Narrative Music Theory as a Framework for Creative Ideation: From Harmonic Tension to Storyworld Structure

Abstract

This work develops a systematic framework that reinterprets core concepts of Western music theory as generative operators for narrative design. By treating harmonic tension, modal interchange, counterpoint, modulation, texture, rhythm, and atonality as abstract mechanisms that shape affect, causality, and world-building, the study demonstrates how musical structures can be translated into tools for constructing multi-layered and psychologically rich stories. The framework positions musical constructs—such as dissonance, deceptive cadences, reharmonization, polyrhythm, groove, ostinato, and minimal repetition—as narrative operators that model value conflict, temporal distortion, systemic pressure, thematic recurrence, and shifts in worldview. These operators are organized across three domains: character psychology, causal architecture, and storyworld structure, providing authors with a structured vocabulary for creative ideation. The paper situates this approach within recent scholarship on musical narrativity, including research on narrative space in post-minimal music, falsifying narration in minimalist process, and lexical narrative arcs in song lyrics. It further introduces concrete case studies illustrating how modal interchange and deceptive cadences can be applied to plot construction and character development. Appendices provide a glossary of musical-theoretical terms and foundational concepts in music theory, enabling readers without formal musical training to engage with the framework. Additional discussions address methodological limits, cognitive expectancy, cross-media applicability (film, interactive narrative, game design), and the potential integration of musical operators into AI-assisted story generation. Overall, the work proposes an interdisciplinary model in which music-theoretical structures function as a creative engine for narrative composition, offering both conceptual insight and practical tools for authors, researchers, and designers working across literary, audiovisual, and interactive media.