Do modes exist in the harmonic / melodic minor scales?

Question

I'm trying to get my head around modes and the tonal center. In my understanding the natural minor scale is the same as the Aeolian mode. However, when considering the mix-up that happens in the harmonic and melodic minor scales, this led me to wonder. Do the modes bear any relation with these two minor scales? Like, if I'm playing Harmonic minor C scale with a tonal center of the D. Could that be considered Harmonic Dorian D? If I'm way off with my question, please explain why I'm off, it will help me to touch base

Answer 1

If you were talking to another musician and you said "Harmonic Dorian D", they would likely be very puzzled and not know what you were talking about. The best way to communicate that with another person would be to call it simply "the second mode of C Harmonic Minor". Any scale will have its own modes, but you would reserve the names Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, etc. for those mades based off the major scale. For another example, the fifth mode of harmonic minor is a very common scale to play over a V7flat9 chord in a minor key, but it doesn't have a short and pretty name.

Answer 2

You are not way off! You are just dealing more with Jazz, and not so much with Classical. In Classical, as you know, the modes go up from Ionian to Aeolian. However, in Jazz, you also have modes based on the seven scale degrees of the melodic minor scale ascending. Together, the 7 Church modes and 7 Jazz modes create 14 modes that equal the total number of ways seven notes on the piano can be arranged in a scale going from one note to its octave above it!