Creating Emotion-Evoking Music to Communicate Wellness for Users with Diverse Musical Backgrounds

Chord progressions influence the emotional response a song evokes, suggesting altering a song's chords can help a system control the emotions that a user experiences when listening to sonified data. In this paper, we explore how chord progressions could be used to musically communicate wellness information that invokes specific emotions, and whether a person's musical background affects their perception of emotions in music. We conducted two studies where participants provided structured or open-ended perceptions of emotions in harmonies. Our findings suggest that the emotional impact of a chord progression can be changed by various factors, including the chord transitions, the type of chords, and the chord's mode. Additionally, we found that a person's musical background may influence nuances in their perception of emotions conveyed through chords. This implies that future systems may need to consider individual musical preferences to function effectively. These results will allow for more accurate and effective emotional sonification-based communication with the user.