Emotion and Music:

Emotional Expression Through Music and Cross-Cultural Interpretation

Andrew Coatsworth
Honors 211
March 15, 2016

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I. Introduction: The Power of Music

Music is fully engrained in modern society. Additionally, with the advancement of
technology, companies such as Apple have put a seemingly endless supply of music at the
fingertips of individuals across the globe. Beyond the full integration of music into popular
culture, music is incredibly powerful. Recent studies have shown that music can have medicinal
qualities. Psychologist Daniel J. Levitin found that music can improve immune system
functionality as well as reduce stress. Other studies have suggested that listening to music can be
more effective than prescription drugs to reduce pre surgery anxiety (Novotney). While these are
more extreme cases, music also has the ability to impact listeners on a daily basis.
Music provides listeners with an emotional outlet when verbal expression proves to be
insufficient (Warren). Listeners also associated music with memories. For example, one may
associate a break up with a given song. When this individual hears this song, they relive the
emotions that they felt during the life event (Sync). Research has also shown that emotions can
be contagious. This contagion stems from the human brain attempting to mirror external stimuli.
When conversing, people tend to mimic the posture and speech styles of one another (Sync).
This mirroring process extends to music. The prosodic qualities of sad music, for example,
produce emotions of sadness in the audience. It is believed that this process occurs as a result of
the ability the human brain to interpret music in a complex way without formal training.
Listeners are able to analyze aspects of music such as chord structure and anticipate how music
will progress. Emotions can stem from how these expectations are either met or violated (Sync).
It is clear that music impacts listeners in a number of ways. However, the aspects
discussed above do not consider how emotion is encoded in music or how listeners interpret
these emotions. Additionally, the precious examples do not consider how emotional expression
in music translates on a cross-cultural basis. In order to better understand these points, this paper
will focus on the widely studied emotions of happiness, sadness, and anger. Before further
investigating the expression of these emotions in music, it is first necessary to establish basic
definitions of happiness, sadness, and anger.
II. Defining Happiness, Sadness, and Anger
Although it remains a key point of debate if universal emotions exist, it is possible to
discuss emotions in a cross-cultural sense through Natural Semantic Metalanguage. Natural
Semantic Metalanguage breaks defines emotions through universally understood words. This

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process helps to remove cultural specific aspects of the emotions. While happiness, sadness, and
anger may have different significances in other cultures, NSM allows for cross cultural
investigation.
i. Happiness
In Natural Semantic Metalanguage, happiness can be described as:
Happiness (X felt happiness)
(a) X felt something (because X thought something)
(b) sometimes a person thinks:
(c) some very good things happened to me
(d) I wanted things like this to happen
(e) I cant want anything else
(f) when this person thinks this this person feels something very good
(g) X felt something like this (because X though something like this)
(Wierzbicka 53)
ii. Sadness
In Natural Semantic Metalanguage, sadness can be described as:
Sad (X was sad)
(a) X felt something
(b) sometimes a person thinks:
(c) I know: something bad happened
(d) I dont want things like this to happen
(e) I cant think: I will do something because of it now
(f) I know I cant do anything
(g) When this person thinks this this person feels something bad
(h) X felt something like this
(Wierzbicka 62)
iii. Anger
In Natural Semantic Metalanguage, anger can be described as:
X was angry at Y
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)

X felt something because X thought something

sometimes a person thinks:
something bad happened
because someone did (didnt do) something
I dont want things like this to happen
I want to do something because of this if I can
when this person thinks this, this person feels something bad
X felt something like this
because X though something like this
(Wierzbicka 89)

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Upon establishing basic definitions for these three emotions, it becomes possible to discuss how
happiness, sadness, and anger are expressed and interpreted through music.
III. Happy, Sad, and Angry- Understanding Emotional Expression in Music
It has been theorized that emotion can be expressed through music by the utilization of
three different categories. The first of the categories involves icons. Icons refer to a response
based on formal similarity between music and some other signal, such as vocal expression or
human movement (Juslin). Next, emotions can be expressed through symbols. Symbols are
responses based on internal, syntactic relationships with the music itself (Juslin). Finally,
indices are responses due to an arbitrary association between the music and some other object
(Juslin). Much of the emotion expressed through music can be attributed to iconic coding. The
idea of iconic coding began with the examination of physiological changes stemming from
emotional expression. These physiological changes lead to fluctuations in voice production.
Changes in tone of voice can signify changes in emotion. Since these changes in tone of voice
can be related to changes in the tone of music, individuals are able to relate their understanding
of the vocal expression of emotion to expression of emotion through music (Juslin).
In addition to considering icons, symbols and indices, it is necessary to understand how
basic emotions have become associated with music. As music began to play a larger role in
everyday life, songs of happiness, sadness, anger, and love became associated with specific
events. Songs of happiness became associated with festivities, songs of sadness accompanied
events such as funerals, songs of anger caught on during times of war, and love songs served as a
tool for caregiving. Also, beyond their association with these events, basic it is believed that
basic emotions can be explained through the evolutionary process. For examples, it is costly to
confuse anger as joy. However, it is not nearly as vital for individuals to differentiate between
different types of happiness (Juslin).
After considering the development of basic emotions as well as their integration into
music, it is next important to consider how these emotions are expressed through musical
performance. Music has been described as a tonal analogue of emotive life (Gabrielsson and
Juslin). Two studies conducted by Gabrielsson and Juslin examined the perception of emotion
through music. The research involved professional musicians attempting encode happy, sad,
angry, fearful, tender, solemn, and expression less melodies in their performances. Instruments

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included: flutes, violins, guitars, and vocal performances. The test subjects were asked to rate
the intensity of the perceived emotional expression on a scale ranging from zero (no emotion) to
ten (strong expression of emotion). Key takeaways from the study included: the performer's
ability to influence the listeners interpretation of the music and the listeners identifying basic
emotions including happiness, sadness, and anger with a high level of accuracy. This study also
helped to label how specific emotions are encoded through music. Happy music is described as:
fast tempo, moderate vibrations in timing, moderate to loud sound level, tendency to (relatively)
sharpen contrasts between long and short notes (as in dotted patterns), mostly airy
articulation, rapid tone onsets, bright timbre, fast and light vibrato (electric guitar). Sad music is
expressed through slow tempo, relatively large deviations in timing, low or moderate sound
level, tendency to (relatively) soften contrasts between long and short notes, legato
articulation, slow tone onsets, slow and deep vibrato, flat intonation in bending (electric guitar).
Finally, angry music involves fast tempo, loud sound level, tendency to (relatively) sharpen
contrasts between long and short tones, no final ritard, mostly non-legato articulation, very
sharp tone onsets, harsh timbre, and distorted tones (Gabrielsson and Juslin). Without a
complex understanding of music, happy music mainly involves fast tempo, an upbeat sound, and
mid to high volume. Sad music tends to be much slower in tempo, lower volume, and a darker
tone. Angry music, on the other hand, is fast paced, loud, and sharp tones.
i. Case Studies: Examples of Happy, Sad and Angry Songs
In order to apply the Natural Semantic Metalanguage definitions of the emotions in
question as well as the theories of emotional expression in music, the following examples are
provided. Although these works may be widely considered as happy, sad, and angry, it is
important to note that my opinion of the songs is biased by my exposure to Western culture. As
someone who was raised in Western culture, I have a firm understand of the cultural specific
cues in these works as well as the language in which they are performed.
a. Happiness: Twist and Shout by The Beatles
Twist and Shout as performed by The Beatles involves and upbeat, fast paced and
repetitive guitar in the background. In addition to the notable guitar, John Lennon fires upbeat
and loud vocals at the audience. The lyrics are also repetitive and suggest that the singer is
dancing with a beautiful woman. Lennon notably sings:
Well, shake it up, baby, now (Shake it up, baby)

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Twist and shout (Twist and shout)

Cmon, cmon, cmon, cmon, baby, now (Come on baby)
Come on and work it on out (Work it on out)
(azlyrics.com)
In addition to the upbeat and fun sound of the song, Twist and Shout has been frequently used
within the entertainment industry. A famous example is from Ferris Buellers Day Off. In the
movie, Ferris slips away from his friend Cameron and his girlfriend Sloane. When Ferris
reappears, he is performing with a live band. Although he starts with a slower paced song, he
quickly transitions into his rendition of Twist and Shout in an attempt to cheer Cameron up.
After Ferris begins signing, the crowd catches begins to emphatically dance to the music.
When considered through the scope of the NSM definition of happiness, it can be
concluded that Twist and Shout successfully capture the emotion. When performing the song,
the band thinks about the good things associated with dancing. As a result of these thoughts, the
band feels something good. Since they feel this, they are able to express their happiness through
the music and pass the happiness onto the audience.
On a personal level, I associate Twist and Shout with happiness as my parents frequently
played The Beatles during my youth. Twist and Shout always served as a fun song that could
help to lighten the mood. It never failed to bring a smile to my face.
b. Sadness: Someone Like You by Adele
Someone Like You by Adele relies on a slow and somewhat ominous piano background
paired Adeles incredible singing talents to express the sadness caused by a broken relationship.
Adele, an artist known for deeper, more emotional music, masterfully expresses her with break
with lyrics such as:
I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited
But I couldnt stay away, I couldnt fight it.
Id hoped youd see my face and that youd be reminded
That for me it isnt over
(azlyrics.com)
The combination of the slow piano and Adeles description of her coping process work to
develop strong and sincere feelings of sadness in hearts and minds of listeners.
When considering the NSM definition for sadness, it can be concluded that when
performing Someone Like You, Adele thinks about her broken relationship. She is then reminded

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that there is nothing she can do to change this situation and thus expresses her sadness through
the song. Through her performance, she is able to convey this sadness to her audience.
While Adele clearly intended for this piece to express sadness, I also associate this song
with personal loss. Shortly after my family had to put our first dog to sleep, my mom mentioned
hearing this song and experiencing a strong sense of sadness. Now, whenever I hear this song, I
am reminded of this sad moment in my life.
c. Sing For the Moment by Eminem
Sing For the Moment samples Dream On by Aerosmith and utilizes a dark and piercing
electric guitar baseline with quick and repetitive drums. Eminem open the song rapping about a
young boy whose father walked out on his family. The boy also has a strained relationship with
his stepfather.
Hes a problem child
What bothers him all comes out, when he talks about
His [expletive] dad walkin out
Cause he hates him so bad that he blocks him out
If he ever saw him again hed probably knock him out
(azlyrics.com)
Beyond the hate-filled startling lyrics and dark instrumentation, Eminem is known for being a
controversial artist. His music is known for being offensive and vulgar. Also, he has suffered
from a poor public image as a result of family issues and legal trouble.
Considering both the lyrics of the song and the NSM definition for anger, it is clear that
these negative thoughts invoke negative emotions for Eminem. As a result of these negative
thoughts, the artist feels something bad. By expressing this bad feeling, Eminem is able to share
the feeling with his audience.
In my personal experience, rap music such as Sing For the Moment has provided me with
an emotional outlet when I am angry or frustrated. It has helped me to manage and express these
emotions without negative consequences.
d. Summary
Although these works fall in line with the descriptions suggested by Gabrielsson and
Juslin, as well as the NSM definitions of the specific emotions, they are all works from Western
culture expressing Western interpretations of happiness, sadness, and anger. Additionally, my
perception of the music is heavily biased as I was raised in Western culture and I am able to
interpret the cultural cues in the performances. In order to understand if these emotions would

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translate across cultures, it is necessary to delve deeper into the structure of the music and
cultural implication in music.
IV. Cross-Cultural Examination of Emotion in Music
Considering the cross-cultural expression of emotion through music adds the complex
dimension of cultural specific cues. However, studies have shown that basic emotions in vocal
expression can be recognized cross-culturally, there are significant similarities between vocal
expression and musical expression of basic emotions, and basic emotions in music show high
cross-cultural agreement whereas non-basic emotions show low cross-cultural agreement
(Juslin). Additionally, consonance and permanent sensory dissonance universally influence the
perceived pleasantness of music (Argstatter). This indicates that the ability to interpret the
sounds of music and relate them to vocal expression is common to all cultures. These results
suggest that basic emotional expression in music should translate across cultures because of the
similarities with vocal expression. However, it is necessary to further investigate the topic to
understand why these basic emotions can cross cultural barriers.
It has been hypothesized that emotions are expressed through music in two ways: culture
specific cues and psychophysical cues. Culture specific cues are aspects that are familiar to
individuals enculturated in one systems. Psychophysical cues, on the other hand, are aspects
common to all tonal systems such as tempo, rhythm, complexity, and timbre (Argstatter 2).
These two factors have led to the development of the dock-in model. This model suggests that
listeners with different cultural backgrounds will be able to decode emotional aspects of foreign
music by relying on the universal psychophysical cues. However, as individuals become further
removed from the foreign culture, their ability to understand the culture specific aspects of the
music will be diminished (Argstatter 3). The relationship between psychophysical cues and
culture specific cues is best depicted in the diagram below.

(Balkwill and Thompson 46)

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a. Argstatter Study
A study conducted by Heike Argstatter attempted to determine how emotions can be
interpreted through foreign music. This research involved test subjects from Germany, Norway,
Indonesia, and South Korea. Argstatter attempted to answer the following questions: Are
emotions universally perceivable in music unknown to listeners with a different cultural
background? Which particular aspects of musical emotions show similarities and differences
across cultural boundaries? (Argstatter 3).
In this study, professional musicians of European descent were instructed to compose
short pieces that expressed feelings of happiness, anger, disgust, surprise, sadness, and fear. The
performances were recorded onto CDs to be played to the test participants. Participants were
asked to classify the performances as one of the six emotions.
The results of the test proved that happiness and sadness translate with a higher rate of
success across cultures when compared to other emotions. The results are best summarized in
the chart below.

(Argstatter 11)
Although all six emotions translated across cultures at higher than chance levels, it is clear that
happiness and sadness were interpreted with the highest level of accuracy. Additionally, this test
helped to confirm the in-dock model. As a result of the music being performed by Western

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musicians, the Western participants identified the emotions with a higher level of accuracy as
they were able to better interpret the culture specific cues.
b. York University Study
A second study conducted at York University tested the abilities of 15 males and 15
female students to decode emotions in Hindustani music. The students were asked to label the
music as either joyous, sad, angry, or peaceful. In addition to labeling the emotion in the music,
the students were instructed to identify the psychophysical cues that led to the perception of the
given emotion (Balkwill and Thompson 51). The listeners were played a total of 12 songs, three
for each of the emotions. After conducting the experiment, the results suggested that the students
were able to accurately identify songs representing happiness, sadness, anger, but not peaceful
songs. Also, the happiness ratings were strongly correlated with fast tempo, the sad ratings were
strongly correlated with slow tempo, while the anger ratings were not strongly associated with
any of the psychophysical cues (Balkwill and Thompson 54).
As suggested by the previous two studies, it is possible to interpret emotions in music
across cultures. Western students with no exposure to Hindustani music were able to identify the
works as happy, sad, or angry, while Korean and Indonesian test subjects were able to interpret
Western music with varying degrees of success. Although the researchers suggested that these
studies provide strong evidence that emotions can be interpreted on a cross cultural basis through
music, this conclusion appears to only hold for emotions of sadness and happiness. Other
emotions were not interpreted with nearly the same level of accuracy. Thus, based on this
research, it is possible to conclude that songs of happiness and sadness can be successfully
interpreted on a cross-culture basis, but more specific emotions such as disgust are more difficult
to interpret.
V. Conclusion
Although multiple studies suggest that basic emotions can be interpreted cross culturally
through music, neither music nor emotions are basic. While the human brain has the incredible
ability to analyze complex music without formal training, it does not have the ability to pick up
on unknown culture specific cues. Additionally, the complexity of music as a channel to express
emotion obfuscates the process. An artist must intend to express an emotion while the audience
must decode the emotional expression. Beyond the complexity of music, different cultures have
different associations with specific emotions. The idea of universal emotions is a widely debated

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topic and it remains unclear if certain emotions can be universal. While certain emotions may be
more universal than others, different cultures experience these emotions differently. For
example, happiness in the United States is not necessarily experienced the same way as
happiness in non-Western cultures.
With these complexities taken into account, it is possible to call the conclusions of the
cross-cultural music studies into question. Although the results do suggest that certain emotions
do translate in music across cultures, this does not suggest that the listeners understood the
context of the music or the full extent of the artists emotions. When considering the crosscultural expression of music, it is necessary to think of Natural Semantic Metalanguage. NSM, a
model that attempts emotions in universal terms, relies on feeling words such as good or bad.
This is because it is widely held that all languages have words for good and bad. Simplifying
these definitions helps to convey the ideas of emotions in non culture specific terms. The same
holds true for emotions in music. Listeners are able to rely on psychophysical cues to pick up on
what they perceive as good or bad noises. These perceptions are then translated into
emotional terms. This falls in line with the research results because emotions such as happiness,
sadness, and anger were correctly identified with a higher rate of success than emotions such as
disgust and fear. Understanding more basic emotions such as happiness in terms of good or bad
is a much simpler process than deciphering an emotion of fear in these same terms.
As a result of complex cultural associations as well as the intricate nature of music, it is
difficult to conclude that emotions can truly be interpreted through music in a cross cultural
sense. Without full exposure and understanding of a culture, it is not possible to accurately
interpret the emotional expressions of a musical piece. While music possesses incredible power
and influence in the lives of individuals across the globe, it does not reliably serve as a medium
for the cross-cultural expression of music.