Lars Lentz Audio™

Boards of Canada is a personal favorite of mine, and I have spent a fair amount of time trying to understand what gives their music that particular emotional quality. There are lots of production techniques involved, of course: old samplers, detuning, filtering, tape effects, field recordings, and all the rest. But some of what makes their music interesting to me is in the chords themselves.

Last updated: 12-September-2026

If you know the kinds of chords and chord movements involved, you can begin to make your own music that has a similar flavor without simply copying anything. From those chords, it is often possible to find melodies, make arpeggios, create repeating figures, or just get inspired to take the track somewhere else.

This is what I have learned so far about making chords and melodies that head in that direction. It is not intended to be a strict set of music-theory rules. It is more a collection of things that have worked for me and may help you too.

I’m going to talk a lot about intervals or dyads, which are two notes, and chords, which are more than two notes, and I made an Excel sheet with intervals on it that maybe you can find useful. There are several worksheet tabs, but maybe the best is the first one labeled ‘intervals.’

Instruments

For testing out these notes and chords, I recommend starting with a piano. It has more to do with the harmonics than anything else. Synths tend to mask the raw harmonics that you can get from a piano and I’ve had the occasion to play something very BoC-ish on a synth that doesn’t sound that way on a piano at all. But the converse is always true in that playing a BoC-ish melody or chord on a piano always translates to a synth. So, I advise starting with a piano.

Open Voicing (or Open Intervals)

One thing that has helped me when making this kind of music is learning the difference between a chord and its voicing.

The chord is simply the group of notes you are using. A C major chord, for example, contains C, E, and G. The voicing is where those notes are placed. You can put them all close together, or you can spread them out across the keyboard.

A close C major chord might be:

C3 + E3 + G3

That is a normal, compact chord. It is useful, but it can sometimes sound a little too neat for the kind of hazy, distant feeling I am trying to get.

An open voicing (or open interval, as some call it) uses the same notes but places them farther apart:

C3 + G3 + E4

Now the low C gives the chord weight, the G holds the middle together, and the E sits higher up where it has more room to breathe. The chord is still C major, but it feels less like a standard keyboard shape and more like a small arrangement.

You can make this super wide, but then it sounds like too much width (to me):

C2 + G3 + E4 (seems too wide to me, but you try it)

Going back to the “kinda wide,” you can take this further by adding another note, such as the ninth:

C3 + G3 + E4 + D4

That is a Cadd9 voicing. The D on top adds a little lift and uncertainty, especially when it is allowed to ring above the rest of the chord.

For me, open voicings are useful because they make simple chords sound less obvious. Instead of adding lots of complicated harmony, you can keep the notes simple and just move them into different octaves. A low root, a middle fifth, and a high suspended note or ninth can often do more than a large, dense chord.

I usually start with a “usual” chord, then separate the notes and move them around until the shape feels and sounds right. I try not to think too hard about the name of the chord at first. I just listen for whether it feels open, slightly unresolved, and like there is enough space between the notes.

I don’t have to spread them so wide apart, but just until I get the right sound out of them. That’s all.

It’s a simple rule: don’t put chord notes too close together. Instead, space them out until they sound “right.”

A normal chord might look like this:

C3 + E3 + G3

There is nothing wrong with that, but it can sound a little too clean and ordinary for the effect I am after.

Try spreading the notes out instead, but not too much:

C3 + G3 + E4

Add another note in the upper part until it sounds interesting.

C3 + G3 + E4 + D4

This is basically a C major add9 chord, but it has much more space in it. The low C gives it weight, the G holds the center together, the E gives a little bit of major color, and the D on top gives it that floating feeling.

I often start with a chord, then separate the notes, move some up or down an octave, and see what happens. This is much more useful to me than leaving the chord in the default stacked position.

The same notes can sound completely different depending on where you put them.

Start With Fifths

One of the first things I noticed when looking at this kind of music is that the chords often do not tell you immediately whether they are major or minor. That is a big part of why they can feel nostalgic, uncertain, or even a little mysterious.

A simple way to get this effect is to use a fifth.

For example:

C + G
A + E
D + A

These are just two notes, but they are very useful. Since there is no third in the chord, the listener does not get the usual major or minor answer right away. It is an open sound.

You can build a lot from this. Try putting another note on top:

C + G + D
A + E + B
D + A + E

Now you have something that is close to a suspended or add2 kind of chord. It sounds more complete, but it still has that open quality.

For me, this is a much better place to start than automatically putting down a normal major or minor triad every time.

Try Some Fourths

Fourths are interesting too.

C3 + F3
D3 + G3

Ok, did you notice that the C and G are in these fourths and also in the fifths?

Try putting fourths with fifths.

C3 + F3 (the fourth) + C4 + G4 (the fifth up an octave) = A Suspended Chord (Csus4)

That’s right, fourths and fifths together are suspended chords, which are also very cool when spaced apart.

Suspended Chords Are Cool

Suspended chords are one of the easiest ways to get away from a regular, obvious chord progression.

Instead of a normal C major chord:

C + E + G

Try one of these:

Csus2: C + D + G
Csus4: C + F + G

And, spread them out:

C2 + G3 + D4
C2 + G3 + F4

The reason I like suspended chords is that they do not settle into major or minor in the usual way. They feel like they might resolve somewhere, but they do not have to. You can just leave them hanging.

This is useful when you want the music to feel like a memory of something rather than a clear statement. A chord can be warm, sad, hopeful, or strange without having to announce exactly what it is.

Add9 Chords Give a Nice Lift

I like add9 chords a lot for this type of music.

A Cadd9 chord is:

C3 + E3 + G3 + D4

The D is the ninth and seven half steps up from the G. Or, in other words, it is a fifth interval up from the G in this case. It is the same note name as the second, but when it is placed higher up in the chord it gives the whole thing a different feeling.

Try this:

C2 + G3 + E4 + D5

That’s spread out and a little different, but still a Cadd9.

Or in A minor:

A2 + E3 + C4 + B4

The second one is basically an A minor add9 sound. It can be very emotional without being too dramatic.

You do not have to use these exact voicings, of course. The important thing is to leave enough room between the notes. If everything is packed together, the ninth can just sound crowded. When it is on top, it can sound like a little bit of light coming through the chord. That is what kind of makes it cool.

Move Chord Shapes Around

Another thing to try is moving the whole chord shape up or down without worrying too much about whether every note is in the same scale.

For example, you might make an open suspended shape like one of these:

A2 + E3 + B4
A2 + E3 + B3
A2 + E3 + B3 + B4

Then move every note down a few semitones:

F2 + C3 + G4
F2 + C3 + G3
F2 + C3 + G3 + G4

Then again:

C2 + G3 + D4
C2 + G3 + D3
C2 + G3 + D3 + D4

Notice how we’re just moving things around until they sound right, but they’re all the same basic shape. This is sometimes called parallel harmony or chord planing. The shape stays the same while the whole thing moves. I feel like if I could rigor my hand into a particular shape and just move it without thinking of the notes, that would be what is going on here and what I would need to do.

It can make a progression sound like it is drifting through different places instead of behaving like a normal pop progression that wants to get home as quickly as possible. I think the drift aspect is important.

I would not use this on every chord in every track, but it can be very effective when you want a loop to have that slightly unfamiliar quality. The ear hears that the shape is consistent, but the roots may be going somewhere unexpected. Try different chords and shapes, but just move them around. This is incredibly effective at getting a nice sound.

It Is Fine if a Chord Is Not “Correct”

I think it is easy to get stuck trying to make every chord fit neatly into one key. I do this sometimes too. But some of the most interesting chord changes happen when a chord moves somewhere that does not seem completely expected.

Try adding one chord that is a little outside the scale. It might be a major chord a semitone away from where you expect it, or a chord with one note changed slightly. Then go back to a more familiar shape.

For example, if you are in an A minor-type area, do not be afraid to try something like:

Am add9 –> Fsus2 –> Cadd9 –> E♭ major

(A2+C3+E3+B3) -> (F3+G3+C4) -> (C3+E3+G3+D4) -> (E♭3+G♭3+B♭3)

That E♭ major chord may seem strange on paper, but it could be exactly what gives the loop some character. If it sounds good to you, then it is worth keeping. And play around with the spacing of the notes because spacing them out, or in a way that allows very small changes in the position of some of the notes, can sound amazing.

I find it helps to think less in terms of whether the chord is allowed and more in terms of whether it feels like it belongs in the little world of the track.

Keep the Progression Simple

You do not need a huge number of chords to make something interesting.

A lot of the time, two, three, or four chords are enough. The changes can be slow, and the same progression can keep repeating while other elements gradually change around it.

For example:

A5 – F5 – Cadd9 – Gsus2

Or:

D minor add9 – B♭sus2 – Fadd9 – Csus4

Those are not intended as exact Boards of Canada progressions. They are just examples of the kinds of shapes that can get you started.

Once you have something you like, let the arrangement do some work. Change the sound of the chords. Filter them. Add a slow LFO. Let the pitch drift a little. Bring in a second version an octave above. Put a little old-sampler treatment on it. The chord progression does not have to carry everything by itself.

Finding a Melody From the Chords

One of the most useful things I have found is that the melody is often already sitting inside the chord.

After separating your chord notes in the Piano Roll, look at the highest note in each chord. Play those notes by themselves. They may already give you the beginning of a melody.

For example, if your chords have top notes like this:

E – D – C – D

You might turn that into a small melody:

E – D – C – D
E – G – F – D

You do not need to overdo it. A short phrase of three to six notes is usually enough to begin with.

I like melodies that sound a little bit like an old educational record, a children’s keyboard, a forgotten television theme, or a fragment of a song from somewhere else. It does not have to be complicated. In fact, it is often better if it is not.

Use Pentatonic Notes When You Need Help

When I am unsure what notes to use in a melody, I often start with a pentatonic scale.

For A minor, that could be:

A + C + D + E + G

For A major, it could be:

A + B + C♯ + E + F♯

Pentatonic scales can be useful because there are fewer notes to choose from, and the notes usually sit well over many kinds of chords. This is especially helpful when the chords are doing something unusual or moving outside the expected key.

You can always add another note later if the melody needs more tension. But starting with fewer notes makes it easier for me to find a phrase that is clear and memorable.

Let Notes Hang Over the Next Chord

One trick that can sound very good is to hold a melody note while the chord changes underneath it.

Maybe the note begins as part of one chord, but when the harmony changes it becomes a second, fourth, seventh, or ninth. That creates a small amount of tension without having to add a lot of notes.

For example, you might hold an E while the chord underneath moves from C major add9 to D sus2. The E will mean something slightly different against each chord, and that change can be enough to make the whole passage feel more emotional.

Sometimes the best melody note is the one you do not move.

Repeat the Melody, Then Damage It Slightly

Repetition is useful, but perfect repetition can get boring unless the sound itself is changing.

A good method is to repeat a short melody, then change one small thing:

• Change the last note.
• Move one note down a semitone.
• Play the second phrase an octave higher.
• Leave out one note.
• Delay a note slightly.
• Make one note longer than before.
• Change the instrument or filter setting on the repeat.

That way, the listener recognizes the phrase, but it does not feel completely fixed in place.

I like this because it feels more like memory. You recognize it, but you are not entirely sure you remembered it correctly.

A Simple Method to Try

Here is a quick way to start a new track using these ideas:

1. Pick a root note, such as A.
2. Make an open fifth: A + E.
3. Add a B or D to make it suspended.
4. Spread the notes over two or three octaves.
5. Copy the shape and move it down to F, then to C.
6. Add a fourth chord that goes somewhere slightly unexpected.
7. Play the highest notes of the chords as a separate line.
8. Add only a few notes from A minor pentatonic to make a small melody.
9. Let at least one melody note hold across a chord change.
10. Repeat the whole thing and change only one or two details each time.

That is enough to get something moving. From there, the sound choices and arrangement can make it your own.

When the Chords Feel Too “Right”

One problem I run into a lot is that I will make a chord progression that sounds good, but it sounds too good in a normal way.

Everything fits. The chords are clearly major or minor. The bass notes make sense. The melody lands exactly where it should. It sounds polished and musical, but it does not have that strange, slightly uncertain feeling that I am looking for.

When this happens, I try not to throw the whole idea away. Usually there is something worth keeping. I just start taking away some of the information that makes the chord feel so obvious.

The goal is not to make the chord progression random or intentionally wrong. It is more about making it feel like something is slightly missing, shifted, or remembered imperfectly. Open fifths, suspensions, wider voicings, and parallel movement are all useful ways to get there. Parallel harmony means moving the whole chord shape by the same interval, which can create unusual movement without having to rebuild every chord from scratch.

A Step-by-Step Reset

When I get stuck, I go through these steps one at a time. I try to change only one thing, listen, and keep the version that feels more interesting.

1. Keep the rhythm first

Before changing notes, I duplicate the MIDI pattern or save a copy of it.

If the rhythm has a good feel, I want to keep that. Sometimes the problem is not the timing, the length of the chords, or the basic movement. Sometimes the notes are just explaining themselves too clearly.

I leave the chord lengths alone at first and only work on the voicing.

2. Remove the third

If the chord is clearly major or minor, the third is usually the reason.

For a C major chord:

C + E + G

Remove the E:

C + G

Now it is an open fifth, sometimes also called a bare fifth. It is no longer clearly happy-major or sad-minor. It is just a shape with more room for interpretation.

For a minor chord:

A + C + E

Remove the C:

A + E

I try this on one chord first. If it immediately feels better, I might remove the thirds from the whole progression. If it becomes too empty, I add a different note back in later rather than immediately restoring the third.

3. Replace the third with a second or fourth

If the fifth by itself feels too plain, I replace the missing third with a nearby note.

For C major:

C + E + G

Try this instead:

C + D + G

That is a suspended second, or Csus2.

Or try:

C + F + G

That is a suspended fourth, or Csus4.

The chord still has weight, but it does not settle in the normal way. The second and fourth make the chord sound like it might want to move somewhere else, even if it never does.

4. Spread the notes into an open voicing

If the chord still feels too normal, the notes may simply be sitting too close together.

Start with this:

C3 + E3 + G3

Then separate it:

C2 + G3 + E4

Or add a ninth:

C2 + G3 + E4 + D5

The chord is still related to C major, but the space changes how it feels. The root is low, the fifth gives the middle some support, and the higher notes become less certain and more melodic.

Open or spread voicings use wider gaps between chord tones than close voicings, often placing notes across the bass, middle, and treble ranges. musictheory.pugetsound

5. Move only one note

If you like most of the chord but it still feels too resolved, I move one note by a semitone or whole tone.

For example:

C + E + G

could become:

C + E♭ + G

That is a clear change from major to minor, which may be too obvious. But instead, I might try:

C + E + A♭

or:

C + D + G♯

I am not trying to force these exact notes into every track. The idea is to make one small move, then listen.

Sometimes a note that looks strange in the Piano Roll is the note that makes the chord feel less familiar. If it sounds too harsh, move it up an octave, lower its velocity, shorten it, or make it a passing note instead of a sustained one.

6. Add a ninth above the chord

If removing notes makes the chord too empty, I often add a note near the top instead of filling in the middle.

For C, try:

C2 + G3 + E4 + D5

For A minor, try:

A2 + E3 + C4 + B4

That upper D or B gives the chord an add9 feeling. The ninth is useful because it adds color without necessarily making the harmony sound busier or more functional.

I usually keep this note high. When it is close to the rest of the chord, it can sound crowded. When it is above the chord, it can feel more like a distant melody note.

7. Change one chord in the progression

If every individual chord sounds fine but the progression feels too predictable, I leave most of it alone and change only one chord.

For example:

Am – F – C – G

is a familiar progression. Instead of rebuilding it completely, I might try:

Am(add9) – Fsus2 – Cadd9 – Gsus2

Or I might replace one chord with a nearby, less expected one:

Am(add9) – Fsus2 – Cadd9 – E♭

The E♭ may not be the “correct” chord in a strict key-based sense, but that is the point. I listen for whether it gives the loop a brief moment where the listener is not quite sure where the harmony is going.

If it sounds accidental in a bad way, I go back. If it sounds strange but memorable, I keep it.

8. Move the entire shape in parallel

Another thing I try is copying the voicing and moving every note by the same amount.

Start with:

A2 + E3 + B4

Then move the entire shape down four semitones:

F2 + C3 + G4

Then move it again:

C2 + G3 + D4

This is parallel harmony, or chord planing. The notes all move together, so the shape stays consistent even if the resulting chords do not behave like a standard progression. en.wikipedia

I find this useful when I want the chords to feel like they are drifting across a landscape instead of moving toward a clean resolution.

9. Do not fix every “wrong” note

If I move a chord shape and one note lands outside the scale, I do not correct it immediately.

I listen to it in context. Sometimes the unusual note is exactly what gives the progression some character. If I correct every note so it fits a scale perfectly, I often end up back where I started: with something that sounds good but too expected.

A useful rule for me is to leave one note that makes me slightly unsure. Not a note that ruins the chord, but a note that creates a small question.

10. Pull the melody out of the top notes

Once the chords are separated, I play only the top note of each chord.

For example:

E – D – C – D

That may already sound like a melody.

Then I add only a few notes around it:

E – D – C – D
E – G – F – D

This stops the melody from becoming too separate from the chords. It feels like it grew out of the harmony instead of being pasted on afterward.

11. Let one melody note overlap the chord change

If the melody feels too neat, I hold one note longer than the chord below it.

A note may start as part of one chord, then become a second, fourth, seventh, or ninth when the next chord arrives. That creates a little tension without needing lots of notes.

I often try this before adding more melody notes. Holding a note is usually more effective than adding a run of extra notes.

12. End on a note that does not fully resolve

If the melody keeps ending on the root, I try ending it somewhere else.

Useful notes to try are:

• The second or ninth
• The fourth
• The fifth
• The sixth
• The minor seventh

For example, if the chord is A minor, ending the melody on B can give it an unresolved add9 feeling. Ending on E gives it stability, but not the full finality of ending on A.

Quick Troubleshooting Chart

A Short Version

When a chord feels too right, I try this in order:

1. Remove the third.
2. Add a second, fourth, or ninth instead.
3. Spread the notes into different octaves.
4. Move one note by a semitone.
5. Change only one chord in the progression.
6. Try moving the whole voicing in parallel.
7. Use the highest notes as the melody.
8. Hold one melody note over the next chord.
9. Stop before I explain the chord too clearly again.

The main thing I try to remember is that the chord does not need to make perfect sense immediately. If it creates a small amount of uncertainty while still feeling musical, that is usually closer to what I am after.

Final Thoughts

The main thing I have taken from studying this kind of harmony is that it does not need to be complicated to be interesting.

A fifth can be enough. A suspended chord can be enough. A simple two- or three-note melody can be enough. The trick is in how you place the notes, how long you let them ring, what you leave out, and how you let the loop change gradually.

I think it is easy to make music too busy when you are trying to make it more interesting. I do it myself. But sometimes removing the third from a chord, moving a note an octave higher, or holding one melody note a little longer can do more than adding five more tracks.

These are the things that have been working for me so far. I will probably keep adding to this as I try more things and find new ways of looking at the chords.