when an artist suddenly features one of five auditory cues indicating danger, resulting in listener chills when combined effectively with a Structural Pattern
“Absolutely blood-curdling. Roger Daltrey’s scream gives me cold chills..”
How It Works
When artists use the Alarm pattern, they directly active the amygdala, a brain region that helps us respond to threats. Screams, shrieks, sirens, squeals, and yelps all share a set of rare, distinct features. These features are difficult and require significant strain to produce, which helps alarm cues serve as honest signals of danger (avoiding the boy-who-cried-wolf problem). Humans (and animals) have evolved to link these sounds with danger. If we hear a cue that triggers our amygdala, our brain “fast tracks” this information and puts us on alert. When musicians feature alarm cues, they can trigger a fear response which when effectively integrated into the musical flow, can move listeners to the point of chills.
Alarm and Grief cues share many technical features and tend to appear together.
Top Structural Pattern pairing:
Genre that most uses pattern:
Technique 1: High pitch acoustic roughness
Acoustic roughness – rapid fluctuations in loudness we perceive as beating or rattling – is one of the main danger cues used by humans and animals. You know it when you hear it; it’s like a strobe light for sound. The amplitude modulations in rough sounds are fast (e.g. 30-150 Hz vs. 4 Hz for normal speech) and vary irregularly in rate and “height”. When artists suddenly introduce high-pitched rough sounds, this can often trigger a fear response and induce listener chills. Some of the ways artists implement this technique are:
— Two interfering tones (e.g., minor second, tritone, major seventh as held chord or trill between notes)
— Many staggered sound sources (e.g. random, continuous plucked high notes across string section)
Genre
Song
Artist
Frisson Reported by Listeners
Technique 2: High pitch spectral non-linearities
Spectral non-linearities – “noisy” distortions between and outside the natural harmonics of a sound source – are another danger cue used by humans and animals. Non-linearities like sidebands, warbles, broadband noise result from resonators being strained either above (Alarm) or below (Aggression) their natural range. When artists suddenly introduce high-pitched sounds with non-linearities, this can often trigger a fear response and induce listener chills. Some of the ways artists implement this technique are:
— Strained instruments (e.g. string “screeches” , “overblown” reeds, brass “squeals”, metallic percussion)
— Artificial distortion via production/recording techniques
Genre
Song
Artist
Frisson Reported by Listeners
Technique 3: High-range resonance
Very high-pitched, sharp notes that resonate in the upper mid-range or lower high-end parts of the frequency spectrum are another danger cue. These rare, whistle-like shrieks and chirps are especially piercing and difficult for listeners to ignore. When artists suddenly introduce very high-pitched sounds, this can often trigger a fear response and induce listener chills. Some of the ways artists implement this technique are:
— High notes on instruments with constricted mouthpieces (e.g., whistles, fipple flutes like the recorder)
— Samples of air or steam whistles (and similar electronic instruments)
Genre
Song
Artist
Frisson Reported by Listeners
Technique 4: Upward, gliding contours
Siren-like sounds with an ascending, arced contour are another indirect danger cue. They involve held, gliding notes that rise in pitch (and usually loudness) into a pronounced peak. This contour is especially attention-grabbing; researchers have consistently found that rising tones are associated with high arousal. When artists suddenly introduce these siren-like notes into a piece, it can often trigger a fear response and induce listener chills. Some of the ways artists implement this technique are:
— Slow, lower sirens with acoustic energy spend in the longer rise and fall (like an air raid siren)
Genre
Song
Artist
Frisson Reported by Listeners
Technique 5: Concentrated “bursts”
Upward shifts in pitch that concentrate acoustic energy in the 2.8-3.5 kHz range are another danger cue used by humans (and animals). These fast-attack “bursts” focus sound in the precise spectrum range that mirrors the resonant cavity of the human ear drum. By doing so, they make it easy for someone in distress to grab the attention of any nearby listeners. When artists feature these bursts they often trigger a fear response and induce listener chills. Some of the ways artists implement this technique are:
— Embellishment with leaps and phrasing (e.g., use burst after quiet, sparse section to make more jarring)
Genre
Song
Artist
Frisson Reported by Listeners