"Theorists Daniela and Bernd Willimek have interpreted the addition of a major sixth in a minor chord as representing loneliness, heartbreak and abandon while, in contrast, the added sixth in a major chord expresses warmth and security. They also acknowledge that added sixths, incorporated as a unification device, as is Pentland’s motivation, hearkens back to late-Romantic characteristics."
Barbara Pentland’s Songs for Soprano. A Performer’s Guide to Selected Major Works, p. 31f. Degree of Doctor of Musical Arts. University of Cincinnati, USA Full article"Their hypothesis of musical equilibration offers a ground of relating a specific interval, chord, scale or collection to particular emotions."
Metropolis: Music Score for the Film Directed by Fritz Lang, p. 41. Doctoral thesis. University of Huddersfield Repository, England. Full article"Particularly in this motif consisting of two phrases, the half-step progression from pitch 6 (B) to pitch 5 (A) at the end of each phrase is a stereotypical tragic expression [22], effectively representing Turing's melancholic nature... 22. B. Willimek and D. Willimek,..."
Original Korean:
또한 한편으로는 단조의 우울함과 선법의 신비로움을 동시에 취하며 튜링의 감춰진 좌절감과 효과적으로 연합하기도 한다. 특히 두 개의 프레이즈로 이루어진 이 모티브에서 각 프레이즈의 끝에 나타는 음도6(B)에서 음도 5(A)로 진행되는 반음관계는 상투적인 비극적 표현으로[22], 튜링의 우울한 성격을 효과적으로 대변하고 있다...22. B. Willimek and D. Willimek,..."
"The Association of Auditive and Visual Meanings" in The Journal of the Korea Contents Association."The Theory of Musical Equilibration says that music can convey any emotion at all, not just merely volitional processes, the musical listener identifies with. Then in the process of identifying the volitional processes are colored with emotions."
Philosophiae Doctor, Mindanao State University-Buug, Philippines. "Semiotic Analysis of Some Selected OPM Songs" in Asian Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Researches, S. 1."The major sub-dominant chord employed in the piece lifts the mood if you subscribe to theories of musical equilibration, which is congruent to a positive lyrical semantic, even though the piece is in a minor key. Very clever work."
Renowned jazz pianist and music educator. Auckland, New Zealand. "Jazzpiano.co.nz - Piano Lessons Specialising in Jazz and Popular Music" , 2023."Everything in the universe, whether living or non-living, vibrates at a unique frequency. Even the sounds our ears can hear give us an intuitive sense of a thing’s inner structure and form. The interplay between humans and nature is expressed in architecture by mimicking natural forms based on mathematical principles to create harmonious proportions (Willimek, 2013). Fractal geometry allows us to analyze and reproduce these harmonious aesthetic ratios."
Original Turkish:"Canlı ya da cansız her yapının bir titreşimi, frekansı yani sesi vardır. İnsan kulağının algılayabildiği kısıtlı frekanslar dahi dürtüsel olarak yapıların özünün, formunun hissedilebilmesini sağlamaktadır. İnsan ile doğanın etkileşimi, altında matematiksel algoritmalar bulunan doğal yapıların oluşumlarının dürtüsel olarak taklit edilerek belirli harmonik oranları yakalaması ile mimariye yansımıştır (Willimek, 2013). Fraktal geometri ile estetik harmonik oranlar analiz edilebilmekte ve tekrar yaratılabilmektedir."
A renowned jazz musician, master's degree in architecture"Without going into the details the general reasoning for why minor chords sound sad & major happy has been given by the theory of musical equilibration."
PEC University of Technology, Chandigarh, India(1), Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, India(2). "Relation between Music & Human Emotions" in Sangeet Galaxy, p. 21."...Neapolitan chords - which symbolise death22...22Daniela and Bernd Willimek. Music and Emotions: Research fon the theory of Musical Equilibration...."
A renowned composer, theorist, and pianist, Raleigh, USA."The Theory of Musical Equilibration is a research project based on the writings of Ernst Kurth and is the first international collection to list the emotional characteristics of harmonies. It is the result of German research by Daniela and Bernd Willimek.."
Original Italian:"The Theory of Musical Equilibration è una ricerca basata sugli scritti di Ernst Kurth ed é la prima raccolta a livello internazionale che elenca i caratteri emotive delle armonie. E’ frutto di uns ricercar tecesca condotta da Daniela e Bernd Willimek."
Bachelor Thesis"The mournful, grave, and melancholy tone, in the case of the poems mentioned, which deal primarily with the inexplicable meaning of life, can make it possible to approximate them to some musical compositions in a minor key due to the sadness that has been attributed to them, for cultural reasons (BALL, 2010) or according to the Theory of Musical Balance (WILLIMEK & WILLIMEK, 2013)."
Original Portuguese:"O tom lamentoso, grave e tristonho pode, no caso dos poemas mencionados a lidar principalmente com o sentido inexplicável da vida, tornar possível a sua aproximação a algumas composições musicais em clave menor pela tristeza que tem sido atribuída a elas, por questões culturais (BALL, 2010) ou pela Teoria da Equilibração Musical (WILLIMEK & WILLIMEK, 2013)."
Professor, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Brazil."A 1997-2011 study found that certain chords evoked similar emotions in over 2,100 children on four continents, specifically that the added sixth chord produced a sense of warmth or happiness (Willimek & Willimek, 2017). "
Internationally recognized composer and pedagogue. Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, Australia. "Synthesizing school curriculum and song: a practice-led model for creating educational songs for children", 2022, p. 141" Full article"An explanatory model that attributes emotions experienced while listening to music to the listener's identification with certain volitional contents."
Original German:"Erklärungsmodell, das Emotionen beim Musikhören auf Identifikationen des Hörers mit bestimmten Willensinhalten zurückführt"
Strebetendenz-Theorie"The whole-tone scale presumably makes up the biggest part of this perceived emotions, as it has been said to “correspond to the mental image of floating weightlessly without a deliberate focus” by German music theorists Daniela and Bernd Willimek in their Theory of Musical Equilibration (orig.: Strebetendenz-Theorie) (22)."
Master of Education"The world of sounds has a special connection to the world of our emotions. Empirical studies have confirmed correspondences between harmonies and emotional characteristics: For example, the major tonic represents sober agreement, the minor tonic represents sadness when played softly, but anger when played loudly. The seventh chord is the sonic expression of resistance, protest, tearfulness, while the major subdominant represents relief, joy...(cf. D. and B. Willimek,...)"
Original German:
"Die Welt der Klänge hat einen besonderen Bezug zur Welt unserer Gefühle. In empirischen Untersuchungen ließen sich Entsprechungen zwischen Harmonien und emotionalen Charakteren bestätigen: So steht die Dur-Tonika für nüchternes Zustimmen, die Moll-Tonika für Trauer,wenn sie leise erklingt, hingegen für Zorn, wenn sie laut gespieltwird. Der Septakkord ist der klangliche Ausdruck für Widerstand, Protest, Weinerlichkeit, die Dur-Subdominante für Gelöstheit, Freude...(vgl. D. und B. Willimek,...)"
Professorship in liturgy, music, and voice education, Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, Germany."The resulting tones are then categorized into major or minor scales. Major scales tend to convey feelings of happiness, liking (optimism), while the sequence of notes represented in a minor key tends to convey feelings of sadness, discomfort (pessimism) as suggested by several German researchers in the theory of musical equilibration (StrebetendenzTheorie). This theory seeks to link the psychological (emotional) effects of music (https://qmuse.wordpress.com, 2015)."
Original Indonesian:"Nada yang terbentuk kemudian dikelompokkan dalam tangga nada mayor atau minor. Tangga nada mayor cenderung bernuansa rasa senang, rasa suka (optimis), sementara sekuen nada-nada yang terepresentasi dalam kunci minor cenderung bernuansa rasa sedih, rasa kurang nyaman (pesimis) seperti yang dikemukakan oleh beberapa peneliti Jerman dalam teori ekuilibrasi musik (StrebetendenzTheorie). Teori ini berusaha mengaitkan efek psikologis (emosional) dari musik (https://qmuse.wordpress.com, 2015)."
Researchers at STKIP Taman Siswa Bima, Indonesia. "Penggunaan Audacity pada Pengukuran Nada Lantunan Kalero untuk Menelusuri Karakter Sosial Dou Donggo Masa Lampau" "The Use of Audacity in Measuring the Echo Tone of Kalero to Explore the Social Character of Dou Donggo in the Past." Full article"The Theory of Musical Equilibration expresses that music itself does not pass on feelings: rather, it communicates methodologies of will that the audience can relate to. It is not until the recognizable proof happens that these techniques of will tackle a passionate character. This thought is exhibited utilizing a mixed bag of distinctive harmonies and symphonious structures. To give one sample, a minor harmony does not impart any distress all by itself: rather, it moves the audience to relate to the message, "No more." The flow at which the harmony is played convey the message as something which is seen as pitiful (when played piano) or furious (when played strong point)."
Department of Pharmacology, St. Peter’s Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hanamkonda, India. "Cognitive Control: The Role of Emotional Feelings" Full article"Willimek and Willimek (2013) certify that specific harmonic structures cause the same emotional responses as the participants gave identical answers, confirmiing that the link can be categorized systematically."
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. "The Impact of Background Music on an Active Video Game", p. 20. Full article"Daniela and Bernd Willimek have conducted research based on the Theory of Musical Equilibration, which focuses on the relationship between music and emotions (Russell, 2013). The research describes how chord progressions in the tonal system affect the listener's emotions based on the balance between tension and release. This is an important foundation as the main feature in the processing of melody and harmony in the tonal system."
Universitas Pendidikan, Indonesia Full article"While music listening has marked physiological benefits, playing an instrument or taking vocal lessons offers benefits related to memory, language , and cognitive development (Willimek & Willimek, 2011)"
Dissertation submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy"The theory of musical equilibration explains the emotional impact of music as a process in which the listener identifies with the content of the will encoded in the music (Willimek and Willimek, 2014)"
Distinguished Professor Emeritus"Willimek and Willimek describe the nature of the same musical chord being played two different ways: The distinction here is the same as that between someone whispering the words “No more!” or screaming them. When spoken softly, the words sound sad, but when spoken loudly, the same words sound furious. The same thing is true of minor chords: a quiet minor chord sounds sad, whereas a loud one sounds angry."
Ohio State University, Columbus, USA. Full article"Willimek has created a comprehensive theory of how these harmonies affect our emotions directly."
Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel, Belgium. Full article"However, this hope quickly turns into a false hope, making these major chords feel rather sad. When a tonic chord is played in a minor key, as in 'Let Me Kiss You', a feeling of dissatisfaction arises. The following major chord provides a sense of relief and makes the listener hope that the minor tonic chord will not return...(Bernd Willimke, Daniela Willimek)."
Original Dutch:"Echter, deze hoop begint al snel als valse hoop aan te voelen, waardoor deze majeurakkoorden toch als verdrietig ervaren kunnen worden. Als er een tonica-akkoord in mineur gespeeld wordt, zoals ook het geval is in ‘Let Me Kiss You’, dan wordt er een gevoel van ontevredenheid gecreë majeur akkoord dat volgt zorgt voor een gevoel van opluchting en laat de luisteraar wensen dat de tonica in mineur niet terugkomt... (Bernd Willimke, Daniela Willimek)."
Universiteit Utrecht, Netherlands. Full article"The Theory of Musical Equilibration which resulted is the first description of harmonic functions as the listeners' ability to identify with processes of the will; these processes run counter to the equilibration effects. There have only been a very few critical analyses of the emotional effect which has musical harmonies , This can be explained by the widespread concern that such hypotheses could make the speaker appear ridiculous. After all, before the Theory of Musical Equilibration, there was absolutely no way to provide a rational explanation for the emotional responses music evokes"
Government Vidarbha Institute of Science and Humanities, India,(1) Professor, Amravati and Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University; India(2) "Music: The Vision of Humanities & Science", 2018. Full article"Now let's get to the heart of our discussion: Bernd Willimek and his wife, the pianist Daniela, have extensively studied the relationship between chords and emotions. They see the root of a chord (the tonic) as an expression of individual will: one is content with the present but remains ready to act. This note can be found in both major and minor chords. However, the decisive factor for the emotional impact is the second note of the chord, the third: it determines whether we perceive a bright, cheerful, or rather dark, melancholic impression."
Original Turkish:"Şimdi asıl mevzumuza gelelim: Bernd Willimek ile eşi piyanist Daniela’nın akorlar ve duygu ilişkileri hakkındaki çalışmalarına değineceğim. Bir akorun içindeki tonik notayı (yani kök notayı) kişinin iradesine yönelik bilinci olarak değerlendirmemiz gerekir: İçinde bulunduğu andan dolayı memnun ama yine de her zaman hareket etmeye hazır. Doğal olarak, majör akorda da, minör akorda da bu notadan bulunur. Ama bizim için asıl değişikliği akorun ikinci notası, yani gamdaki üçüncü nota belirliyor: medyant."
Culture critic and literary scholar. Full article"The Theory of Musical Equilibration is the first psychological model that explains the emotional impact of music. It deconstructs musical sequences into one of their most important components, harmony, and directly uses this component as the basis of its argument. Harmony, in its condensed form, is vital to music, as it can reflect melodic and other musical processes within a single moment, which can otherwise only be depicted over a specific period of time."
Original Greek:"Η Θεωρία της Μουσικής Εξισορρόπησης («Theory of Musical Equilibration») είναι το πρώτο ψυχολογικό μοντέλο που εξηγεί την συναισθηματική επίδραση της μουσικής. Αποδομεί τις μουσικές αλληλουχίες σε ένα από τα πιο σημαντικά συστατικά τους, την αρμονία, και χρησιμοποιεί άμεσα αυτό το συστατικό σαν βάση της επιχειρηματολογίας της. Η αρμονία στην συμπυκνωμένη της μορφή είναι ζωτικής σημασίας για την μουσική, αφού μέσα σε μια μοναδική στιγμή μπορεί να κατοπτρίσει μελωδικές και άλλες μουσικές διεργασίες, οι οποίες διαφορετικά μπορούν να απεικονισθούν μόνο μέσα σε ένα συγκεκριμένο διάστημα χρόνου."
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece."Akkorde, die auf der Dominante der Tonart basieren, bauen natürlich eine Erwartungshaltung auf eine Auflösung auf (Willimek und Willimek, 2013), und weder Lennon noch McCartney wich von der üblichen Praxis ab, den dominanten Septakkord auf den Tonikakkorde aufzulösen."
MacEwan University, Edmonton, Kanada."...Theory of Musical Equilibration. According to it, music cannot directly express emotions... However, music can do something else, namely, suggest abstract volitional content with which the listener identifies."
Original German: "...Strebetendenz - Theorie. Nach ihr kann Musik gar nicht direkt Emotionen ausdrücken ... Doch Musik könne etwas anderes, nämlich abstrakte Willensinhalte suggerieren, mit denen sich der Hörer identifiziert."
Film director and author."This document investigates the elegiac aspect of this work through the scope of psychoanalysis, philosophy, and the theory of musical equilibration...These three theories attempt to psychologically, philosophically, and scientifically explain the effect that music has on human emotions. Each perspective complements the other in helping us better understand this phenomenon. Supported by substantial research and scientific data, the theory of musical equilibration is the most thorough of these three theories."
James Madison University, Harrisonburg, USA. Full article"Theory of Musical Equilibration is an explanation to what I have witnessed and felt, an example of how important the connections are between music and science."
Venezuelan composer and pioneer of South American electronic music."What are the underlying causes of the emotional responses elicited by various keys and chord progressions in film scores? Prior to 1997, a definitive scientific explanation remained elusive. However, German music theorists Bernd and Daniela Willimek introduced a groundbreaking hypothesis known as the /Strebetendenz Theory/ as a result of their research conducted between 1997 and 2012. This theory offers a psychological framework designed to elucidate the emotional impact of film music."
Original Czech:"Co vlastně způsobuje emocionální reakce na jednotlivé tóniny a typy akordů ve filmové hudbě? Vědci do roku 1997 nepřednesli přesnou odpověď, až němečtí hudební teoretici Bernd a Daniela Willimek přišli s pozoruhodnou hypotézou zvanou /Strebetendenz - Theorie/, na základě výzkumu mezi lety 1997 a 2012. Navrhli psychologické paradigma, které vysvětluje emocionální efekty filmové hudby."
Univerzita Jana Amose Komenskenského, Prague, Czech Republic. Full article"For example, the music theorist Bernd Willimek is of the opinion that 'music can evoke emotions when the listener associates certain things with it."
Original Russian:"Например, музыкальный теоретик Бернд Уиллимэк (Bernd Willimek) считает, что «музыка может вызывать эмоции, если у слушателя установятся с ней какие-либо ассоциации»."
Scientific and practical conference for students from the city of Pensa) Full article"The music research is increasingly focusing on understanding the complex characteristics of this interaction is the link between music and emotions. Since, fundamentally, it only consists of non-living frequencies for a long time; the fact that music has an emotional impact upon us was one of the greatest of mystery [4]...4. Daniela and Bernd Willimek,..."
International Journal of Pure and Applied Research in Engineering and Technology. Full article"We based our associations on an amalgamation of sound theories.16 Major chords in E, F and B, for instance, are associated with bright, happy feelings while minor chords in A♯, C♯, and D♯ often have dark, sinister tones that relate to sad emotions...16 Daniela and Bernd Willimek, Music and Emotions: Research on the Theory of Musical Equilibration (die Strebetendenz-Theorie) in http://www.willimekmusic.de/music-andemotions.pdf."
Worldwide active performance and installation artist. "Ultra-aesthetics and advanced neuroplasticity or simply, a path to expanded consciousness", 2018. Full article"In a 15-year longitudinal study with approximately 2100 participants, Willimek and Willimek (2017) investigated the relationship between various chord types and common human emotions. In their experiment, the authors go one step further and consider chords both as independent (isolated) units and in their harmonic function."
Orginal Portuguese:"Em um trabalho longitudinal com duração de quinze anos e que envolveu cerca de 2.100 participantes, Willimek e Willimek (2017) exami- naram a relação entre diversos tipos de acorde e emoções humanas comuns. Em seu experimento, os autores vão além, abordando os acordes em duas perspectivas: como entidades autônomas (isoladas) e exercendo funções harmônicas."
Musicologist and author of the book "A Arte de Compor Música para o Cinema," or "The Art of Composing Music for Film." Escola de Música de Brasília. Brazil.
Music educator and researcher.
Universidade de Brasília, Brazil.
Professor of Neurophysiology and Psychobiology.
Universidade de Brasília, Brazil.
"Expectativas musicais relacionadas à harmonia como gatilho para emoções"
"Musical expectations related to harmony as triggers for emotions", 2019, p. 435.
"The link between music and emotions is more of an issue than ever before, and music research is increasingly focusing on understanding the complex characteristics of this interaction. After all, for a long time the fact that music has an emotional impact upon us was one of the greatest of enigmas, since fundamentally it only consists of inanimate frequencies” (Willimek 2011, 1)."
Professor of Musicology at the Univerzitet u Nišu, Serbia. "Emotional sensations in relation to individual chords from the perspective of cognitive musicology", 2020, p. 119. Full article"The authors Danijela and Bernd Willimek (Willimek, 2013) developed music preference tests (the Basic test and the Rocky test) in order to verify their theory of musical equilibration of the striving tendency theory. The results showed that short musical pieces with pronounced harmony were preferred over those with neutral cadences. According to the authors, the theory of musical balance is based on conscious and unconscious perceptions that depend on the effects of dissonant intervals – seconds (major and minor). In typical chords that tend towards resolution, seconds are perceived on the threshold of the unconscious and resolve when the harmonic progression continues."
Original Serbian:"Autori Danijela i Bernd Vilimek (Willimek, 2013) razvili su muzičko-preferencijske testove (the Basic test i the Rocky test) pomoću kojih su sproveli istraživanje a cilj je bio potvrđivanje hipoteze Teorije muzičkog uravnoteženja. Rezultati su pokazali da su kratka muzička dela a izrazitom harmonijom u prednosti u odnosu na one sa neutralnim kadencama. Prema autorima, principi Teorije muzičkog uravnoteženja leže u svesnim i nesvesnim percepcijama koje zavise od efekata koje izazivaju disonantni intervali-sekunde (velike i male)."
Professor of Musicology at the Univerzitet u Nišu, Serbia. "Emotivne senzacije u odnosu na pojedinačne akorde sa stanovišta kognitivne muzikologije" "Emotional sensations in relation to individual chords from the perspective of cognitive musicology", 2018, p. 128. Full article"Pemilihan Akor dalam penggarapan sebuah karya musik seringkali dikaitkan dengan ekspresi emosi yang ingin diekspresikan seiring berjalannya kisah naratif lagu. Hal inilah yang dilakukan oleh beberapa peneliti di Jerman yang mengemukakan teori ekuilibrasi musik StrebetendenzTheorie. Teori ini berusaha mengaitkan efek psikologis (emosional) dari musik, misalnya sebagai Akor menjadi basis."
Musician and Composer. Institut Seni Indonesia Yogyakarta, Indonesia. "Penciptaan Gerak melalui Seni dalam Estetika" "Creating Movement through Art within Aesthetics", 2016, p. 3." Full article"...Finally, Daniela and Bernd (2013) also explain the reason that a minor chord sounds sad by comparing it with the perceived feeling of someone when he hears the phrase "No more". According to them, "if someone were to say these words slowly and quietly, they would create the impression of being sad, whereas ifthey were to scream it quickly. Likewise, "if a minor harmony is repeated faster and at greater volume,its sad nature appears to have suddenly turned into fury" (Daniela and Bernd Willimek, 2013)."
Musician and Composer. University of Portsmouth, England. "A composition informed by a study on the emotional power of music" p. 29."Bernd Willimek's theory of musical balance is rooted in the teachings of Ernst Kurt's music psychology. This is the first international compilation to catalog the emotional character of musical harmonies, and is also the first comprehensive description of the emotional impact of musical harmonies. This theory explains the basis of the properties of harmonic structures from a psychological point of view by identifying the consequences they leave on the listener's emotions and encodes them musically."
Original Persian:"نوشتهی دانیلا و برند ویلمک نظریهی تعادل موسیقایی برند ویلمک، ریشه در آموزههای روانشناسی موسیقی ارنست کرت دارد. این اولین تالیف بینالمللی است که شخصیت عاطفی هارمونیهای موسیقایی را فهرستبندی میکند و در عین حال اولین توصیف کلی از تأثیر عاطفی هارمونی موسیقی نیز هست. این نظریه اساس ویژگیهای ساختارهای هارمونیک را از منظر روانشناسی و به وسیله شناسایی پیامدهایی که در احساسات شنونده به جای میگذارند، توضیح میدهد و آنها را کدگذاری موسیقایی میکند."
Musicologist, Teheran, Iran. Full article"Daniela and Bernd Willimek have published a theory of “musical equilibration” that explains the emotional qualities of specific musical chords or pitch-class sets in Western tonal music. Some examples: The whole-tone scale, depending on how it is implemented in a musical texture, can give a strong feeling of floating or dreaming. Minor triads sound angry if loud and sad if quiet. Loud music based on a diminished seventh chord sounds tends to sound threatening...."
Music psychologist and professor of systematic musicology."Passages based on diminished triads may evoke fear or despair, while augmented or whole-tone passages may evoke a feeling of amazement, mystery, or weightlessness (cf. Willimek and Willimek 2017)"
"Psychoacoustic Foundations of Major-Minor Tonality", 2024, p. 307. Full article"The theory of musical equilibration posits that music can lead listeners through a series of emotional states, ultimately returning to a state of equilibrium. Understanding this theory can help composers like Davis create musical pieces that guide players through a rollercoaster of emotions."
"Music Impact on Player Emotions and motivations", 2023."Bernd and Daniela Willimek (2011), German musicians, conducted several quantitative studies to investigate how specific harmonic structures in music interact with other elements such as timbre, time, and intensity to create a spectrum of complex emotions that can be categorized by their mode of interaction. They found, for instance, that minor harmonies do not always evoke sadness."
Original Spanish:"Bern[d] y Daniela Willimek (2011), músicos alemanes realizaron diversos estudios con enfoque cuantitativo para identificar cómo ciertas estructuras armónicas en la música en interacción con otros elementos como el timbre, el tiempo y la intensidad pueden generar un espectro de emociones complejas que pueden ser categorizadas según su forma de interactuar. Por ejemplo, encontraron que, las armonías menores, no siempre evocan tristeza,"
Dissertation, Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla, Mexico. "Experiencia musical en la formación socioemocional de futuros docentes" "Musical Experience in the Socioemotional Training of Future Teachers", 2022, p. 14. Full article"Ultimately, harmony, as a highly developed language of sound generation, is also considered a potential vehicle for generating emotions. Building on a study by Ernst Kurth and the theory of 'Equilibration Effects', Willimek (2013) describes it as 'the first description of harmonic functions as the listener's ability to identify with the processes of the will' and goes one step further by examining the relationship between music and emotion, describing the psychological processes through which harmony acquires emotional significance for the human being."
Original Spanish:"Finalmente la armonía, como lenguaje muy desarrollado de generación de discurso sonoro, también es tenido en cuenta como posible vehículo generador de emociones. Basándose en un estudio de Ernst Kurth y la teoría de los "Equilibration Effects", Willimek (2013) la describe como "primera descripción de las funciones armónicas como la capacidad del oyente para identificarse con los procesos de la voluntad", y da n paso más allá investigando la relación entre música y emoción describiendo los procedimientos psicológicos por los cuales la armonía tiene un significado emocional en la persona."
Universitat Politecnica de Valencia, Spain. Full article"Bernd and Daniela Willimek assessing participants’ interpretations of a variety of musical objects found that the whole-tone scale is often perceived as “dreamy” or “floating,” a perception that fits nicely with the avatar’s perception of her situation as she traverses Tiny Woods."
University of North Carolina, Greensboro, USA. Requirements for the Degree Master of Music "Welcome to the World of Pokémon: Music and the Player's Experience in Chunsoft's Pokémon Mystery Dungeon", 2018, p. 54. Full article“The psychology of harmony is the psychology of musical feelings” (WILLIMEK, 2013)".
Master's theses in design and multimedia"According to a study by Daniel[a] and Bernd Willimek on the relationship betweenmusical tropes and emotions, “a diminished seventh chord is considered to have several elements [that] strive for resolution,” specifically because it is a collectionof two tritones that can resolve in numerous ways, thus potentially blurring a true harmonic center.91 The study cites specific examples mostly fromthe Romantic era, including Franz Schubert’s Die Krähe (The Crow) from the cycle, Winterreise. Thispassage illustrates, “the diminished seventh chord can communicate a sense of complete despair."
Dissertation State University of New Jersey, USA "Overworlds, Towns, and Battles: How Music Develops the Worlds of Role-Playing Video Games", p. 65 Full article"The minor key of Western music conveys emotional overtones of sadness, disappointment, deficiency, discontent, melancholy, separation, and suppression: “the major…clouded by the minor”; “the minor third is not seen as an independent interval, but rather as a “clouded” major third which has been robbed of its leading-note tension” (Willimek & Willimek, 2013)."
New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, USA among others. "Mentoring Mary’s Monster: Bioecology, Empathy, and Passion in Mentoring the 'Minoritized'”, p. 1."Theory asserts that all emotions tied to music can be represented by empirical data, specifically, the emotions felt by the harmonies in music (Willimek, 2013). A large-scale multiphase research study conducted by Daniela and Bernd Willimek (2013) worked to support the Musical Equilibration Theory. Children of different ages were asked to report their spontaneous responses to major and minor chords. Children perceived the music containing major chords as courageous and comfortable, and the music containing minor chords as associated with loneliness and despair (Willimek, 2013). The way in which the children attributed a certain emotional character to musical harmonies was consistent with the results of Cook’s experiment and Meyer’s theory of “harmonic tension.” This shows support for the notion that emotions felt by music are predictable and measurable among a human population"
Neuroscientist and Psychologist. Indiana University, Bloomington, USA. "Comparison of the Effect of Major- Versus Minor-Keyed Music on Long-Term Declarative Memory in High School Students", p. 98. Full article"As far as I’m concerned, the Strebetendenz-Theorie (Theory of Musical Equilibration) by german music theorists Bernd and Daniela Willimek (first published in 1997) is still the best approach to this topic. In subsequent studies they were able to prove that certain musical accords (harmonies of sounds) will be interpreted the same way all over the world."
Interview with anonymous Argentinian artist (ED). Full article"...The conquest of music Equilibration (which is originally Strebetendenz Theorie) was of the earliest example of psychological model which attempt to clarify the emotional effects of music by desiccating the basic elements of music among others modes and intervals..."
"Composing alarms for train stations", p. 25 Master Thesis"The Theory of Musical Equilibrium (Strebetendenz-Theorie in German) is one of the earliest attempts to formulate psychological paradigm explaining the emotional effects of music. It reduces various musical sequences to their ost essential component: harmony. This aspect serves as the foundation for the theory's arguments. Harmony is considered the essence of music in its most concentrated form. Thus, the psychology of harmony becomes the psychology of musical emotions."
Original Spanish:"La teoría del equilibrio musical (en alemán, Strebetendenz-Theorie) es una de las primeras en formular un paradigma psicológico que explica los efectos emocionales de la música. Así, se reducen diferentes secuencias musicales a su componente más esencial, la armonía, aspecto que se utiliza como base de la argumentación en esta teoría. La armonía es la esencia de la música en su forma más concentrada. De esta forma, la psicología de la armonía es la psicología de las emociones musicales."
"Percepción de Emociones en la Música: Un Estudio de la Influencia del Parámetro Musical 'Duración'”, p. 51, Doctoral dissertation Departamento de Psicología Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. Full article"These German researchers developed the Theory of Musical Balancing (die Strebetendenz-Theorie), which provides the first viable hypothesis about the emotional effects of music, offering important contributions to psychological research."
Full article"The Theory of Musical Equilibration of music theorist Bernd Willimek attempts to catalog the emotional characters of musical harmonies and formulates an initial justification for the emotional impact of musical harmonies. It postulates that the emotional experience of music is based on the listener's identification processes with volitional contents encoded in the music."
Original Germen:"Die Strebetendenz-Theorie des Musiktheoretikers Bernd Willimek ist der Versuch einer Auflistung von emotionalen Charakteren musikalischer Harmonien und formuliert eine erste Begründung für die emotionale Wirkung musikalischer Harmonien. Sie postuliert, dass das emotionale Erleben von Musik auf Identifikationsprozessen des Musikhörers mit Willensinhalten basiert, die in der Musik encodiert sind."
Retired Assistant Professor of Education and Psychology, University of Linz, Austria."...take the Theory of Equilibration and use it to answer this question, we will find that it is the harmonic structure of music that categorizes, for example, a hip-hop song from something like country. They sound different because either genre has a particular harmonic structure that is used to create those pieces of music (Perez-Sancho, 2008). So, if we incorporate the idea that the emotions in music come from harmony and the idea that genres of music are identified by their harmonic structure, then we can deduce that certain genres of music lead to certain emotional responses from their listeners. And, as I will discuss, a huge chunk of those listeners are adolescents."
"Synthesis Essay. Research Question: How does the relationship between music and the brain relate to the psychological effects of certain genres of music on adolescents?" George Mason University, Fairfax, USA Full article"The uncomfortable sound created by the chord communicates the strong sentiment of the words. Diminished seventh chords are often used to convey emotions of despair and melancholy and resistance to change or ideas (Willimek & Willimek, 2013). Composers have used the chord to elicit responses in a wide range of musical genres, including Lieder, orchestral music, and film scores (Willimek & Willimek, 2013). De Villiers’ use of the diminished chord brings the emotion captured in the text and code to the foreground."
University of Pretoria, South Africa. Full article"...Ebenso ist eine Verbindung zu den Harmoniecharakteren, wie sie von Willimek definiert sind (Tabelle 8), zu hinterfragen. Der in der Benchmark häufig verwendete Septakkord (Hyundai Ioniq, Renault Zoe, VW ID3, Jaguar I-Pace) wäre dort mit „Widerstand, Protest, Aufmüpfigkeit, Weinerlichkeit, Weichlichkeit, Bremsen, Schrittbewegung; bei Molltonika: Übernahme des Mollcharakters“ bewertet werden."
Bachelorarbeit"Past research in musicology has found a correlation between some aspects of music and emotions. In one large-scale study, researchers found evidence that certain harmonies have strong associations with specific emotions, for example, the diminished seventh is associated with the feeling of despair (Willimek and Willimek 2014)."
University of Waterloo, Canada. Full article"Certain musical devices are likely to elicit particular physiological (high arousal-low arousal) and judgmental (appetitive or aversive) responses. Whilst focused on the mechanics of harmony as the catalyst, The Theory of Musical Equilibriation suggests that listeners identify with volitional processes in music, which are then coloured by emotions (Willimek, 1998)."
RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. Full article"In their work 'Music and Emotion', Daniela and Bernd Willimek present their foundational studies on Bernd Willimek's theory of Musical Equilibration. This theory offers a method to tangibly grasp the emotional impact of music by examining its harmony. B. Willimek describes the perception of musical harmonic progressions as the listener's identification with volitional processes that oppose the striving tendency."
Original German:"Daniela und Bernd Willimek zeigen in ihrer Arbeit Musik und Emotion Ihre aufbauenden Studien zur Strebetendez–Theorie von Bernd Willimek. Die Strebetendez– Theorie zeigt einen Weg, die emotionale Wirkung von Musik greifbar zu machen, indem die Harmonik der Musik betrachtet wird. B. Williemk beschreibt die Wahrnehmung musikalischer harmonischer Abläufe als Identifikation des Hörers mit Willensvorgängen, die der Strebewirkung entgegen gerichtet sind."
Universität der Künste, Berlin. Full article"Willimek & Willimek (2011) write detailed work on the effects that contemporary musical structures have on emotion"
Blekinge Institute of Technology, Karlskrona, Sweden. Full article"Theory of Musical Equilibration (also known as Strebetendenz-Theorie in the original German) is the first psychological paradigm to create an emotional effect on music."
Brunel University London, England. Full article"In our system, based on “Theory of Musical Equilibration” in the book “Music and Emotions” which designed and conducted by Daniela and Bernd Willimek [9], the different kinds of chords are the key for the emotion recognition system."
Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China among others