✨Emotional Harmony

Paths of Harmony: Flow vs Color ✨

Harmony isn't just “music theory” — it's a language of emotion. This page shows why the same feeling (like 😢 sadness, 😡 anger, or 🕵️‍♀️ mystery) can move in two different ways: Flow (familiar and smooth) and Color (surprising and intense).

You don't need to memorize terms. Just listen, compare, and notice what your hands feel.

Compare Flow and Color side by side

Pick any emotion below. You’ll see and hear two versions of the same feeling:

Flow feels natural and “expected.”
Color adds a twist — small moves that change the mood fast.

Try this: listen once, then listen again and ask: “Which one feels calmer?” “Which one feels sharper?”

🎈 Playful

Flow & Color versions of the same feeling.

Flow = light bounce

Degrees: 1, 2, 5, 1

B♭ Major example: Bb → Cm → F → Bb

Color = playful spark

Local steps: M → M(+3) → M(+3) → M(+2)

C example: C → Eb → F# → G#

Tap an emotion to hear Flow, then Color

Play Flow on the keyboard, with each chord’s motion made clear.

Tap an emotion to play Flow.

Magic

magic · Eb → Bb → F → Gm

Tap an emotion below. This plays the Flow progression (right-hand triad + left-hand root). Each chord is played twice so you can hear the step clearly. The sentence above the keyboard tells you what the current chord is doing.

Play Color on the keyboard, following the motion behind each chord.

Tap Play to hear the Color progression.

Magic

magic · C → Ab → E → G

Pick an emotion below. This plays the Color progression in a smooth way (right-hand triad + left-hand root). Each chord is played twice so you can hear the step clearly. The sentence above the keyboard describes what the current chord is doing.

Emotion Map — Flow & Color side by side

This map shows the ten emotions used on EmotionalChords. The Flow column is the “home feeling” version. Some stay fully inside the key; some add one or two “spice” chords that sharpen the emotion. The Color column shows the more surprising route — where the harmony steps outside the home key more aggressively.

Emotion	Flow (degrees → example)	Color (local steps → example)	⭐ “Spice” chords (the biggest feeling change)
🌿Calm / Peace	`1, 5, 6, 4` B♭ major example: `Bb → F → Gm → Eb`	`M → M(+2) → M(+3) → M(–2)` C example: `C → D → F → Eb`	`Eb` a gentle “exhale” away from C.
🎈Playful	`1, 2, 5, 1` B♭ major example: `Bb → Cm → F → Bb`	`M → M(+3) → M(+3) → M(+2)` C example: `C → Eb → F# → G#`	`F#` the playful “hop” that changes the color instantly.
✨Magic / Fantasy	`4, 1, 5, 6` B♭ major example: `Eb → Bb → F → Gm`	`M → M(+8) → M(–4) → M(+3)` C example: `C → Ab → E → G`	`E` a sudden flash of brightness in the harmony.
😢Sadness	`1, 6b, 3b, 7b` C minor example: `Cm → Ab → Eb → Bb`	`m → M(–4) → m(–3) → m(–1)` C example: `Cm → Ab → Fm → Em`	`Em` one bright, outside chord before falling back.
🕵️‍♀️Mystery	`1, 4, 7b, 1` C minor example: `Cm → Fm → Bb → Cm`	`m → M(+2) → dim(+3) → M(+1)` C example: `Cm → D → F° → F#`	`F°` the “fog chord” — it blurs the key for a moment.
🌧️Melancholy	`6b, 4, 1, 5` C minor example: `Ab → Fm → Cm → G⭐`	`m → M(–3) → m(+4) → M(–3)` C example: `Cm → A → C#m → A#`	`A` bright, off-key, and strangely nostalgic.
🌌Wonder	`1, 6b, 3b, 4` C minor example: `Cm → Ab → Eb → F⭐`	`m → M(+5) → M(+2) → M(+4)` C example: `Cm → F → G → B`	`B` a “halo chord” — very bright above the home key.
😬Tension / Suspense	`1, 2, 5, 1` C minor example: `Cm → D° → G⭐ → Cm`	`M → m(+1) → dim(+3) → M(+2)` C example: `C → C#m → E° → F#`	`E°` the “collapse inward” chord before the push.
😡Anger	`1, 4, 2b, 5` C minor example: `Cm → Fm → Db⭐ → G⭐`	`m → m(+1) → dim(+3) → M(+2)` C example: `Cm → C#m → E° → F#`	`C#m, E°, F#` after Cm, everything rises chromatically and grinds.
😱Fear / Horror	`1, 2b, 5, 1` C minor example: `Cm → Db⭐ → G⭐ → Cm`	`m → dim(+6) → M(+1) → dim(+3)` C example: `Cm → F#° → G → A#°`	`F#°, A#°` classic horror instability — tense and ungrounded.

In the Flow column, chords marked with ⭐ are the “spice” chords — they step slightly outside the plain home key and sharpen the feeling.

How the “spice” increases

You can think of Flow like a ladder: clean → one twist → two twists.

0 spice chords — Calm, Playful, Magic, Sadness, Mystery.
The feeling is stable and clear — great for learning the baseline.
1 spice chord — Melancholy, Wonder, Tension.
One chord steps outside the plain home key to add light, ache, or pressure.
2 spice chords — Anger, Fear / Horror.
Two outside chords make the emotion sharper, heavier, or more intense.

You don't need to remember chord names. It's enough to feel the ladder: as Flow adds more “spice,” the emotion gets more vivid.

Flow: the smooth, familiar path

Flow is the path that feels like a song. Chords connect in a way your ear expects — grounded, calm, and “going somewhere.”

Flow is great for stable emotions and easy-to-remember progressions. If you're new, start here: it gives your hands a clean emotional baseline.

Color: the surprising, expressive path

Color takes smaller, sharper moves. You'll notice tiny steps up or down, sudden brightness, and tension that snaps into place.

That's why Color can make emotions feel more intense right away — sharper anger, closer fear, brighter wonder, stranger magic. It's not “harder.” It's just more concentrated.

A simple takeaway

Flow = smooth, familiar, story-like.
Color = surprise, intensity, emotional twist.

Try both paths for the same emotion — you'll feel the difference instantly.