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

Music has long been recognized for evoking emotion from the listener. However, in musical chords, the relationship between mode and emotion, beyond basic associations of "major"-"happy" and "minor"-"sad" in triads, remains poorly understood. The present study investigates how mode contributes to the perception of mixed emotions in major and minor seventh chords, containing a triad from both modes. In Experiment 1, participants identified the emotion they perceived (happy, sad, or bittersweet) in response to a selection of major and minor triads and seventh chords. To observe the effect of changing mode salience, participants heard the same seventh chords whose root or seventh was lowered in volume. In Experiment 2, participants responded to seventh chords with roots or sevenths that were quieted in multiple increments. Experiment 3 expanded the paradigm by asking participants to judge the emotion of each chord on a sliding scale and introduced a second mixed-emotion choice (nostalgic). Overall, participants were more likely to report a seventh chord as bittersweet (Experiments 1 and 2) or happy (Experiments 2) but not sad. The likelihood of a seventh chord being rated as "happy" increased with highlighting the major triad present in a minor seventh chord through quieting the chordal root, but the likelihood of a seventh chord being rated as "sad" increased with lowering the volume of a chordal seventh, regardless of mode. The effect of pitch height on emotional perception is considered, and implications for the general understanding of complex emotional categories are discussed.