.myshopify.com/products/triads-and-inversions-for-guitar-easy-to-advanced Supporting downloads (https://www.patreon.com/qjamtracks): - PDF sheet with all arpeggios diagrams - HQ II V I Backing track in C major for free use. - Supporting backing tracks for this tutorial In this tutorial you’ll learn 3 very simple arpeggio shapes to create some very interesting and sophisticated sounds that you can use in Jazz, Fusion and Rock improvisations and compositions. The 3 shapes are based upon the Maj7, Maj7b5 or Maj7#11 and Maj7#5 arpeggio. Using them in the right way will enable you to play modal instantly. From simple major and minor sound to modes of the major scale (dorian, phrygian, lydian, mixolydian and Locrian) to the beautiful modes of the melodic minor scale like Lydian augmented and Lydian dominant. Supporting material can be found here: http://www.patreon.com/Qjamtracks 0:00 Intro 1:09 The red pill 1:44 4 notes – 3 patterns 6:02 Pattern 1 – Maj7 8:19 Pattern 2 – Maj7b5 (Maj7#11) 14:41 Pattern 3 - Maj7#5 19:01 Conclusion You can support me on my patreon page (also for tabs of the licks played in this video): www.patreon.com/QJamTracks Artwork: (c) 2021) Rob van Hal Used: Strandberg* Boden Prog NX (www.strandbergguitars.com) Ibanez JEM 7vb (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Oktave MK-012 microphone Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) Neural DSP plugins (www.neuraldsp.com/) Fireface UCXII audio interface (www.rme-audio.de) Social Media/contact: www.patreon.com/QJamTracks www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2023 Rob van Hal, Netherlands Subjects in this video: Arpeggio, guitar arpeggio, Guitar arpeggios, Maj7 arpeggio, Maj7#11 arpeggio, Maj7b5 arpeggio, Maj7#5 arpeggio, easy arpeggios, Jazz guitar, Jazz arpeggios, Fusion guitar licks, Superimposing arpeggios, Modes for guitar, Modes of the major scale, Lydian mode, dorian mode, Phrygian mode, Mixolydian mode, Locrian mode, Modes of the melodic minor scale, Lydian dominant, Lydian augmented, Music theory lesson guitar, Music theory, Guitar tutorial, Guitar lesson, Rob van Hal, QJamTracks,$ $2 Awesome Alternatives to use over the Dorian Mode! With examples and Tabs. This video will show you two very interesting alternatives to use over the dorian mode. In any other case you would play a pentatonic or diatonic scale like a pentatonic scale or dorian scale patterns. Now you will learn to create a total different sound by playing the m7b5 arpeggio of the 6th degree and the half diminished pentatonic scale. Two awesome assets that will help you to find your own sound and create fusion like solos and licks. There are examples and diagrams in the video of the scales and arpeggios. In this guitar tutorial everything is explained very clear for the intermediate level guitarist. You can support me on my patreon page (also for tabs of the licks played in this video): www.patreon.com/QJamTracks Artwork: (c) 2019) Rob van Hal Used: Ibanez JEM 7v (www.Ibanez.com) Ibanez SD GR Bass (www.Ibanez.com) Takamine GD930 (www.takamine.com) Castilla Classical Guitars Samson Concert 99 Wireless system Rode Microphone Axe FX II (www.fractalaudio.com) Social Media/contact: www.patreon.com/QJamTracks www.facebook.com/QJamTracks www.instagram.com/QJamTracks www.youtube.com/QJamTracks (c)2019 Rob van Hal, Netherlands$