Why are certain chords considered “happy” or “sad”? Are those moods universal? Like do all cultures from around the world consider the same chords happy/sad/etc, or is it just from learned association?

Question

I know very little about music theory. I’ve tried to learn piano, guitar, other instruments… but always failed because I don’t understand what makes a good chord or bad one. I know a happy song or sad song based on context, but listening to a single chord doesn’t strike me as having any mood.

So it got me thinking: am I missing out on a universal experience, or am I just not in sync with the culture I was raised in? If you played the chords from “Walkin On Sunshine” to someone in, say, 5th century Korea — would it make them feel happy & peppy?

Also: could you write a sad song with happy chords? A peppy song with somber chords? etc

Please make explanations really for a 5 year old — I really don’t understand music, I don’t get what major/minor keys are, or even why certain notes make a chord while others don’t. Keep it simple, please!

Thanks!

In: Other

Answer 1

“Happy” and “sad” and other emotional sounding music is NOT universal. It is a learned cultural response. And yes, it varies depending on what culture you grow up in.

Growing up in western culture, we are frequently exposed to music in contexts that inform us whether we should be happy/sad/whatever when hearing that particular music. Think TV shows, movies, parties, weddings, etc. We learn those associations from a very young age.

For example, composers will often use minor keys for music intended to be played during “sad” moments. We have learnt to associate minor keys with sadness, so when we hear that sort of music, the emotion comes to mind unconsciously.

People raised in non-western cultures have completely different associations. For example, someone raised in a tradition of south-east Asian traditional music does not have the same “happy” or “sad” reactions to music that people from western cultures do. They simply never learnt those. Specifically, if you played “Walking on Sunshine” to a person from 5th century Korea – no, they would almost certainly *not* get a happy, peppy feeling from it.

This has been established through research, and fascinating information about it (and other stuff about how we react to music) can be found in these references (which I highly recommend):

* *The Music Instinct* by Philip Ball.
* *This is Your Brain on Music* by Daniel Levitin.