History Main / ScareChord

* In ''WesternAnimation/TurningRed'', this is heard when Mei and her friends hear that the concert they've worked so hard to attend conflicts with the date and time of the red moon ritual that Mei has also committed to putting Mei in a bind. Cue Mei having a complete FreakOut.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TurningRed'', this is heard when Mei and her friends hear that the concert they've worked so hard to attend conflicts with the date and time of the red moon ritual that Mei has also committed to putting Mei in a bind.

Often part of the ScreamerTrailer. Compare PsychoStrings. Compare and contrast with LastNoteNightmare.

* ''VideoGame/EarthBound'' has two remarkably terrifying scare chords: "Ambush!" when you are attacked by the zombies in the Threed hotel, and "Whoops!" immediately upon eating the Magic Cake. There are some fairly less frightening (but still shocking nonetheless) chords, namely "Whoa!" when something unexpected occurs in a cutscene (Pokey entering your house at the beginning of the game, Paula being kidnapped by the Dept. Store Spook, etc.) and the one you hear when an enemy touches you from behind and triggers the red swirl.

* In Mahler's 2nd Symphony, the opening chord of the last (5th) movement. Nicknamed the "Resurrection" Symphony, the work was intended by Mahler to initially portray states of despair and happiness here on earth, followed, in the last movement, by a portrayal of the resurrection into the afterlife. The 4th movement illustrates the longing for relief from earthly woes and ends quietly. This mood is rudely interrupted by a shrieking, dissonant chord in the whole orchestra at the very opening of the last movement. This has sometimes been described (including by its composer) as portraying the state of the damned after death, although, as the symphony progresses towards its triumphant ending, this portrayal of the damned is shown to have apparently been only an illusion believed in by people while still on earth. All ends in peace and love and all humanity is included in that.

* The audiobook novella ''Literature/{{Hours}}'' features a couple of scare chords, although tastefully done using an original sound effect which fades into a creepy musical jingle.

* "Waking The Witch" by Music/KateBush starts off with around 80 seconds of quiet, relaxing piano music and ambient noise, with lots of reassuring voices urging the listener to wake up. Except for the last, who exclaims "look who's here to see you!". It's never explained what it is that's paying a visit, but it most certainly sounds terrifying. Then, after you've gotten over the initial shock of the music crashing in, a terrifying demonic voice shouts at you, just to make sure you've ''completely'' evacuated your bowels.

* ''VideoGame/SweetHome'' uses these to good effect, despite being an 8-bit game on the UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem. Encounters with enemies are preceded by a slowly building tune, before a sharp shriek brings the enemy onto the screen. The same shriek comes with the many talking corpses you find before their picture shows on the screen.

* The first time you get a good, up-close look at a Hunter in ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'' Episode 2'' [[spoiler: you know, where you turn around AND IT'S WATCHING YOU THROUGH THE WINDOW NEXT TO YOU!]] a scare chord goes off. It's actually the Hunter bellowing a war-cry of sorts, but it's to the same effect. [[spoiler: To make things worse, it then guts the LoveInterest in front of you and buries you under rubble]]. Hunters = best enemy ever.

*** And in the original ''Half-Life 2'', after the beach section of Sandtraps, there's a nice Scare Chord [[spoiler: when the Antlion Guard rises from the sand right in your face.]]
*** Exact same thing happens when you down the hunter chopper at the end of Water Hazard.
*** In ''VideoGame/HalfLife1'', the same chord played when you killed the Gargantua with the generators in the level "Power Up"
*** It should be noted that this chord is listed on the soundtrack as "Sharp Fear Short", among other similar clips heard within the game with titles like "Scared Confusion Short" and "Dark Piano Short".
* ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' plays a scare chord whenever you are spotted by a large monster, or if you dropped an egg or a valuable rock. In ''World'' there's a creppy strings ''glissando'' whenever a monster like Bazelgeuse approaches at you and joins the battle.

** Quite the same thing with ''VideoGame/JediOutcast'' and ''VideoGame/JediAcademy'' when the PlayerCharacter dies.

* ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'': [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeoNDckp0ZE The Meta's theme,]] because you just ''know'' something bad is about to happen.

* ''VideoGame/GhostRecon: Advanced Warfighter'' has a ringing scare chord signaling enemy ambushes. ''Wildlands'' plays a similar noise when your character is spotted.

* ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'' had this, accompanied with camera zoom abuse, on a couple occasions, including [[spoiler:when you first see Flurrie in a cutscene and she flips out at being unable to find her necklace]] and [[spoiler:when you first meet Ghost T. and he asks for your soul. He's just kidding, though.]]

* A good example is in ''Film/TheTerminator'', right after [[spoiler:Kyle's HeroicSacrifice]], blowing up the Terminator using the last pipe bomb. When Sarah goes over [[spoiler:to Kyle's dead body]] you can see a large chunk of the Terminator move slightly, then WHAM! right as it sits up and starts to chase her once again, barely moving using its only other arm.

* ''VideoGame/{{Ib}}'' uses these to compliment the game's evenly spread Jump Scares, but the most notable example would be the mother-variation of the [[NonstandardGameOver Ib All Alone Ending]], where [[spoiler:as Garry yells at Ib to come back, the screen blacks out on the scare chord and comes back to reveal that Ib is following ''nothing''. [[AdultFear Back into the dangerous gallery full of malevolent paintings]].]]

* [[NightmareFuel/InvaderZim Unsurprisingly]], ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim''.

A cousin to the {{Sting}}, the Scare Chord is a sudden, sharp sforzando of dissonance or sheer noise intended to make viewers jump clean out of their seats. The thing that separates it from a {{Cat Scare}} is that it's non-diegetic: nothing ''onscreen'' causes the noise; instead, it's added to the soundtrack as a way of eliciting a jolt in the audience, often preceded by a deliberate lull in both narrative and musical action.

* PlayedForLaughs in that series of "scary" Verizon ads (i.e., "Towels are kinda scratchy!").
* Referenced in [[http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/b9b2/?srp=1 this ad]] for bloody handprint shower curtains and bloody footprint bathmats on [[http://www.thinkgeek.com/ ThinkGeek]]

* ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' is the first film to prove that people can be scared of cellos. Duh-Dun...Duh-dun...Duh-dun...

* ''Film/SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet'' dropped a lot of the scare chords from the stage version, but left in the overpowering Scare Chord when the Beggar Woman is wandering in the shop - and Sweeney suddenly appears in the doorway, silhouetted.

* ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1968'' - the one that comes when the power goes out toward the end is the Scariest Chord of Them All.

* In ''Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit'', shortly the reveal that [[spoiler:"Judge Doom" is a toon, his voice builds higher in pitch until his eyes turn into daggers and pop out]] and the soundtrack jolts. As if it wasn't scary enough already...
* ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory''. After the children and parents board the Wonkatania, it is rowed along the chocolate river -- and then goes through what seems to be a tunnel straight to Hell at an extremely fast speed, past a range of horrific images, topped off by Willy Wonka reciting a poem that would make Creator/EdgarAllanPoe shit his pants. Cue the Scare Chord at the words: "Is the grizzly reaper mowing?". However, it is low-pitched and drawn out.

* A good example is in ''Film/TheTerminator'', right after [[spoiler:Kyle's HeroicSacrifice]], Blowing up the Terminator using the last pipe bomb. When Sarah goes over [[spoiler:to Kyle's dead body]] you can see a large chunk of the Terminator move slightly, then WHAM! right as it sits up and starts to chase her once again, barely moving using its only other arm.

* {{Parodied}} in ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartIII'' when Doc Brown, startled by Marty, backs into an organ and accidentally plays one. Amusingly, as Marty approaches the Doc, he keeps scooting along the keyboard away from the younger man - resulting in the scare chord raising in pitch (and yet, remaining on key).

* In ''WesternAnimation/ThomasTheTankEngine'', Diesel was always accompanied by his [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHGtTjlzWGA theme music]] to put viewers on edge.