@DeWayfarer What an interesting extension of the metaphor!
I'm suspecting you have the kind of lateral thinking skills that would suit a scientist, artist, inventor or comic.

I agree about "purity". Even as a romantic concept, purity is a mixed blessing and depends on the nature of the substance or trait.

As for what we consider "harmonious" or "dissonant", I think it can often be more a matter of cultural or associative conditioning.
I once did a course in the science of music, and discovered that there is a certain kind of "geometry" to the wavelengths of notes in an octave and all their variants. But the original key note, on which all the others depend is arbitrary. In the West, it can be set at "concert pitch" which, historically, has been changed by the higher arbiters from time to time, while pop and folk musicians start with a different range wavelengths to tune their key. In other words, C major, D minor, etc ,are not fixed except in so far as a particular piece of music or lead instrument is tuned for each performance.

In places like India, Japan, China, the Middle East and Africa, the wavelength systems for traditional notes are completely different, as is the perception of harmony and dischord.

Yes, a particular pure note (precise wavelength of vibration of air) can shatter fine crystal - but this too can vary depending on air pressure, type of crystal, volume and direction of sound, etc.
If one extended that metaphor to human relationships, we get into an area of complexity that can be much harder to predict.
We humans are so variable - some from birth much more sensitive than others, some damaged by profound trauma, some breaking from the way they interpret and process their experience if there's no help nearby.
Many harms are predictable, some not.

@DeWayfarer I love that response. Thank you! :)

@awildsheepschase Often, it’s the silence and space that speak the loudest — art breathes in the unsaid.