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

‘D Sharp Aeolian’ is the 6th mode of the F sharp major scale. The notes in D# Aeolian are:

D# – E# – F# – G# – A# – B – C#

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). 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 D# aeolian using both the parallel approach and the derivative approach.

D# Aeolian Mode Using The Parallel Approach

D# Major has the following notes:

D# – E# – Fx – G# – A# – B# – Cx

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

D# – E# – F# – G# – A# – B – C#

D# Aeolian Mode Using The Derivative Approach

D# is the 6th note of the F# major scale:

F# – G# – A# – B – C# – D# – E#

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

D# – E# – F# – G# – A# – B – C#

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

D# Aeolian in the Open Position

Firstly, let’s look at the open position:

D Sharp Aeolian Mode Open Position Frets
D Sharp Aeolian Mode Open Position Notes

D Sharp Aeolian CAGED Positions

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

D# Aeolian 1st Position (Lowest Fret is 1)

D Sharp Aeolian Mode Open Position Frets https://ow.ly/gluE1
D Sharp Aeolian Mode Open Position Notes

D# Aeolian 2nd Position (Lowest Fret is 2)

D Sharp Aeolian Mode 2nd Position Frets
D Sharp Aeolian Mode 2nd Position Notes

D# Aeolian 6th Position (Lowest Fret is 6)

D Sharp Aeolian Mode 6th Position Frets
D Sharp Aeolian Mode 6th Position Notes

D# Aeolian 7th Position (Lowest Fret is 7)

D Sharp Aeolian Mode 7th Position Frets
D Sharp Aeolian Mode 7th Position Notes

D# Aeolian 10th Position (Lowest Fret is 10)

D Sharp Aeolian Mode 10th Position Frets
D Sharp Aeolian Mode 10th Position Notes

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

Further Reading

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