when we talk about music, we have some variations between east and west... resembling guitars, challo, violin we have sitaar, and another instrument which has one string only instead of 6 on the fret...similarly we have harmonium more in use than the piano... and so on....
i have no education in music stuff, and nor i have learned it so far, except some early age experience in guitars and writing music on staff-lines... during early practice we usually try and practice one chord at a time and no shifting, and there i had a feeling that we keep playing a chord for long time, it sorta feels that we have been tuned in to that... like you said, major chords produce an effect of spontaniety and energy, whereas minor ones produce a note-down effect....
once i was present in a hall where there was a violin class goin on... and i could literally feel the negative vibes of the music being played upon... it is interesting to note that in our college, the furniture, almirah, and wooden items of the violin hall, had a remarkable more visible decay and dead-feeling than the rest of the college... and so on.. so music sure affects us, whether in a negative way or in a postive way....
i have felt that music instruments which use air flow for producing sound, like flute, harmonium, etc. have a more patho-like effect on moods than stringed-instruments like guitars, with violin in exception....
when we tune our newly bought guitar, i have noticed that first we have to tune ourselves to the 'intrinsic' vibration of the guitar itself before attempting to tune it with tuning forks or electric tuner... so in a way, we have to flow with the music in order to get a feel of it....
another question Colin : do the specific time of playing an instrument or playing a note, or a particular lyric, has to do something with its effects... is there any category of notes that must be played in night, and others to be played in daytime ?
and one more ! when you compose music, what you compose first - tunes or lyrics ??
take care
salman