Which aspect of music can define the 'emotional' characteristic of a piece?

The emotional characteristic of a piece of music is often shaped significantly by harmony and dynamics. Harmony refers to the combination of different musical notes played or sung simultaneously, which can create feelings of tension, resolution, joy, sadness, and other emotions. For example, major chords typically convey a sense of happiness, while minor chords often evoke feelings of sadness or melancholy.

Dynamics, on the other hand, indicate the volume of the music. Changes in dynamics, such as crescendos (gradual increases in volume) or decrescendos (gradual decreases in volume), can heighten emotional impact, making a passage feel more intense or more subdued. The interplay of harmony and dynamics helps to craft an emotional narrative throughout a piece, effectively engaging the listener's feelings.

While rhythm, instrumentation, and tempo all contribute to the overall character of a piece, they do not tie the emotional elements to the same extent as harmony and dynamics. Rhythm provides the structure and pace but does not inherently convey emotion in the way that harmonic choices and dynamic shifts do. Similarly, instrumentation can affect the color and texture of the music but does not dictate its emotional quality alone. Tempo can influence the mood, but without the support of harmony and dynamics, its emotional conveyance remains limited