Why are the Modes Important?
Modes have noticeably distinct sounds and feels which make it fun, interesting, sometimes even exotic sounding. This unique nature, sound, and feel alone is enough of a reason to make the modes worthy of study, because without a proper understanding of them musicians that have learned only their foundational 48 will often accidentally play natural minor instead of Dorian, or major when they should be playing Lydian, etc. For piano and guitar players, the modes are also quite useful in that learning them requires the pianist to learn new fingering patterns that will help with more complex melodic lines as they learn more challenging repertoire.