Major Chords Research Articles

Pitch height and mode have asymmetrical effects on the perception of mixed emotions in major and minor seventh chords.

Pitch height and mode have asymmetrical effects on the perception of mixed emotions in major and minor seventh chords.

Supplemental Material for Pitch Height and Mode Have Asymmetrical Effects on the Perception of Mixed Emotions in Major and Minor Seventh Chords

Supplemental Material for Pitch Height and Mode Have Asymmetrical Effects on the Perception of Mixed Emotions in Major and Minor Seventh Chords

Generalizations of Euler's Tonnetz on triangulated surfaces

We give a definition of a what we call a “tonnetz” on a triangulated surface, generalizing the famous Tonnetz of Euler (Euler, Leonhard. 1739. Tentamen novae theoriae musicae ex certissismis harmoniae principiis dilucide expositae. Saint Petersburg Academy, 147). In the modern interpretation of Euler’s Tonnetz, the vertices of a regular “ A 2 triangulation” of the plane are labelled with notes, or pitch-classes. In our generalization, we allow much more general labellings of triangulated surfaces. In particular, edge labellings turn out to lead to a rich set of examples. We construct natural examples that are related to crystallographic reflection groups and live on triangulations of tori. Underlying these, we observe a curious relationship between the mathematical Langlands duality and major/minor duality. We also construct “exotic” type- A 2 examples (different from Euler’s Tonnetz), and a tonnetz on a sphere that encodes all major ninth chords.

Teknik Permainan Appogiatura Piano Pada Lagu “Waltz In A Minor, B.150, Op.Posth” Karya Frederic Chopin

This research aims to determine the techniques for playing appogiatura piano in the song "Waltz in a minor, B.150, Op.Posth" by Frederic Chopin. The author uses descriptive qualitative methods. The object of this research is the score for Waltz in a minor, B.150, Op.Posth" by Frederic Chopin. The data analysis techniques used are data reduction, data presentation, and data conclusions. The results and discussion of this research are Frederic Chopin's "Waltz in a minor, B.150, Op. Posth" which is a solo performance that uses playing techniques such as Appoggiatura and is equipped with techniques such as mordent, trill, triplet-quintuplet, and legato, as well as dynamics so that what is produced in part A1, wants to describe a sad atmosphere because of the legato technique which makes it lilting, then in part B with appoggiatura and legato techniques wants to describe a cheerful atmosphere as if there is hope, supported by a Major chord at the beginning, variations melodies, and lots of appoggiatura, triplet-quintuplet ornaments as sweeteners. Next, section A' again depicts a sad atmosphere, but the modulation to A Major makes hope even more visible. But in section A2, the sweet dance atmosphere, the hopes built in sections B and A' return to an atmosphere of sadness which then in the Coda section ends with an ornamental trill at the end of the song so that it can depict an atmosphere of decline.

A Comparative Study of Convolutional Neural Networks and Recurrent Neural Networks for Chord Recognition

Using Mel-spectrograms, this study evaluates the effectiveness of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs). Mel-spectrograms are justified by their non- linearity and similarity to the human hearing system. This study uses over 200 tracks by The Beatles and Queen collected through the Music Information Retrieval Evaluation Exchange. Data augmentation approaches are used to increase accuracy on unusual chords. This paper presents a 3-layer 2D CNN model trained on major and minor chords and then expanded to different types of chords. The dataset demonstrates that both models can recognize musical chords across various genres. We compare the proposed results to the existing literature and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. As a result of our analysis, we found that the CNN and RNN models were 79% and 76% accurate, respectively. The presented findings suggest that CNNs and RNNs are suitable models for chord recognition using Mel-spectrograms. Data augmentation can be an effective technique for improving accuracy on rare chords.

Tonal processing in major and minor chord contexts: An ERP study

Tonal processing in major and minor chord contexts: An ERP study

Increasing the complexity of isolated musical chords benefits concurrent associative memory formation

The effects of background music on learning and memory are inconsistent, partially due to the intrinsic complexity and diversity of music, as well as variability in music perception and preference. By stripping down musical harmony to its building blocks, namely discrete chords, we explored their effects on memory formation of unfamiliar word-image associations. Chords, defined as two or more simultaneously played notes, differ in the number of tones and inter-tone intervals, yielding varying degrees of harmonic complexity, which translate into a continuum of consonance to dissonance percepts. In the current study, participants heard four different types of musical chords (major, minor, medium complex, and high complex chords) while they learned new word-image pairs of a foreign language. One day later, their memory for the word-image pairs was tested, along with a chord rating session, in which they were required to assess the musical chords in terms of perceived valence, tension, and the extent to which the chords grabbed their attention. We found that musical chords containing dissonant elements were associated with higher memory performance for the word-image pairs compared with consonant chords. Moreover, tension positively mediated the relationship between roughness (a key feature of complexity) and memory, while valence negatively mediated this relationship. The reported findings are discussed in light of the effects that basic musical features have on tension and attention, in turn affecting cognitive processes of associative learning.

Prediction errors arising from switches between major and minor modes in music: An fMRI study

The major and minor modes in Western music have positive and negative connotations, respectively. The present fMRI study examined listeners’ neural responses to switches between major and minor modes. We manipulated the final chords of J. S. Bach’s keyboard pieces so that each major-mode passage ended with either the major (Major-Major) or minor (Major-Minor) tonic chord, and each minor-mode passage ended with either the minor (Minor-Minor) or major (Minor-Major) tonic chord. If the final major and minor chords have positive and negative reward values respectively, the Major-Minor and Minor-Major stimuli would cause negative and positive reward prediction errors (RPEs) respectively in a listener’s brain. We found that activity in a frontoparietal network was significantly higher for Major-Minor than for Major-Major. Based on previous research, these results support the idea that a major-to-minor switch causes negative RPE. The contrast of Minor-Major minus Minor-Minor yielded activation in the ventral insula and visual cortex, speaking against the idea that a minor-to-major switch causes positive RPE. We discuss our results in relation to executive functions and the emotional connotations of major versus minor modes.

The image of the Virgin Mary in V. Ptushkin’s cantata «Salve Regina»

Statement of the problem. Volodymyr Ptushkin is one of the most prominent representatives of the Kharkiv composer school of the second half of the 20th and early 21st centuries. In April 2022, he passed away staying in Kharkiv under fire at the beginning of the war. The thematic and genre diversity of his music reflects the breadth of his artistic views, openness to the trends of time. Ptushkin paid special attention to choral work, he collaborated with many choral groups of Ukraine, his choral works adorn their repertoire. Undoubtedly, his works have a magnetic power, and recognition of them in the professional and amateur environment determines the relevance of this topic. Recent research and publications. Today there is not thorough study of the Ptushkin’s choral heritage, beside the separate articles by N. Inyutochkina, T. Gerdova, I. Zhukovska, M. CherkashynaGubarenko, N. Mykhailova, I. Verbitska-Shokot, A. Krychenkova. The purpose of the article is to consider the peculiarities of the embodiment of the Image of the Virgin Mary in V. Ptushkin’s cantata “Salve Regina”. Methodology. As the methods of researching the historic, comparative, genre-stylistic, intonation-dramaturgical and interpretive types of analysis is used. Results. “Salve Regina” is a deeply psychological work. It carries the most deep feelings, thanks to which consciousness builds a chain of images, the meaning of which is hidden in their associative relationships. Music of the Cantata is present as the art of hints, semitones, chiaroscuro, and undisguised, exalted emotions. The artistic and philosophical concept, the peculiarities of the embodiment of the main image, the specifics of intonation and harmonic language, dramaturgy and the form of the cantata are revealed in the study. It is concluded that the cantata synthesizes some features of baroque musical style and modern musical language, and the canonical Church text does not interfere with its vivid theatricality. The melody appears as the most sensual and emotional intonation component, while the harmonic vertical is focused on the phonic expression of bright nontertian sounds, major seventh chords and ninth chords; the semantics of tonalities are also involved. Intonation arcs, leit-chords, the principle of through dramaturgy, the contrasting juxtaposition of episodes and parts of the whole in the cantata, despite the chamber form, testify to the composer’s symphonic thinking. Conclusion. The music of the cantata significantly expanded the scope of the prayer text and brought it to the level of philosophical generalization. The image of the Virgin Mary becomes the bearer of a hidden meaning, a symbol of the spiritual development of a person. Through the image of the Mother of God, the work highlights various stages of a person’s spiritual path to knowledge of God. Each of the six parts of the cantata is a musical reproduction of a certain period of person’s spiritual life: birth – suffering – despair – protest – enlightenment – revival.

기억술을 활용한 교양 음악 수업 방안

Objectives The purposes of this study is to explore how mnemonic methods can be applied to liberal arts music classes by exploring the various mnemonic methods and their applicability. Methods To this end, based on past studies on mnemonics, possible ways to apply such methods to composition activities in introductory music classes were explored by identifying different categories and methods that could be adapted. Results Composition activities using mnemonics were into two steps: preparing the score (remembering the order of preparing the score, writing clefs, writing key signatures, and writing time signatures) and the basic composition process (memorizing composition rules based on the 3 major chords, memorizing notes and beats, memorizing note names, memorizing tempo, and memorizing ellipsis). To this end, a total of eight mnemonic methods (story method, acrostics, categorical clustering, key word method, gesture, acronyms, rhyme, and peg word method) were used. Conclusions This study can be meaningful in that by making it easy to memorize the contents that are difficult to remember in the basic music learning process through the use of mnemonics, It can be additionally meaningful in that it can increase the use of various mnemonic methods to help in sheet music reading skills which can allow composition activities.

„Toczy się ciemna rzeka”. Aporie i ambiwalencje "Nokturnu" drugiego Władysława Sebyły

Władysław Sebyła’s Second "Nocturne" is a major chord in this partly literary, partly musical series of poems. The author of the article tries to unravel the mystery of the dark tones and black color that dominate the tenor and landscapes of this text. The “aporias and ambivalences” mentioned in the title are the key to the semantics of this represented world. The analysis of individual lines shows their compositional dominant and great carrying power of meanings. Aporia, which is a semantic vortex, and ambivalence, which always sees the two opposing banks of this metaphorical river, illustrate well the literary intention of Sebyła and the interpretative intent of the author of the article.

An user friendly Scheme of Numerical Representation for Music Chords

The standard western music notation for the major and minor chords is avail- able in the world. But the understanding of major and minor chords is very difficult for learning peoples particularly children’s. It is very complicated to memory of all major and minor chords and also roots of all chords. This inven- tion is easily understand by children and easily captured in standard piano and other instruments. The new method of conveying chords by numerical tech- niques is used in this invention. The octave notes are derived in to two different heads of major and minor chords by numerical method. There are two main equations are implemented and it is very easy to understanding of all major and minor chords.

Small-volume monogenetic igneous landforms and edifices statistics (SMILES): A catalog of representative mafic volcanic landforms to enable quantitative remote identification

Accurate classification of terrestrial and non-terrestrial volcanic landforms requires a robust suite of morphometric parameters. The Small-volume Monogenetic Igneous Landforms and Edifices Statistics (SMILES) catalog contains the morphometric characterizations of mafic small-volume volcanic landforms and was created using uncrewed aerial system photogrammetry, open-source LiDAR, and digital elevation model repositories. This study analyzed 20 simple maars, 22 lava collapse features, 24 ring scoria cones, and 24 spatter landforms (fissure and point source spatter ramparts), using high-resolution (<0.1–5 m/pixel) digital elevation models to establish what dimensionless morphometric parameters enable remote identification of the studied landforms. Parameters include isoperimetric circularity, depth ratio (crater depth/major chord), interior slope angles, as well as crater to base ratios for the area, perimeter, and major chord lengths. Landforms were limited to a basal width of <2 km and <1 km3 for scoria cones and spatter landforms, and a major chord of 2 km or less for lava collapse features and maars. Simple maars have an aspect ratio (AR) (>0.74), isoperimetric circularity (IC) (>0.90), interior slope angle (<47°), and depth ratio (<0.26) creating a distinct range of morphometric parameters. Lava collapse features exhibit wider variability in AR (0.26–0.95), IC (0.46–0.98), interior slope angle (up to 16–86°), and depth ratio (0.25–0.52). Scoria cone craters have a distinct range of AR (>0.54), IC (>0.81), interior slope angle (<34°), and lower depth ratio (<0.25). Spatter landforms have a wider range of variability in AR (0.25–0.94), IC (0.43–0.98), interior slope angle (<63°), and depth ratio (0.04–0.37). Scoria cones have lower crater/base area ratios and lower crater/base perimeter ratios than spatter landforms. This study demonstrates that while an individual parameter is not diagnostic for recognizing small-volume mafic volcanic landforms remotely, a suite of parameters is. The SMILES catalog demonstrates the value of evaluating populations of similar landforms using higher-resolution datasets to establish diagnostic suites of dimensionless parameters, to enable accurate and positive remote identification of volcanic landforms. The technique used in this study can be applied to other volcanic and non-volcanic landforms on Earth, as well as non-terrestrial targets.

An Idiom of Melodic-Harmonic Divorce

Within the stratified harmonic behavior known as melodic-harmonic divorce, this paper identifies a gesture repeated idiomatically across rock repertory. Dubbed “sub-circle” motion, this idiom is specifically a form of syntax divorce wherein a melodic layer unfolds in a way consonant with and suggestive of circle-of-fifths root motion (+P4) between two accompanying major chords; however, the harmonic layer’s root instead moves up by a minor third (+m3), creating a stratified dissonance, or divorce. The paper then identifies a standard set of paradigms—specific transpositional instances of the idiom—and catalogues numerous examples of their use in rock music. One paradigm, V-".fn_flat('')."VIIadd9, is the subject of special analytic and historical inquiry, due to its proliferation as a deceptive cadence in the late twentieth century. This previously untheorized cadence is the most prominent instance of the sub-circle idiom.

Decoding peak emotional responses to music from computational acoustic and lyrical features

Music can evoke strong emotions. Research has suggested that pleasurable chills (shivering) and tears (weeping) are peak emotional responses to music. The present study examines whether computational acoustic and lyrical features can decode chills and tears. The experiment comprises 186 pieces of self-selected music to evoke emotional responses from 54 Japanese participants. Machine learning analysis with L2-norm-regularization regression revealed the decoding accuracy and specified well-defined features. In Study 1, time-series acoustic features significantly decoded emotional chills, tears, and the absence of chills or tears by using information within a few seconds before and after the onset of the three responses. The classification results showed three significant periods, indicating that complex anticipation-resolution mechanisms lead to chills and tears. Evoking chills was particularly associated with rhythm uncertainty, while evoking tears was related to harmony. Violating rhythm expectancy may have been a trigger for chills, while the harmonious overlapping of acoustic spectra may have played a role in evoking tears. In Study 2, acoustic and lyrical features from the entire piece decoded tears but not chill frequency. Mixed emotions stemming from happiness were associated with major chords, while lyric content related to sad farewells can contribute to the prediction of emotional tears, indicating that distinctive emotions in music may evoke a tear response. When considered in tandem with theoretical studies, the violation of rhythm may biologically boost both the pleasure- and fight-related physiological response of chills, whereas tears may be evolutionarily embedded in the social bonding effect of musical harmony and play a unique role in emotional regulation.

The Relationship Between Hearing Experiences, Music-Listening Behaviors, and Chord-Discrimination Abilities for Cochlear Implant Users

The main pre-implant factors that relate to speech perception outcomes in adults with cochlear implants (CIs) are well known. However, it is not clear if these same factors are related to music perception and enjoyment. This study explored the relationship between self-reported pre-implant hearing and music experiences, and post-implant chord discrimination and music enjoyment. An online platform was used to deliver the Munich Music Questionnaire (MUMU), run a chord-discrimination task, and obtain demographic information. The chord-discrimination task involved detection of an upward change of one, two or three semitones in the third note, or a downward change of one, two, or three semitones in the middle note of a three-note major chord, using synthesized harmonic tones. Twenty-five CI users participated, aged 29–86 years. Exploratory factor analysis revealed three hearing-related variables (duration of hearing difficulty, age characteristics, and years of hearing with a CI), and three music-related variables (music quality from the CI, extent of music engagement, and music-listening habits). Chord-discrimination scores increased with increasing frequency change of the varying note. It was likely that some CI users used beats between tones as a discrimination cue. Chord discrimination was also better for individuals listening via loudspeakers and headphones than for those listening via Bluetooth streaming, perhaps because of artifacts produced by the latter. Chord-discrimination was better for older participants with longer experience of hearing with an implant. Those with longer duration of hearing difficulty who liked the sound quality of their CIs had higher music enjoyment scores.

Structural, Apparent, or Parenthetical? The Tonic Chord in the First-Movement Recapitulation of Beethoven's Piano Sonata Op. 106

Much ink has been spilled regarding whether mm.224–26, which conclude the first-movement development section of Beethoven's Piano Sonata, Op. 106, the Hammerklavier , should contain A♮ or A♯. By contrast, what happens at the onset of the recapitulation, immediately after the A♮/A♯ controversy, has been taken for granted. Yet the beginning of the recapitulation features another, less obvious controversy: that of the structural role of the B♯ major chord in m. 227. This article discusses three different Schenkerian ways of interpreting the B♯ major chord that begins the recapitulation: structural, apparent, and parenthetical. It considers how these readings reflect the musical effect at the onset of the recapitulation, both locally and in the larger context. The essay favors the interpretation of a parenthetical tonic, arguing that it provides the best account of the multi-layered web of associations at the beginning of the recapitulation.

EEG Correlates of Middle Eastern Music Improvisations on the Ney Instrument.

The cognitive sciences have witnessed a growing interest in cognitive and neural basis of human creativity. Music improvisations constitute an ideal paradigm to study creativity, but the underlying cognitive processes remain poorly understood. In addition, studies on music improvisations using scales other than the major and minor chords are scarce. Middle Eastern Music is characterized by the additional use of microtones, resulting in a tonal–spatial system called Maqam. No EEG correlates have been proposed yet for the eight most commonly used maqams. The Ney, an end-blown flute that is popular and widely used in the Middle East was used by a professional musician to perform 24 improvisations at low, medium, and high tempos. Using the EMOTIV EPOC+, a 14-channel wireless EEG headset, brainwaves were recorded and quantified before and during improvisations. Pairwise comparisons were calculated using IBM-SPSS and a principal component analysis was used to evaluate the variability between the maqams. A significant increase of low frequency bands theta power and alpha power were observed at the frontal left and temporal left area as well as a significant increase in higher frequency bands beta-high bands and gamma at the right temporal and left parietal area. This study reveals the first EEG observations of the eight most commonly used maqam and is proposing EEG signatures for various maqams.

A two-dimensional representation of musical chords using the simplicity of frequency and period ratios as coordinates

Musical chords play an essential role, especially in Western music, and the corresponding consonance–dissonance contrasts and emotional continua are still the targets of investigation in psychoacoustics and neurophysiology. In the present study, we define the simplicity of frequency ratios and simplicity of period ratios for the constituents of a chord and propose that those measures should be used as the two coordinate axes in the plane for plotting chords. In this plane, the major and minor chords are reflections of each other with respect to the diagonal . The other chord pair in the same relationship is the major–minor seventh (dominant seventh) and the half-diminished seventh chords. The other triads and seventh chords do not make such pairs of different categories of chords. It was also found that at least for triads, the sum and the difference seem to correspond to subjective consonance and the melancholic/sad emotional ratings, respectively. Implications of these findings are discussed. The proposed simple presentation may help interpret and model psychoacoustic and neurophysiological results on musical chords.

Parsimonious graphs for the most common trichords and tetrachords

Parsimonious transformations are common patterns in different musical styles and eras. In some cases, they can be represented on the Tonnetz, Cube Dance, Power Towers, or the central region of an orbifold, mainly when they only include the most even trichords and tetrachords. In this paper, two novel graphs, called Cyclopes, are presented, which include more than double the number of chord types in previously published graphs, thus allowing to represent a larger musical repertoire in a practical way. Apart from parsimonious transformations, they are also especially suitable for representing trichords a major third apart, tetrachords a minor third apart, and the cadences V7–I(m) and II–V7–I(m) with major or minor tonic chords. Therefore, they allow to clearly visualize the relationship among the corresponding chords and better understand those patterns, as well as being efficient mnemonic resources, all of which make them useful tools both for music analysis and composition.