Today I did a fun experiment with piano chords. I played all the notes of the octave with the following list of chord types and wrote down any feelings or mental associations I had.

Here's the list:

Major: Typical, normal, “according to spec” Minor: The Buddhist word dukkha fits perfectly here Diminished: Bad surprise, misfortune Augmented: B-Movie weirdness just happened Dominant Seventh: Uncomfortable family reunion, a crowded room Major Seventh: Intelligent conversational, thoughtful, Wednesday afternoon off work, “We can figure this out” Minor Seventh: Metro, slightly upscale, Volkswagen Beetle, shopping uptown on an overcast day Diminished Seventh: Caught in a conspiracy Ninth: Public transportation, public services Major Ninth: A crush, the part in the book when the plot thickens Minor Ninth: Fighting back tears (of joy or sorrow), the results came in but there are still questions Eleventh: Thicket of thorns, tangled Minor Eleventh: Reading the todo list of a wedding or other big event Thirteenth: Collapse of civilization, something magnificent is going to happen Major Thirteenth: Weighty negotiations, legal documentation Minor Thirteenth: Even more so the law Sixth: A polite conversation Six-Nine: When an unexpected disclosure is made during the conversation Minor Six-Nine: The disclosure is not received in good faith Fifth: Definitive, resolute Suspended Second: “Don't be alarmed” Suspended Forth: “I think I understand now” Add Forth: Parental guidance, Ikea assembly instructions Add Ninth: Disappointment, mixed results

Analysis:

A few of my answers uncovered some repressions regarding relationships (dating and marriage) and the responses as a whole indicate a general sense of uncertainty. If you've read this blog lately you can probably figure out why.

Anyway, give this experiment a try using these chord formulas and abbreviations and Note Kitchen . You'll learn about yourself and the various chord types, if you haven't already.

P.S. If you like this kind of stuff, check out Critical Stimulus , a psychoanalytical tool I designed based on Carl Jung's Association Method.

Meditation Time meditating today: 0 ... It was my day off, so there's really no excuse Quality of meditation (out of 10): 0

Practice Minutes on the keyboard today (out of 40): 20 minutes Quality of practice (out of 10): 5