C Sharp Aeolian Mode on the Guitar – 5 CAGED Positions, Tabs and Theory

‘C Sharp Aeolian’ is the 6th mode of the E major scale. The notes in C# Aeolian are:

C# – D# – E – F# – G# – A – B

If you have read the post on understanding the aeolian mode, you will know that the aeolian mode contains a ‘flat 3’, a ‘flat 6’ and a ‘flat 7’ (parallel approach). You will also know that it is the 6th mode of the major scale (derivative approach). The aeolian mode is a very commonly used mode and is also known as the ‘natural minor scale’. Let’s briefly look at how to construct C# aeolian using both the parallel approach and the derivative approach.

C Sharp Aeolian Mode Using The Parallel Approach

C# Major has the following notes:

C# – D# – E# – F# – G# – A# – B#

If we ‘lower’ the 3rd note (E#), 6th note (A#) and 7th note (B#), we get the following:

C# – D# – E – F# – G# – A – B#

C Sharp Aeolian Mode Using The Derivative Approach

C# is the 6th note of the E major scale:

E – F# – G# – A – B – C# – D#

If we play the E major scale and start on the 6th note we get the following:

C# – D# – E – F# – G# – A – B#

Let’s look at the C# aeolian mode in the different positions on the guitar fretboard:

C# Aeolian in the Open Position

Firstly, let’s look at the open position:

C Sharp Aeolian Mode Open Position Frets
C Sharp Aeolian Mode Open Position Notes

C Sharp Aeolian CAGED Positions

Now let’s look at C sharp aeolian in the 5 different CAGED positions along the fretboard.

C Aeolian 4th Position (Lowest Fret is 4)

C Sharp Aeolian Mode 4th Position Frets
C Sharp Aeolian Mode 4th Position Notes

C Aeolian 5th Position (Lowest Fret is 5)

C Sharp Aeolian Mode 5th Position Frets
C Sharp Aeolian Mode 5th Position Notes

C Aeolian 8th Position (Lowest Fret is 8)

C Sharp Aeolian Mode 8th Position Frets
C Sharp Aeolian Mode 8th Position Notes

C Aeolian 11th Position (Lowest Fret is 11)

C Sharp Aeolian Mode 11th Position Frets
C Sharp Aeolian Mode 11th Position Notes

C Aeolian 12th Position (Lowest Fret is 12)

C Sharp Aeolian Mode 12th Position Frets
C Sharp Aeolian Mode 12th Position Notes

That covers the 5 basic positions and the open position of C# aeolian along the guitar fretboard. For an in depth explanation of the aeolian mode, check out aeolian mode explained.

Further Reading

Get Guitar Chords Galore eBook