The concept behind relaxing music?

Question

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXgqDlrqmzoI am interested to start making some songs that are very relaxing, like the one posted above.The song above is indeed one of the most relaxing songs in the world. But how? What elements in the song make it particularly relaxing? I noticed the chords as they transitioned smoothly with the piano playing in the background. I also noticed the chord progressions, and how different they were.What is the theory behind relaxing music? How do the chord progressions, instruments, etc. work in relaxing music?

Answer 1

What makes music exciting is the opposite of what makes it relaxing.

Excitement comes by surprising and provoking the listener using rhythm, harmony and melody in various combinations. You can assume that using all three will tend to maximize the jolt to the listener‘s sensibilities, while using just one or two, simultaneously, will tend to be less disturbing. Also note that utilizing rhythm, harmony and melody to excite can be applied in a wide range of degrees.

Because music that is relaxing cannot be allowed to be void of interest, some application of rhythmic, harmonic and/or melodic disruption is absolutely necessary. How much? It’s up to the composer.