Chord progressions are all about feeling. There is no right or wrong when it comes to writing chords, but there are real techniques that take a progression from generic and predictable to dreamy, hopeful or cinematic. Once those techniques are in your hands, you stop guessing and start putting your inner world into chords on purpose.
Below are ten progressions Leo built in Ableton, one per emotion, with the exact degrees and voicings. Steal them as they are or use them as a starting point in your own key.
1. Emotional
Key: F minor. Degrees: 6-1-7. Chords: Db, Fmin, Eb.
The trick here is where you begin. Landing on the 6 instead of the root removes the obvious resolution and the whole thing turns hopeful instead of heavy. That one choice is what stops a minor progression sounding cheesy.
Key settings:
- Start on Db, the 6, not on the F root
- Three chords only, one per bar, so the shift is audible
2. Epic
Key: C major. Degrees: 2-4-5. Chords: D5, F5, G5.
Three stacked power chords and the root of the key never gets played. Nothing feels settled, so the progression sounds like it is constantly moving forward, and the upward motion of the three shapes carries the energy.
Key settings:
- Fifths only, no thirds, so the chords stay open
- Add 7 semitones above the top fifth for a 9 chord and instant colour
3. Cinematic
Key: A minor.
No progression at all, just an A minor drone held underneath everything. The mystery comes from what happens on top: tension notes that step in and release again, so the harmony evolves without a single chord change.
Key settings:
- A, C and E held across the full clip
- Tension and release tones moving above the drone, B and C in this case
4. Dark
Key: A minor. Degrees: 1-6-4-5. Chords: Amin, F, Dmin, Emin.
Dark is mostly a counting exercise: the more minor chords you pull from the scale, the darker it reads. Three of these four are minor, which is why it sits so low without any sound design help.
Key settings:
- Amin, F, Dmin, Emin, one bar each
- For a harder version, drop to three chords, keep the bass moving and hold a drone on top
5. Cool
Key: A minor. Degrees: 1-6-4.
This is the cinematic drone and the dark progression combined: the top voices stay put, only the bass moves, three times. &ME uses this shape, and it travels across genres because the harmony never gets in the way of the groove.
Key settings:
- Held drone up top, bass changes on 1, 6 and 4
- Nudge notes off the grid so it feels played rather than programmed
- Small variations at the end of the loop so repeats are not identical
6. Floating
Key: C Mixolydian. Degrees: 1-5-4. Chords: C, Gmin, F.
Mixolydian is a major scale with a flattened seventh, so C major becomes C – D – E – F – G – A – B flat. That single change turns the G major into a G minor, and the progression never quite resolves. It floats, which makes it perfect to loop.
Key settings:
- C, Gmin, F, one bar each
- Let the topline lean on the B flat, that note is the whole effect
7. Happy
Key: A major. Degrees: 1-5-4-1. Chords: A, E, D, A.
Major does not have to mean cheesy. Leave the third out of the voicing and the chord stops announcing itself, so the progression sounds bright without sounding like a ringtone.
Key settings:
- Fifths and octaves only on both A chords, no third
- Turn some of the notes into plucks to give it groove
8. Peaceful
Key: C Dorian. Degrees: 1-7-4. Chords: Cmin, Bb, F.
Dorian is the hopeful minor. Swap the heavy A flat of natural minor for a natural A and the scale stops being sad, without ever turning major. Cycling Cmin, B flat and F gives you meditative rather than mournful.
Key settings:
- C Dorian: C – D – E flat – F – G – A – B flat
- The natural 6 is the whole difference, keep it audible in the F chord
9. Dreamy
Key: C Mixolydian. Degrees: 1-7-4-1. Chords: C, Bb, F, C.
Mixolydian again, and this time the B flat is the point: a chord that has no business being in C major. What makes it dreamy rather than odd is the voicing, not the harmony.
Key settings:
- Add a 2 and a 6 to the B flat and F chords to take the harshness off
- Spread the voicing, put the 2 and the 6 an octave up for air
- Hold a G pedal tone, the 5 of C, across all four chords as glue
10. Uplifting
Key: A minor. Degrees: 1-4-3-4. Chords: Amin, Dmin, C, Dmin.
Straight dance floor energy, and most of it comes from rhythm rather than harmony. Play it as plucks, find a pattern that pushes, then layer colour on top so the repeats keep developing.
Key settings:
- Spread the power chord out instead of stacking it tight
- Add a passing chord into the Dmin, and a 13th, the 4th an octave up, for variation
- Cmaj7 with a 9 on top before returning to D
Take it further
Ten emotions, and almost none of them came from a new scale. They came from the degree you start on, the note you leave out, and whether one voice holds while the others move. If you want a library of this material ready to drag in, Infinite Dreams Vol. 8 is a MIDI pack built for exactly that. For more on voicing and movement, read the Ben Böhmer harmony breakdown next.
Watch the full breakdown
Hear all ten progressions in context:
