Two Paths of Harmony ✨
Harmony isn't just “music theory” — it's a language of emotion. This page shows how the same feeling (like 😢 sadness, 😡 anger, or 🕵️♀️ mystery) can travel along two different harmonic roads: Path of Flow and Path of Color.
You don't need scale names or heavy theory for this. The idea is simple: in harmony, movement creates emotion. And there are two main ways chords like to move:
- Path of Flow: smooth, song-like movement that feels familiar and stable.
- Path of Color: small chromatic steps and surprises that feel more intense and cinematic.
Now compare two paths side by side
Pick any emotion below
Path of Flow vs Path of Color
Here's the big picture: for each emotion, there is a Flow version and a Color version. Flow uses more stable, directional progressions. Color uses smaller chromatic steps and more tension.
Emotion Map — Flow & Color side by side
| Emotion | Path of Flow (degrees → C example) | Path of Color (local steps → C example) | ⭐ Pure Chromatic Chords (Color highlights) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 😢Sadness | 1, 6b, 3b, 7bC minor example: Cm → Ab → Eb → Bb | m → M(–4) → m(–3) → m(–1)C example: Cm → Ab → Fm → Em | Emforeign major third (G♯) relative to Cm, tragic “lift then drop.” |
| 😡Anger | 1, 4, 2b, 5C minor example: Cm → Fm → Db → G | m → m(+1) → dim(+3) → M(+2)C example: Cm → C#m → E° → F# | C#m, E°This entire progression is chromatic except the starting Cm |
| 😱Fear / Horror | 1, 2b, 5, 1C minor example: Cm → Db → G → Cm | m → dim(+6) → M(+1) → dim(+3)C example: Cm → F#° → G → A#° | F#°, A#°C → F#° (tritone), G → A#° (chromatic +3) |
| 🕵️♀️Mystery | 1, 4, 7b, 1C minor example: Cm → Fm → Bb → Cm | m → M(+2) → dim(+3) → M(+1)C example: Cm → D → F° → F# | F°the chromatic “fog chord.” |
| 🌧️Melancholy | 6b, 4, 1, 5C minor example: Ab → Fm → Cm → G | m → M(–3) → m(+4) → M(–3)C example: Cm → A → C#m → A# | Athe main melancholy trigger (bright but off-key) |
| 🌿Calm / Peace | 1, 5, 6, 4B♭ major example: Bb → F → Gm → Eb | M → M(+2) → M(+3) → M(–2)C example: C → D → F → Eb | Ebgives a gentle pastel color |
| 🎈Playful | 1, 2, 5, 1B♭ major example: Bb → Cm → F → Bb | M → M(+3) → M(+3) → M(+2)C example: C → Eb → F# → G# | F#“jump up” effect Eb → F# |
| ✨Magic / Fantasy | 4, 1, 5, 6B♭ major example: Eb → Bb → F → Gm | M → M(+8) → M(–4) → M(+3)C example: C → Ab → E → G | Eis the brightest chromatic moment |
| 🌌Wonder | 1, 6b, 3b, 4C minor example: Cm → Ab → Eb → F | m → M(+5) → M(+2) → M(+4)C example: Cm → F → G → B | Ba “halo chord” that creates shimmer |
| 😬Tension / Suspense | 1, 2, 5, 1C minor example: Cm → D° → G → Cm | M → m(+1) → dim(+3) → M(+2)C example: C → C#m → E° → F# | E°C# → E° (collapse) |
You don't need to memorize the numbers or formulas. What matters is that you can hear the difference: Flow tends to move in broader, familiar arcs. Color tends to move in tighter, more surprising steps.
Flow: the smooth, familiar path
Path of Flow is the gentle storyteller of harmony. It connects chords in a way that feels natural to the ear: like a song, or a story that knows where it's going.
You'll hear Flow in classic progressions, calm endings, and that kind of sadness that feels like looking back at an old photograph. It's not trying to shock you — it's trying to carry you.
Interactive idea: try the same emotion in Path of Flow and see how the circle traces a smooth curve around the ring.
Color: the surprising, expressive path
Path of Color takes a different route. Instead of sliding smoothly, it likes to lean on chromatic steps: moving a chord up by a semitone, dropping down a third into a new color, or snapping into a diminished shape.
That's why Color often feels more intense. Anger feels sharper. Fear feels closer. Wonder feels brighter. The circle doesn't just rotate — it jumps, twists, and paints with tension.
Interactive idea: open Path of Color, pick an emotion like anger or mystery, and watch how small steps create big feelings.
🎹✨ Now use both on your piano
Speak this harmonic language with your keys.
Combine Flow and Color in one progression:
- create gentle feelings with Flow,
- deepen or sharpen that emotion with chromatic movement,
- experiment with different keys and/or starting chords
Or explore the tools 🎧
- Path of Flow – smooth, song-like harmony that teaches you how chords naturally travel.
- Path of Color – expressive chromatic harmony that shows how tiny steps change the feeling.