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A key gives chords different jobs. Some feel like home, some create motion, and some build tension. A progression becomes expressive by moving between those feelings over time.
Building the idea, one step at a time
A melody is a line of notes you can sing; harmony is the changing background of notes heard together. They interact, but our ears can follow them separately.
Within a key, the tonic chord feels stable because the music keeps framing it as home. Other chords share fewer stable notes and create different amounts of distance.
Dominant harmony contains tones that sit close to tonic tones. That closeness creates a strong pull, which is why returning home can feel so satisfying.
Songwriters can meet that expectation, delay it, or redirect it. The emotional shape comes from when the listener’s prediction is confirmed or surprised.