Based on the first few second of a song , the part before the vocalizer start singing , you could adjudicate whether the lyric are more probable to detail a night of partying or a annihilative dissolution . The fact that melodic structure can evoke certain emotion just as powerfully as wrangle can is n’t a secret . But scientists now have a better idea of which language gets paired with which chords , according to their paper bring out inRoyal Society Open Science .
For their study , researcher from Indiana University downloaded 90,000 songs fromUltimate Guitar , a site that allows user to upload the lyric and chords from democratic Song dynasty for musicians to reference . Next , they pulled data fromlabMT , which gang - source the emotional valence ( positive and negatively charged connotations ) of words . They bear on to the music identification siteGracenoteto determine where and when each song was bring on .
Their new method for analyzing the relationship between euphony and lyrics confirmedlong - held knowledge : that nonaged chords are associated with sad feelings and major chord with glad ones . run-in with a negative valence , like " pain , " " die , " and " confounded , " are all more likely to accrue on the minor side of the spectrum .
But outside of major chord , the researchers determine that eminent - valency words be given to show up in a surprising place : seventh chords . These chord contain four notes at a time and can be play in both the major and minor keys . The lyrics tie in with these chords are positive all around , but their mood varies slightly depending on the type of seventh . Dominant seventh chords , for instance , are often pair with term of endearment , like " baby " , or " sweet . " With modest seventh chord , the words " life " and " god " are overrepresented .
Using their datum , the researchers also wait at how lyric poem and chord valency differs between genres , neighborhood , and era . LX rock’n’roll ranks highest in terms of profitableness while punk and metallic element occupy the bottom slots . As for geography , Scandinavia ( recall Norse decease metal ) produces the sorry euphony while songs from Asia ( like K - Pop ) are the happy . So if you ’re face for a song to boost your mood , we suggest digging up some Asiatic rock music from the 1960s , and make certain it ’s heavy on the seventh chords .
