# Pieces you can't listen to without tears coming to your eyes.



## Itullian

For me.

Emperor concerto-slow movement, can't take it.
Sheep may safely graze.
Pastoral symphony various places. just too beautiful
Dance of the Blessed Spirits.


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## Manxfeeder

I have a recording of Ravel's Pavanne - can't recall which off the top of my head - but the last time the theme comes in, it always brings misty eyes.


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## Dodecaplex

Pretty much the entirety of Schubert's Winterreise, especially Rast, Einsamkeit, Der Wegweiser, and Der Leiermann.


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## Oskaar

Sibelius valse triste


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## Klavierspieler

I don't get tears from listening to pieces, but the closest I get are with:

Schumann Lieder, especially _In der Fremde_ from the Op. 39 Liederkreis.
Tallis' Lamentations of Jeremiah (both).
Chopin Polonaise Op. 40 No. 2.


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## Taneyev

Tchaikovsky's Trio op.50


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## clavichorder

Mahler Kindertoten Lieder live was a teary experience. Tchaikovsky's 6th and 1st(1st focusing more on certain moments).


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## Shostakovichiana

Shostakovich's Symphony no. 5 (3rd movement, no need to say). His 11th symphony also gives me goose bumps..
Beethoven's Emperor Concerto I can agree on: incredibly beautiful...
But perhaps the most sad of them all must be, again Shostakovich, Piano Concerto No. 2- II. Andante... sigh..


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## Weston

I heartily agree on the Emperor adagio. Also these in no particular order, some of which I admit are cliches:

Vaughan-Williams - Tallis Fantasia
Leó Weiner - Romance for cello, harp & string orchestra, Op. 29
Khachaturian - Gayane Suite No. 3, part 4. Gayane's Adagio (the old excerpt from the Kubrick film is by no means all of it)
Brahms - Sextet No. 1 andante
Yes - Awaken (especially the nearly orgasmic ending)
Jethro Tull - A Passion Play (triumphant ending segment that begins just before "Hail! Son of kings, make the ever-dying sign . . . " )
Beethoven again - Symphony No. 9, movement 4 in several places.

Not all tears are of sadness you see.


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## DavidMahler

Great thread....

The last movement of Sibelius 5th (gonna put it on right now)

Mahler's 9th symphony (the whole thing)

The middle movement of the Pathetique SONATA

The finale of the Pathetique SYMPHONY

but probably the one that hits me hardest is this one right here...


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## Huilunsoittaja

When I went to a concert this past April to hear selections from Prokofiev's Cinderella, the conductor told us "Here, we will demonstrate one of the main themes from the ballet, the theme of Cinderella's dream." She beckoned to the orchestra to begin playing, and that one chord, a soft yet powerful C major chord swelling up from no where, prompted immediate tears to my eyes. This was only in the intro to the program, so when that theme came up again in context (at beginning and end of concert), I got tears every time. The last time, which is the _Amoroso_ movement from Cinderella Suite no. 3, I nearly broke down. Sometimes there are pieces of music that point you back to your own identity, and ultimately to the meaning of your life. That was one of them.

However, I don't know if it counts as a piece I will continually cry from every single time. But for a few days after that concert, simply _thinking _of that theme brought tears to my eyes. Instead now, I highly revere that piece of music.


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## Chi_townPhilly

[post=19402]The conclusion of _Tannhäuser_.
The final two movements of _Verklärte Nacht_[/post].

Parts of _Tristan und Isolde_.


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## Jeremy Marchant

Music doesn't affect me in that way.
I'm very interested in why/how it affects others; if contributors to this thread could explain what's going on for them, I'd be grateful...


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## Klavierspieler

Weston said:


> Vaughan-Williams - Tallis Fantasia


I completely forgot the Tallis Fantasia! Such a beautiful work.


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## Kopachris

_Also Sprach Zarathustra_ by Strauss, due to the associations it has in my memory.
Tchaikovsky's sixth symphony
Chopin's nocturnes, Op. 9
"Save Me" by Queen
_The Wall_ by Pink Floyd, especially around "One of my Turns," the lyrics _I feel cold as a razor blade, / Tight as a tourniquet, / Dry as a funeral drum._
Basically the entirety of _The Final Cut_ by Pink Floyd



Weston said:


> Jethro Tull - A Passion Play (triumphant ending segment that begins just before "Hail! Son of kings, make the ever-dying sign . . . " )


APP doesn't do that for me (except maybe, _maybe_ "Critique Oblique"), but TaaB sometimes makes me tear up, as do several others, including "Skating Away on the Thin Ice of a New Day" and "Heavy Horses."


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## ScipioAfricanus

Hans Rott symphony in E major


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## Igneous01

The last I recall that gave me misty eyes and a lumped throat was Gorecki 3rd Symphony, I still find it hard to comprehend that the lyrics for the text was taken from the scratches on a wall in one of the concentration camps by a teenager girl just before she died. The words are just too powerful.


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## Art Rock

Mahler's Kindertotenlieder
Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde, last movement
Gorecki's Symphony 3
Bach's St Matthew Passion

in pop/rock:
Die Toten Hosen - Nur zu Besuch
Tori Amos - I can't see New York


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## violadude

Tchaikovsky's 4th symphony, the dreamy second subject of the 1st movement
Tchaikovsky's 6th symphony, Last movement and sometimes the second subject of the 1st movement
Mahler's 2nd symphony, 9th symphony, 4th symphony (3rd movement), Das Lied
Sibelius 1st symphony, the second subject of the last movement, 2nd symphony, that soaring theme in the second movement. 

It's kind of rare that I respond to music with direct emotions, so these composers should feel special lol


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## science

Tears of sadness, joy, or pain?


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## Chrythes

Beethoven SQ 132 - III Mov. Molto Adagio.

The beginning is purely sad, depressive, hopeless. The long, sustained notes seem to lead only to despair. 
But then, out of nowhere they seem to grab onto something - it seems at first like a ray of hope - and then suddenly joy enters. The transition to D major, what a beautiful and cheerful tune, it's as if life entered a place where only death lies ahead. Such a beautiful contrast. But then it sinks. Only this time it's not as desperate as it was at first, it seems to be calmer and you can truly anticipate joy coming back - and it does. Yet again , it fills everything with hope and life. It disappears again , and fades into the same long sustained notes. But it's different this time - they are powerful, joyful, full of life and hope, calm, without a bit of despair. Death lost, life has won. 
It always gets me to tears.


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## DavidMahler

I really do think the most perfect melody ever written is the Adagio of the Pathetique sonata. For this reason, when I hear it, I am in awe at times just to be a part of human race, a race which somehow created something so logical, but so moving. It's not my favorite piece of music of all time, because I think there are works with more bite, or more interesting developments, but that melody is as perfect as a human being will ever write.


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## An Die Freude

Arvo Part - Spiegel Im Spiegel
Gustav Mahler - Symphony #9 (4th mvmt.)


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## tdc

There aren't any pieces I can never listen to without crying, but there are many pieces that might make me more susceptible to a tear welling up (under certain circumstances) here are just a few examples:

Bach - Double Violin Concerto
Bach - Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor
Bach - St. Matthew Passion
Ravel - Pavane pour une infante defunte
Debussy - Estampes
Rodrigo - Suite Para Piano (specifically the sicilienne)


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## Vaneyes

Beethoven - Diabelli Variations, Eroica Variations, Missa Solemnis
Schubert - Wanderer Fantasy, Octet
Mendelssohn - Octet


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## pluhagr

God, this is cliche but Gorecki's Symphony 3 Movement 2. Also, Arvo Part will do it to me. Like Cantus or Summa.


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## Xaltotun

Das Rheingold - when the Rheingold is exposed and the river maidens exalt it. It's sort of a religious experience for me, I think.
Die Walküre - anything that Siegmund sings. I just identify with the guy rather strongly.


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## EarthBoundRules

_Mahler's 1st Symphony, 4th Movement_ - the moment where the whole orchestra stops before the loud crash of the cymbals
_Mahler's 9th Symphony, 3rd Movement_ - when the lone trumpet starts sweetly singing the theme from the 4th movement
_Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, Liebestod_ - the oboes finally completing the chromatic melody from the prelude, the perfect resolution to four hours of struggle


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## mamascarlatti

_Bach -St Matthew Passion_ - Erbame dich
_Marcello - Oboe concerto in D Minor_ - Adagio
_Handel _- "Scherza Infida" from Ariodante and "Cara Speme" from Giulio Cesare
_Mozart - The Marriage of Figaro_ - when the Count sings "Contessa, perdono"
_Wagner - Siegfried Funeral march_ - not so much tears as heightened emotion, the hairs rise on my arms and I feel shaky.


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## peeyaj

The *second movement of Schubert's Piano sonata no. 21,* played by Richter and Kempff.

The *Adagio* and the trio of the scherzo of Schubert's String Quintet in C always bring tears in my eyes..


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## Olias

My beginning band class playing "Hot Cross Buns" always makes me cry.......for a totally different reason though.


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## Ravellian

Sometimes I get into strange moods where almost anything classical will make me cry. But these pieces 
definitely tend to make me feel more emotional than others:

Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 30, last movement
Rachmaninov - Rhapsody, 18th variation
Schubert - Die schone Mullerin
Wagner - 2nd act of _Tristan_, Liebestod
Donizetti - Il dolce suono, the cadenza
Tchaikovsky - Symphony No. 6, the whole damn thing
Sibelius - Symphony No. 5, 1st movement, the return of the theme right before the scherzo


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## BlazC

Apart from the great classics, the majority of which are already listed in this thread, the solo viola part in this particular work always gets to my heart (and eyes). It starts cold as ice but ends on a sentimental note, all in just a few seconds.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

Fratres played by Gidon Kremer and Keith Jarrett






And this strange Japanese pop song for reasons that remain unclear to me


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## aleazk

violadude said:


> Tchaikovsky's 4th symphony, the dreamy second subject of the 1st movement
> Tchaikovsky's 6th symphony, Last movement and sometimes the second subject of the 1st movement
> Mahler's 2nd symphony, 9th symphony, 4th symphony (3rd movement), Das Lied
> Sibelius 1st symphony, the second subject of the last movement, 2nd symphony, that soaring theme in the second movement.
> 
> *It's kind of rare that I respond to music with direct emotions*, so these composers should feel special lol


I think you are much more emotional than you think.



violadude said:


> Maurice Ravel-
> 
> Pieces I have by Ravel:
> 
> Daphnis et Chloe (full ballet)
> String quartet
> Gaspard de la Nuit
> Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales (piano version)
> Jeux D'Eau
> Miroirs
> Sonatine for piano
> Le Tombeau De Couperin (piano version)
> Prelude for piano
> Minuet sur la nom de Haydn
> A La Maniere De Borodine
> Minuet Antique
> Pavane Pour Unde Infante Defunte (piano version)
> A La Maniere De Chabrier
> Ma Mere L'oye (piano version)
> 
> What a beautiful composer. I make a special connection with Ravel's music. I don't know how to explain it, but the harmonies, the colors, the sound, *all make such a deep and un-rational emotional connection with me*. The string quartet was the first piece I heard by him, and I heard it live, and it amazed me so much! Beautiful melodies, amazing colors on the strings that I didnt know existed at the time, moments of intense vigor. And of course, those Ravel harmonies get me every single time. The same things could be said about Daphnis et Chloe. It is one of my favorite ballets and one of the most beautifully exotic and sensual pieces of music I know. Miroirs is another one of my favorite compositions by Ravel. To me it contains some of the most poetic music in the world, especially my favorite movement, the "sad birds" movement. Oh man! It is so full of poetic and touching sadness and loneliness in a very tactful, not overblown kind of way (not that I don't like overblown music too ). The Sonatine is really beautiful too. For some reason the first movement reminds me of my childhood. It sounds very pure and innocent to me. Anyway, ya, GO RAVEL.


I noticed that since the last "modern music" thread, you have changed your mind on this, apparently.


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## violadude

aleazk said:


> I think you are much more emotional than you think.
> 
> I noticed that since the last "modern music" thread, you have changed your mind on this, apparently.


Not really. I said I don't need an emotional connection to enjoy a piece of music, but I didn't say that I never had them.


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## UberB

Beethoven, opp. 109-111
Chopin, op. 48/1
Mozart, coda of K551
Schubert, D960


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## Rizzley

Igneous01 said:


> The last I recall that gave me misty eyes and a lumped throat was Gorecki 3rd Symphony, I still find it hard to comprehend that the lyrics for the text was taken from the scratches on a wall in one of the concentration camps by a teenager girl just before she died. The words are just too powerful.


Couldnt agree more. Dawn Upshaw - the only recording ive ever heard - is sublime in her sadness - whatever part of your brain makes your tearducts open - Gorecki hits the spot.

Also Barber - obviously - and Handel's Sarabande - which im having a my funeral - when of course i'll have to leave it to others to weep!


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## Couchie

Prelude to _Parsifal_.






Also, this:


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## TrazomGangflow

I haven't cried while listening to these pieces but I feel strong emotions. Partially because of their beauty and partially from the fond memories they bring back:

Chopin Mazurka no. 23

Liszt Liebestraum no. 3


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## Guest

Another vote for Gorecki #3, but only because of the backstory. I've been there twice (Auschwitz) and both times left feeling profound anger and sadness. On the second occasion, we went to Jasna Góra in Częstochowa an hour or so later, which was an interesting contrast, but by no means offset the horror of Auschwitz. I have tears thinking about it even now - a decade later.


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## QuietGuy

Ravel's _Le Jardin Feerique_ from Ma Mere L'Oye


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## beetzart

Bruckner Study Symphony, the climax to the 1st movement is bone shuddering. The 2nd movement is full of contrast, and the last two movements are growing on me. 
Bruckner Symphony No.1 1st movement. The huge build up at the beginning always makes a tear flow. 
Bruckner Symphony No.9 The Adagio is truly one of the saddest but moving movements I have ever heard. 

Tchaikovsky Souvenir de Florence 
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6

Brahms Symphony No. 4

Beethoven Symphony No. 9
Beethoven Symphony No. 3

Mozart Symphonies No. 40, 41.


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## hpowders

Debussy's L'isle Joyeuse as performed by Sviatoslav Richter. Pure ecstasy.


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## Jonathan Wrachford

There aren't any piece that i absolutely can't hold in tears. I'm usually OK at controlling my emotions. I personally try to make it where people know that I don't listen to music all the time to prick at my emotions, but I understand people who don't mind tears coming to their eyes over music. I just usually do what I can to control it in front of others. However, when I'm alone, I feel freer to express to myself only what my feelings are emotionally for a piece of a piece.


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## Jonathan Wrachford

Olias said:


> My beginning band class playing "Hot Cross Buns" always makes me cry.......for a totally different reason though.


You mean because you thought you were a big shot for playing a simple piece?!!! Haha, I remember some of the same feeling when I began piano. I guess it happens to lots of people!!!


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## Woodduck

Tears can come for many reasons, and the diversity of music that can sometimes evoke them makes the whole thing inexplicable. But here are some things that nearly always do it for me. In chronological order:

Bach: _B-minor Mass_ (nearly all of the choruses)
Handel: _Messiah_ (final chorus)
Wagner: Wotan's farewell to Brunnhilde from _Die Walkure_
Wagner: "Forest Murmers" from _Siegfried_
Wagner: _Tristan und Isolde_ (various moments in Acts 2 and 3)
Wagner: _Parsifal_ (almost the whole opera, but especially Act 3)
Verdi: _Otello_ (mainly Act 4)
Elgar: Symphony #1 (slow movement)
Sibelius: Symphony #7
Sibelius: Violin Concerto (slow movement)
Rachmaninov: _The Isle of the Dead_
Rachmaninov: _The Bells_ (the soprano solo and the orchestral postlude)
Rachmaninov: _Symphonic Dances_
Rachmaninov: various songs, especially _Vocalise_, _Sleep_, _To the Children_, and _It is Beautiful Here_. (This last has the distinction of making me cry even when I think of it!)
Prokofiev: _Romeo and Juliet_ (balcony scene and finale)

There are also several great singers whose voices and/or artistry touch deep emotions: Enrico Caruso, Tito Schipa, Claudia Muzio, Kirsten Flagstad, Jussi Bjorling, Maria Callas.

Bjorling doing "O Holy Night" in Swedish is very good for cleaning out the sinuses:


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## Delilah

Wow, so many excellent pieces on here, some of my favorites have already been mentioned. Despite being a softie, it takes quite a bit to make me cry, esp with music. Oddly enough, I cry like a baby when the music is live though. I tend to go to concerts alone for that very reason.

Just to add something slightly different to the list, here is a piece that recently brought me to tears. The celtic harp is just so sensitive and beautiful.






And while I am on the celtic harp topic, here is another piece I love (I love all things Celtic, aaah!), the oboe in this piece just pierces your heart!






Thanks for this awesome thread.


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## hpowders

I'd say the farewell from Das Lied von der Erde and the final movement of Mahler's 9th as well as parts of Copland's Appalachian Spring and also portions of Ives' Concord Piano Sonata.


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## BRHiler

Every time: _On the Transmigration of Souls_ by John Adams. The whole piece puts me through the wringer.

Others include
Shostakovich 5: 3rd mvt
Vaughan Williams 5: 3rd mvt
Christopher Rouse Flute Concerto: 3rd mvt


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## Marschallin Blair

Woodduck said:


> Tears can come for many reasons, and the diversity of music that can sometimes evoke them makes the whole thing inexplicable. But here are some things that nearly always do it for me. In chronological order:
> 
> Bach: _B-minor Mass_ (nearly all of the choruses)
> Handel: _Messiah_ (final chorus)
> Wagner: Wotan's farewell to Brunnhilde from _Die Walkure_
> Wagner: "Forest Murmers" from _Siegfried_
> Wagner: _Tristan und Isolde_ (various moments in Acts 2 and 3)
> Wagner: _Parsifal_ (almost the whole opera, but especially Act 3)
> Verdi: _Otello_ (mainly Act 4)
> Elgar: Symphony #1 (slow movement)
> Sibelius: Symphony #7
> Sibelius: Violin Concerto (slow movement)
> Rachmaninov: _The Isle of the Dead_
> Rachmaninov: _The Bells_ (the soprano solo and the orchestral postlude)
> Rachmaninov: _Symphonic Dances_
> Rachmaninov: various songs, especially _Vocalise_, _Sleep_, _To the Children_, and _It is Beautiful Here_. (This last has the distinction of making me cry even when I think of it!)
> Prokofiev: _Romeo and Juliet_ (balcony scene and finale)
> 
> There are also several great singers whose voices and/or artistry touch deep emotions: Enrico Caruso, Tito Schipa, Claudia Muzio, Kirsten Flagstad, Jussi Bjorling, Maria Callas.


--
God yes. . .

-- And I'd add: the ending of Respighi's "The Pines of the Appian Way," Acts II & III of the '58 Callas Covent Garden_ Traviata_, the _Andante_ from Mahler VI, the _Adagietto _from Mahler V, the Callas/Karajan _Lucia_, the ending of Shostakovich VII, the ending of Act I, the Presentation of the Rose, and the final trio of _Rosenkavalier_, the '55 Callas La Scala _Norma_, "_Beim Schlafengehen_" from Strauss' Four Last Songs. . . too many things. That was my stream-of-consciousness run though.


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## SilenceIsGolden

The quintet in _Die Meistersinger_ and the third movement of Brahm's Symphony No. 3 come to mind...


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## Marschallin Blair

BRHiler said:


> Every time: _On the Transmigration of Souls_ by John Adams. The whole piece puts me through the wringer.
> 
> Others include
> Shostakovich 5: 3rd mvt
> Vaughan Williams 5: 3rd mvtChristopher Rouse Flute Concerto: 3rd mvt


--
And with Hickox's treatment?-- I'm floored.


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## Marschallin Blair

hpowders said:


> Debussy's L'isle Joyeuse as performed by Sviatoslav Richter. Pure ecstasy.


I've gotta hear that.


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## Antiquarian

Tears of Sadness:
F. Delius / Dowson : Songs of Sunset

Tears of Joy:
J.Sibelius : Finlandia

Tears of Pain: 
M.Ravel : Bolero


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## Tristan

Sometimes it's embarrassing for me to admit the amount of pieces that can bring tears to my eyes, but I often have pretty strong reactions to classical music. This is just a sampling:

*Ravel* - Le Jardin Feérique (from Ma Mère L'Oye) - There's something about this piece that never fails to bring tears to my eyes. I think it may be one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written (and of course underrated in my opinion).

*Mascagni* - Intermezzo (from Cavalleria Rusticana) - A cliché, yes, but this extremely sentimental piece always churns up my emotions.

*Shostakovich* - Piano Concerto No. 2 (Second Movement) - For obvious reasons 

A lot of very triumphant "epic" pieces have the tendency to bring tears to my eyes as well and sometimes the pieces that do don't make much sense:

*Tchaikovsky* - The Nutcracker (Finale) - The "apotheosis" moment of the Nutcracker in which she wakes up, realizes it's a dream, and lovingly clutches her doll seems to always bring tears to my eyes. Doesn't seem like the kind of story that would do that, but it's the music that does it. It has always been one of my favorite finales and to me it's pure beauty.

*Tchaikovsky* - Swan Lake (Finale) - For this one, the story has more influence than the above, but the main thing is the music. The story is sad yet offers a glimmer of hope and the music is the most spectacular finale I can think of.

*Elgar* - Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 - In particular the very end of this piece has a tendency to bring tears to my eyes. What the piece symbolizes: growing up, bright futures, accomplishment--of course that plays a part and Disney's take on it in Fantasia 2000 only adds to that, but the music itself is enough to do it for me.

Okay, that's enough, I'm blubbering like a baby here... 



QuietGuy said:


> Ravel's _Le Jardin Feerique_ from Ma Mere L'Oye


Yay! Someone else mentioned it!!!


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## hpowders

Marschallin Blair said:


> I've gotta hear that.


An amazing performance. He doesn't rush it as some unfortunately do. This is one terrific pianist.


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## Marschallin Blair

hpowders said:


> An amazing performance. He doesn't rush it as some unfortunately do. This is one terrific pianist.


He's certainly_ my _Best-In-Show favorite; except of course for Schnabel for Beethoven and Gieseking for Debussy. Ha. Ha. Ha.


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## Woodduck

Tristan said:


> Sometimes it's embarrassing for me to admit the amount of pieces that can bring tears to my eyes, but I often have pretty strong reactions to classical music. This is just a sampling:
> 
> *Ravel* - Le Jardin Feérique (from Ma Mère L'Oye) - There's something about this piece that never fails to bring tears to my eyes. I think it may be one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written (and of course underrated in my opinion).
> 
> *Mascagni* - Intermezzo (from Cavalleria Rusticana) - A cliché, yes, but this extremely sentimental piece always churns up my emotions.
> 
> *Shostakovich* - Piano Concerto No. 2 (Second Movement) - For obvious reasons
> 
> A lot of very triumphant "epic" pieces have the tendency to bring tears to my eyes as well and sometimes the pieces that do don't make much sense:
> 
> *Tchaikovsky* - The Nutcracker (Finale) - The "apotheosis" moment of the Nutcracker in which she wakes up, realizes it's a dream, and lovingly clutches her doll seems to always bring tears to my eyes. Doesn't seem like the kind of story that would do that, but it's the music that does it. It has always been one of my favorite finales and to me it's pure beauty.
> 
> *Tchaikovsky* - Swan Lake (Finale) - For this one, the story has more influence than the above, but the main thing is the music. The story is sad yet offers a glimmer of hope and the music is the most spectacular finale I can think of.
> 
> *Elgar* - Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 - In particular the very end of this piece has a tendency to bring tears to my eyes. What the piece symbolizes: growing up, bright futures, accomplishment--of course that plays a part and Disney's take on it in Fantasia 2000 only adds to that, but the music itself is enough to do it for me.
> 
> Okay, that's enough, I'm blubbering like a baby here...
> 
> Yay! Someone else mentioned it!!!


I "get" all of these, including the _Nutcracker_ thing, but the moment in that ballet that slays me is the pas de deux right after the death of the mouse king: those soft, low chords, the strings rising in a slow arc, and the solemn melody that grows and grows - yikes, my vision is blurring right now!


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## hpowders

Marschallin Blair said:


> He's certainly_ my _Best-In-Show favorite; except of course for Schnabel for Beethoven and Gieseking for Debussy. Ha. Ha. Ha.







This was Richter in London, 1961. The audience does not do him justice at the end.

He was in his prime back then. When he was 77, it was recorded live again and he took two minutes longer to play it, but given his age, it was masterful.


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## JCarmel

I don't cry upon hearing specific pieces of music but when attending Concerts...& noisy football matches, I have had difficulty in holding back tears on occasion. It has something to do with being in one place with many human beings who are concentrating their full attention or passion upon something that just engulfs you, totally. Plus in the case of the concerts...the amazing nature of the human being, where a large group of individual musicians 'synthesise' into a whole orchestra...cooperating, concentrating all their skills and playing as 'One'..it is just a marvel to me!
I do have difficulty also in controlling my facial expression when listening to great music-making, in a public venue. 
I heard a performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto recently, that was played _just_ as I like it! And sitting in the front row of the stalls, I had at times to keep looking down or away from the stage & the gaze of the orchestral players opposite, because I felt the beauty of the music & the music-making, so very profoundly & couldn't stop the depth of feeling continually registering on my face.


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## Woodduck

Marschallin Blair said:


> --
> And with Hickox's treatment?-- I'm floored.


Vaughan Williams #5? Mmmm hmmm, yes! VW is fertile, well-watered ground. #1, #3, #5, Lark Ascending, Tallis Fantasia, 5 Mystical Songs, Serenade to Music, Riders to the Sea, Rhosymedre ... Oh don't get me started (sniff)! And before I get started, there's this bit of sheer heartbreaking beauty:


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## Marschallin Blair

hpowders said:


> This was Richter in London, 1961. The audience does not do him justice at the end.


He plays like a god. Dear me, I have to have this one alright. That audience is just _FLAT_-lining. . . thanks.


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## Marschallin Blair

Woodduck said:


> Vaughan Williams #5? Mmmm hmmm, yes! VW is fertile, well-watered ground. #1, #3, #5, Lark Ascending, Tallis Fantasia, 5 Mystical Songs, Serenade to Music, Riders to the Sea, Rhosymedre ... Oh don't get me started (sniff)! And before I get started, there's this bit of sheer heartbreaking beauty:


The Bjoerling is just lovely. I never even knew he did it. "O Holy Night" ranks right up there with "Winter Wonderland" and "March of the Toys" in the Christmas Book of Blair, Tchaikovsky-free Edition. (Of course, "O Holy Night" is just a tad more sublime, though; huh?). . .

The RVW?-- my God! I love all those pieces; and if I may, I'd like to add the second movement of RVW's London Symphony. . . of course, with_ Hickox_.


----------



## Woodduck

hpowders said:


> This was Richter in London, 1961. The audience does not do him justice at the end.


Absolutely spine-tingling! Thanks, h!


----------



## hpowders

Woodduck said:


> Absolutely spine-tingling! Thanks, h!


You are quite welcome, Mr Woodduck. :tiphat:


----------



## DeepR

Scriabin - Piano Sonata No. 3 - Movement 3 (Andante)





So intimate, tender, delicate and so much longing... can't keep it dry with this one.
Of course there are others but this one is very special to me. Here I go again...


----------



## Woodduck

DeepR said:


> Scriabin - Piano Sonata No. 3 - Movement 3 (Andante)
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> So intimate, tender, delicate and so much longing... can't keep it dry with this one.
> Of course there are others but this one is very special to me. Here I go again...


Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.

Thank you.


----------



## shangoyal

Schumann's Kinderszenen, especially the part "A Begging Child"
Piano music by Schubert
Beethoven's Cavatina from Op. 130
Certain parts of The Marriage of Figaro (!!)

These have brought tears on occasion, but they don't always.


----------



## Guest

Ever since the 9/11 attack, after which Barber's Adagio was played at a few memorials, it's hard to listen to that piece with dry eyes.


----------



## Morimur

Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
Solitude (Again, as before, alone), song for voice & piano, Op. 73/6


----------



## arpeggio

*Marine Hymn*

I have got an unusual story in regards to tears and music that may be different.

My father was an old marine veteran from WWII. He was one of the Marines who defended the island of Midway. If the USA had lost that battle I would not be here.

He left the Marine Corps after the war but stayed active in the reserves. He eventually retired as a Colonel. Because of his service he was eligible to be interned at Arlington Cemetery.

He passed away in December of 2011. At the funeral everyone in the family lost it except me. I managed to keep my cool and was a rock for the rest of the family, my mother, my brother, my wife and my grandson went to pieces. We arrive at Arlington Cemetery and had a procession to where my father was to be buried. Because of his rank the color guard included a small band composed of members of the US Marine Corps Band. It was a small ensemble composed of about twenty-five musicians.

Near the end of the ceremony, the band played the "Marine Hymn" like a hymn instead of a rousing march. As a result the 'rock' lost it and completely broke down.


----------



## geralmar

Respighi, Ancient Airs and Dances.


----------



## FLighT

Elgar, Enigma Variations, "Nimrod"


----------



## Frei aber froh

Tchaikovsky, Pathétique
Shostakovich, String Quartet No. 8
Shostakovich, Violin Concerto No. 1
Shostakovich, Symphony No. 5
Mahler, Symphony No. 5, Adagietto
Elgar, Enigma Variations, Nimrod
Barber, Violin Concerto, Andante
Barber, Adagio for Strings
Vaughan Williams, The Lark Ascending
Bach, Partita No. 2, Chaconne


----------



## Varick

science said:


> Tears of sadness, joy, or pain?


Yes.



Igneous01 said:


> The last I recall that gave me misty eyes and a lumped throat was Gorecki 3rd Symphony, I still find it hard to comprehend that the lyrics for the text was taken from the scratches on a wall in one of the concentration camps by a teenager girl just before she died. The words are just too powerful.


It is a powerful piece of music!



Kontrapunctus said:


> Ever since the 9/11 attack, after which Barber's Adagio was played at a few memorials, it's hard to listen to that piece with dry eyes.


Yes it is. Even years before 9/11, that piece has moved me to my core.

But IMO, one of the most beautiful moments in music history is the _Laudate Dominum_ from Mozart's "Vesperae Solennes De Confessore," K 339. Absolutely magnificent!

V


----------



## hpowders

geralmar said:


> Respighi, Ancient Airs and Dances.


Welcome, geralmar. Enjoy!


----------



## motokyaaaa

Beethoven piano sonata 32 2nd movement


----------



## DavidA

I cry when a piece by Stockhausen comes on. When it is over I start cheering!


----------



## Morimur

DavidA said:


> I cry when a piece by Stockhausen comes on. When it is over I start cheering!


How dare you, Sir!


----------



## Op.123

Brahms Piano Concerto 2
Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto 3
Beethoven Symphony 9


----------



## Marschallin Blair

DavidA said:


> I cry when a piece by Stockhausen comes on. When it is over I start cheering!


I can't seem to pay attention, myself; I can't even_ ignore _it.


----------



## Tsaraslondon

Elgar's _Sospiri_, one of the saddest few minutes in all music.


----------



## Morimur

Marschallin Blair said:


> I can't seem to pay attention, myself; I can't even_ ignore _it.


What!? Stockhausen is like Wagner 2.0 except better, of course.


----------



## Marschallin Blair

GregMitchell said:


> Elgar's _Sospiri_, one of the saddest few minutes in all music.


--_ a la _Barbirolli, absolutely.


----------



## Marschallin Blair

Lope de Aguirre said:


> What!? Stockhausen is like Wagner 2.0 except better, of course.


Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. . . You warm the cockles of my heart. How can I resist something so beautifully persuasive. _;D_


----------



## Tsaraslondon

Marschallin Blair said:


> --_ a la _Barbirolli, absolutely.


Mais naurellement.


----------



## Marschallin Blair

GregMitchell said:


> Mais naurellement.


_Pour déguster et sentiment._

<Clink.>


----------



## Orfeo

*Sir Arnold Bax*
The middle section of his Festive Overture.
Epilogue of Symphonies nos. III & VII.
Christmas Eve.

*Anton Bruckner*
Ending of Symphony no. IX.
Coda of the Fifth & Eighth Symphonies.

*Alexander Glazunov*
Coda of Act II of "Raymonda."
Poeme Lyrique.
Climax of the first movement of Symphony no. VI.

*Gustav Mahler*
Symphony no. IX (last movement).
Ending of Symphony no. VIII.

*Richard Wagner*
Immolation Scene from "Gotterdammerung."
Parts of "Lohengrin" (esp. the ending of Act II).

*Nikolay Myaskovsky*
Slow movements of Symphonies nos. XVI, XVII, XX, XXVII.
Apotheosis-type ending of Symphony no. XXV.


----------



## omega

Mahler : Ending of #2, #3, #8 - the _glissando_ of the strings in the _Andante_ of #6 - Last movement of #10 (D. Cooke)

Mozart : _Andante staccato_ from Piano Concerto 2

Rachmaninov : Prelude 10 op.32

Debussy : _En blanc et noir_, the second movement - _La Cathédrale Engloutie_ from the first book of the _Preludes_

Fauré : _Sanctus_ from the Requiem

Messiaen : _Last Movement_ of the _Quartet for the end of times_ - _L'Ascension_

Among others, I assume...


----------



## Guest

The final scene from Aribert Reimann's _Lear_, in which Lear cradles Cordelia's dead body, is quite moving.


----------



## hpowders

Around April 15th, The Taxman by the Beatles. I'v never taken too well to seeing my money evaporate.


----------



## Goobertastic

Delius sea drift


----------



## Cosmos

Mahler's 2nd and Das Lied come to mind
Busoni's Fantasia nach Bach makes my eyelids twitch
The eight song from Rachmaninov's All Night Vigil, Praise the Name of the Lord
Bach's Chaconne from the second violin partita (arr. string orchestra)
Barber's Adagio for Strings is a cliche answer to this question, but I don't care


----------



## CypressWillow

I always loved Mozart's _Ave Verum Corpus_. Recently I saw the film "I Am David" and the Mozart accompanied a most pivotal and moving scene when the boy David realizes the truth about what happened in the concentration camp he has escaped from. 
This short clip doesn't contain the entire piece, but you get a sense of the impact it had upon David. 
In the film, by the end of the Ave Verum, I'm blubbering like a baby!


----------



## techniquest

I'm not a fan of Gavin Bryars, but this arrangement of "Jesus' Blood..." is simply so hauntingly beautiful. It causes tears for two reasons: firstly because it reminds me of a particularly happy time in my life, and also because I think about the unknown homeless man singing the song.


----------



## Kevin Pearson

I'm not the sort who gets teary eyed very often but the beauty of the Puccini aria called *Mi Chiamano Mimi* from La Boheme always gets me. It's just so beautiful that it makes me pause and wonder how anyone could have written something so wonderful. I usually have to play it at least twice before moving on in the opera. And I say that not being all that much of an opera lover.
Kevin


----------



## SONNET CLV

Anything with fresh cut onions in it.


----------



## hpowders

Any Bruckner symphony when I'm eating a hamburger with a nice big bermuda onion on it.


----------



## SixFootScowl

I don't get tears listening to classical and there is only one non-classical artist whose music can being me to tears, but since this is the classical discussion form I won't name the artist.


----------



## alan davis

Music that nearly moves me to tears is the "doof doof" crap you hear coming from young peoples cars.....n.b. my complaint is against the music not the young people.


----------



## mashoo

The end of Tristan und Isolde! Most of act 3 in fact and mainly because of the story rather than the music. XD
I feel that everything is timed perfectly in this opera, when I saw Verdi's La Traviata recently I found it hard to become emotionally involved (especially at the end) due to the lightning-speed pace of the story and simple textured music. I must say, I do find Wagner one of the composers whose music really does create an emotional impact in me more than most composers.


----------



## JustinSlick

I'm extremely new to classical, but am easily moved by music, so even as a newcomer I have a few I can name 

Ralph Vaughn Williams - The first time I heard The Lark Ascending brought tears to my eyes, but I've since realized that many of his compositions are extremely beautiful. In the right mood, I think a lot of his work could move me to tears. I read a Guardian article recently with a lot of people disparaging him for being unchallenging, but... beauty is beauty.

Two others that have moved me to tears are Copland's Appalachian Spring and Holst's Jupiter, both while I was on my bike. They have such a strong sense of place and evoke bold, sweeping imagery... I listen to a lot of music while cycling, and certain things just play off the landscape so well; I don't really know how to describe it.

Nils Frahm also moves me deeply, but that's pushing pretty far away from classical.


----------



## worov

Mozart Requiem :


----------



## PabloElFlamenco

Jeremy Marchant said:


> Music doesn't affect me in that way.
> I'm very interested in why/how it affects others; if contributors to this thread could explain what's going on for them, I'd be grateful...


I'm unabashedly sentimental, tears come (too) easily, mostly related to news, or events, sometimes literature, occasionally music. I know it doesn't mean as much as some would attribute to the phenomenon: a sentimental person is no better than a taciturn being. But other than inducing sentimentality, music can somtimes be extremely uplifting, a sense of glory, even power, in certain cases, may pervade the listener. And Bach could be capable of instilling a sense of religiosity which, in fact, I do not posess.

This cannot be considered surprising, I assume: music is supposed to be moving, music was at times written to express power, wealth...national anthems... and reflect upon the person, usually a prince, king, emperor (or windbag) who commissioned the music in the first place (in the days when that was still done). Hymns to joy can also be misapportioned...

Paul


----------



## Rhombic

I may sound like a maniac, and I am perfectly conscious about this, when I repeat this name so much, but I had some sort of epiphany with it and I consider this symphony to be a description of my ideas and feelings... a kind of self-realisation. It is not strange, therefore, that it will bring tears to my eyes at many points.

Yes, I'm talking about Lyatoshynsky's 3rd Symphony.


----------



## BensonhoistLesbianChoir

"Requiem". I have no idea who composed it, and it's driving me crazy. I remember listening to a piece called "Requiem" a few years ago and being very moved by it... It actually brought tears to my eyes, and I can't for the life of me recall who the composer it. I wish I could find it again!


----------



## SixFootScowl

BensonhoistLesbianChoir said:


> "Requiem". I have no idea who composed it, and it's driving me crazy. I remember listening to a piece called "Requiem" a few years ago and being very moved by it... It actually brought tears to my eyes, and I can't for the life of me recall who the composer it. I wish I could find it again!


 Maybe Brahm's German Requiem? Try it, the full performance is on You Tube.


----------



## violadude

BensonhoistLesbianChoir said:


> "Requiem". I have no idea who composed it, and it's driving me crazy. I remember listening to a piece called "Requiem" a few years ago and being very moved by it... It actually brought tears to my eyes, and I can't for the life of me recall who the composer it. I wish I could find it again!


That could be any number of pieces because Requiem is just the name of the Catholic Mass for the Dead, which is a liturgy set that many composers set music to.

But my suspicion is that it may have been the one by Mozart.

Specifically this section:






If not, other composers who wrote Requiems include:

Brahms (as mentioned above)
Berlioz
Faure
Verdi
Schumann 
Dvorak

And Karl Jenkins, but I seriously question the "classicalness" of his requiem.


----------



## Clothes Optional

Might be Durufle's. It moves me to tears at least the first time I heard it. See if it rings a bell:


----------



## mikey

Pieces that have had me in tears - 
VW 5 1st and 3rd movt
Liebestod
Mahler 8 1st mov

Many more for the goose bump quota.


----------



## hpowders

Clarification, please:

Tears, as in, "Oh no, not THAT again!!!

Tears as in "Wow!! That's fantastic!!"

I've been known to "go both ways."


----------



## BaronScarpia

Ruhe sanft from Mozart's opera Zaide made me cry a few weeks ago. With some pieces, it depends on the musician. For instance, I cried at a recording of Casta diva made by Callas quite early on in her career, but not at any of Joan Sutherland's renditions - which is odd, seeing as I adore Sutherland and usually can't stand Callas!

The most recent piece for me was Canteloube's Baïlèro, sung by Victoria de los Ángeles. That lachrymose oboe solo gets me every time...


----------



## hpowders

Richard Wagner, Die Walküre, Act One
Lauritz Melchior, Lotte Lehmann, Emanuel List
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Bruno Walter

By the time that great cello solo comes just after the beginning of act one symbolizing the yearning of Sieglinde for Siegmund, I'm gone. Get out the tissues!

This is a wonderful performance from 1935, miraculously transferred from the 78's by Arkadia.


----------



## Orfeo

Rhombic said:


> I may sound like a maniac, and I am perfectly conscious about this, when I repeat this name so much, but I had some sort of epiphany with it and I consider this symphony to be a description of my ideas and feelings... a kind of self-realisation. It is not strange, therefore, that it will bring tears to my eyes at many points.
> 
> Yes, I'm talking about Lyatoshynsky's 3rd Symphony.


The climax in the finale is truly inspiring. This symphony is truly a masterpiece.


----------



## Rhombic

dholling said:


> The climax in the finale is truly inspiring. This symphony is truly a masterpiece.


It is nice to see that I'm not the only one who appreciates the composition skills of this great musician. There is so little information about him available in the Internet that I thought that trying to tell people about this symphony would be really interesting and practical.


----------



## Orfeo

Rhombic said:


> It is nice to see that I'm not the only one who appreciates the composition skills of this great musician. There is so little information about him available in the Internet that I thought that trying to tell people about this symphony would be really interesting and practical.


Surprisingly, there is little information of Lyatoshynsky, despite him being deemed "The Father of Ukrainian Contemporary Music." He was (and still is) indeed on par with Myaskovsky, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, and to some extent Shebalin, in the matter of importance in Soviet musical development. The Marco Polo recordings of his Symphonies (and Grazyna) are indeed revelations.

I could go on in bringing up so many little known yet important Ukrainian composers (Lysenko, Dankevich, Revutsky, Maiboroda) and composers that made up the former satellite nations (Kapp, Lemba, Amirov, et al.). But I digress. I might start a thread on this topic.


----------



## Cheyenne

Rhombic said:


> I may sound like a maniac, and I am perfectly conscious about this, when I repeat this name so much, but I had some sort of epiphany with it and I consider this symphony to be a description of my ideas and feelings... a kind of self-realisation. It is not strange, therefore, that it will bring tears to my eyes at many points.
> 
> Yes, I'm talking about Lyatoshynsky's 3rd Symphony.


Well, you've certainly intrigued me!


----------



## SiegendesLicht

Die Meistersinger von Nuernberg, in spite of being such a joyful and lighthearted opera, has a moment that makes me shed a tear almost every time. It is the horn solo in the prelude to Act III. All the sadness and longing of the world sounds in it.


----------



## Symphonical

No piece of music, as of yet, has ever made me tear up but there are selected pieces that, to me, are so astonishingly beautiful, that I cannot do anything else but listen with every cell in my body, as if two ears just aren't enough with which to listen. 
The 'Adagietto' from Mahler V and Mozart's 'Ave Verum Corpus' are some on my list already mentioned. I'd like to add the 'Andante Moderato' from Mahler's 6th. 'Adagio Sostenuto' from Rachmaninoff's 2nd PC. The 'Chaconne' from Bach's Violin Partita No. 2 really makes my heart sing when those chromatically rising arpeggios kick in. Certain phrases and climaxes from Bach's Die Kunst der Fuge/Art of Fugue are terribly dramatic and melodic. I also find that the 'Benedictus' from Karl Jenkins' Requiem is so moving and passionate. The solo cello line is drugs for me.


----------



## Huilunsoittaja

A new addition to this long-lost thread:






I will be performing this with harp (as is originally composed) in a few weeks... I now want to use it for the encore of my own senior recital when I have it next year, if I can get the music... and if I can handle it emotionally... </3


----------



## Anderjohn

For me it's Faure's Requiem. I usually listen to the Carlo Maria Giulini Philharmoia Orchestra recording once a month. Just to stay on track.


----------



## hpowders

The first 5 minutes or so of Copland's Appalachian Spring Suite, ONLY as performed by Leonard Bernstein conducting the NY Philharmonic.


----------



## Guest

La Deploration de la mort de Johannes Ockeghem ( Hilliard) The ballades opus 10 of Brahms played by Michelangeli and The Lark ascending, Vaughan Williams and academy/Marriner


----------



## Vesteralen

There remains only one such work that moves me every time - Brahms' A German Requiem. I said it before, and nothing's changed. It even got to me as the background music in *Endeavor: Season Two: Episode 1*.


----------



## stevens

Yuja Wang playing Rachmaninoffs third pianoconcert (live in Dresden) ....how wonderful!


----------



## DeepR

Scriabin Piano Concerto - Movement 2: Andante. The repeat of the main theme near the end (the recording with Ashkenazy as conductor is best). I recently listened to it in the morning while going to work, looking out the train window at the beautiful sunrise outside and it was just perfect. If that isn't one of the most sublimely beautiful, straight from the heart moments in music, then I don't know what is.


----------



## composira

Josef Suk's Fairy Tale. The violin solo just soars.


----------



## ClassicalMusicYouTube

Grieg - The Death of Ase; It's so simple, could be the music of a sad movie scene.


----------



## SixFootScowl

violadude said:


> That could be any number of pieces because Requiem is just the name of the Catholic Mass for the Dead...


With the exception that Brahms German Requiem is not a mass for the dead. Instead it is meant as comfort for the bereaved.


----------



## trazom

None, music that I find moving goes deeper than making me cry. It's hard to explain, but music has made me laugh out loud before: Haydn, Mozart's A Musical Joke, finale of Beethoven's 5th, etc...


----------



## musicrom

I don't think I've ever cried while listening to music, but I recently went to a concert of Sibelius's _Pelléas et Mélisande_ that was quite moving. The final movement, "The Death of Mélisande" was especially moving, the motif repeating over and over, feeling like the remembrance of a lost one.


----------



## brotagonist

Mahler's Symphony 8

I had it playing at my father's funeral. That was a sly way of getting to like it  since it was always my least favourite of Mahler's symphonies. I used to feel there was too much singing, so I have given it a personal meaning to me.


----------



## kirsten

For me it's Verklärte Nacht, Berceuse from The Firebird, Pines of Rome: Pines Near a Catacomb, and Arthur Honegger's Symphony No. 3, Movement 2. All very beautiful pieces of music in my opinion.


----------



## Figleaf

Francesco Tamagno singing 'Si, pel ciel' with an unknown baritone- a recording lost and unknown for more than a century, until it turned up in 2007. I never ever thought I would live to hear a new Tamagno recording. I have to listen to it very sparingly because it has such a powerful emotional impact and I don't want to be a gibbering wreck when the kids are around!


----------



## Wolfie

Beethoven, op. 132, 3rd mvt., Heiliger Dankgesang

I cry every time.


----------



## hpowders

The final 15 minutes or so of Mahler's Eighth Symphony played by the Vienna Philharmonic with vocal forces under Pierre Boulez.


----------



## Jobis

Most of the musical moments that resonate emotionally with me are operatic.



Xaltotun said:


> Das Rheingold - when the Rheingold is exposed and the river maidens exalt it. It's sort of a religious experience for me, I think.
> Die Walküre - anything that Siegmund sings. I just identify with the guy rather strongly.


Yes the 'Rheingold' ecstatic exclamation is my favourite part of the whole opera, the orchestration is perfect.

Also Siegfried's death (funnily enough not the funeral march, but the scene preceding it) as he recalls the woodbird's song and Brunnhilde. Those huge chords that resound with every phrase he utters in his dying breath 'Brunnhilde!.. Heilige Braut!.. '

Tristan's death gets me often, as does his 'o konig...' aria from Act II, a kind of supplication at the feet of king Marke.

Various moments in Stravinsky's Oedipus Rex are so pathetic they bring tears to my eyes; Oedipus's aria 'Invidia Fortunam odit' is so gushing and melodramatic, but deliberately so, and it captures the desperation and pathos of this falling hero with a degree of irony and detachment which is unbearable, emotionally; it cuts to the core.

I don't know where to start with Mozart... Cosi and Figaro, wow!

Once in a while pieces of absolute music make me cry at their beauty, but that is a different kind of emotion which is hard to explain. I can tell from this thread I'm not alone in that respect.


----------



## Woodduck

Refice's _Ombra di nube_ sung by Claudia Muzio:






Gastaldon's _Musica proibita_ sung by Enrico Caruso:






I confess: I'm cheating a little here. It's the amazing renditions by two of my singing gods that bring out all these songs have to give. Sung like this they seem to me the most beautiful music on earth.


----------



## Wiglaf

I haven't heard enough classical music yet (and don't cry nearly enough) to make a final decision, but I'd say most of Schubert's Winterreise, lots of Tristan und Isolde and "Erbarme dich mein Gott", an aria from Bach's St. Matthew's Passion and the most beautiful piece of religious music ever written. It captures the longing for Christ, for unity, for peace in a world of chaos so magnificently...


----------



## hpowders

I'm bringing this one back again:

"Taxman" by the Beatles on April 15th, tax day in the US. Always brings tears.


----------



## KenOC

hpowders said:


> I'm bringing this one back again:
> 
> "Taxman" by the Beatles on April 15th, tax day in the US. Always brings tears.


One of my favorites! But is it classical music? :lol:

May be, overall, the best Beatles album.


----------



## Tricky Fish

I'm glad I'm not the only one who is often moved to tears by music. It's an interesting phenomenon that I don't fully understand.

With live music, it happens to me all the time (a bit embarrassing at times). And sport and fireworks displays ... something about the collective conscious being united. With recorded music, I need to be in the right mood. So it doesn't happen every time.

I'm brought tears by many pieces of classical music, including those previously listed, but it happens more with simple beautiful vocal music: like "Blue" by Joni Mitchell; or "Innan Du Gar" by Theresa Andersson. The later is an interesting example because it's sung in another language, but the voice carries so much emotion that I understand what is being said.


----------



## hpowders

The andante moderato movement from the Mahler 6 as performed by the Vienna Philharmonic under the direction of Leonard Bernstein.


----------



## Stavrogin

Well it's not that I literally cry every time I hear it, but I find this piece particularly touching.
As a consequence (or maybe a cause), I picked it as one of the pieces to be played during my wedding (but to be honest I didn't even notice it when it actually occurred ).

Gluck's melodie from the Dance of the Blessed Spirits.


----------



## dgee

Not without the tenor tho. I love that this vid has musicians as I know them - civvies and just doin the music!

There are others too - the potential for tears is always a result of an actual real life association with actual real life emotion. I can't see why I'd cry for unassocaited dots on a page no matter how much I love it. Maybe the tears will gush when I hear Repons live for the first time?


----------



## hpowders

The first five minutes or so of Copland's Appalachian Spring gets me most times I hear it.


----------



## Nocturne

Rachmaninoff - Symphony No. 2
Shostakovich - Symphony No. 11 (especially the third movement)
Dvorak - Symphony No. 9 (parts of the first and second movement mostly)
Ravel - Pavane pour une enfante defunte
Holst - Neptune, the Mystic from The Planets
Bartok - Wooden Prince
Myaskovsky - Symphony No. 6 (parts of it at least)


----------



## satoru

Maybe a strange piece to tear with but I cannot stop breaking into tears listening to this piece.

Honegger: Une cantate de Noël (Christmas Cantata), 1953

Hobegger's last composition, finished after he fell ill from heart problem. The piece starts with dark, dark dissonance on organ, followed by chorus and orchestra. A critic described it as a portrayal of World Wars the composer lived through. The critic continued: "During the WWI, there was a voluntary truce and no fire was exchanged on the Eve of the Christmas. Over the quiet camps, a thin voice singing a Christmas carol can be heard. The voice is joined by others, singing carols from their own countries. The voices fill the air then subside back into to a peaceful silence. This piece is Honegger's praise to the humanity." 
Honegger actively served in Swiss army during WWI, but I'm not sure whether he was there where those historical events happened (those were happened mainly between British and Germany armies, but the Western front lines did run to Swiss).

For who ever curious enough to listen to the music, my recommendation among available YouTube videos is one by Dutoit conducting NHK SO in Japan (sorry, but the captions are in Japanese). Kids chorus is adorable and orchestra isn't bad, while Dutoit is Dutoit, as usual. 
Arthur Honegger: A Christmas Cantata


----------



## Ingélou

I am joining this thread far too late & I bet this piece has been mentioned already.
Dowland's Lachrimae, by Jordi Savall's lot:


----------



## DiesIraeCX

I usually find that music will _only_ make me tear up when I'm already feeling sad or depressed. The music only facilitates (or exacerbates) what I'm already feeling. That being said, when I'm feeling more on the "neutral" side, I still have been deeply moved by certain pieces. Moved in different ways, moved by the expression I hear, moved by how poignant or profound the music is to me, or "cerebrally" moved simply by how ingenious the actual music is.


----------



## Pimlicopiano

Quick first post...

Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin - Der Müller und der Bach - the heartbreaking modulation to the major in the last stanza gets me every time
Handel: Dove sei, amato bene in the version "Art thou troubled?" recorded by Kathleen Ferrier
Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde - Der Abscheid

But the strength of the reaction to all these is governed by one's overall state of feelings, as the previous poster has said. For me there are probably far more uplifting joyful moments that leave you feeling just as exalted and emotional. The "And there was Light" moment from Haydn's Creation can floor me totally.


----------



## hpowders

KenOC said:


> One of my favorites! *But is it classical music?* :lol:
> 
> May be, overall, the best Beatles album.


As a high profile poster, I'm allowed some latitude as well as a touch of poetic license. :tiphat:


----------



## Figleaf

Tricky Fish said:


> And sport and fireworks displays ... something about the collective conscious being united. With recorded music, I need to be in the right mood. So it doesn't happen every time.


You cry at firework displays but not recorded music? Maybe you could compromise with a recording of 'Smoke gets in your eyes'.


----------



## hpowders

Figleaf said:


> You cry at firework displays but not recorded music? Maybe you could compromise with a recording of 'Smoke gets in your eyes'.


Maybe the 1812 Overture. Kills two birds with one stone?


----------



## Eudokia

My first post on this great forum. A new world of classical music-talk is opening for me.

1. The orchestral music when the Knights leave after seeing the Grail in act I of 'Parsifal' (Wagner). Stunning music, especially when the clarinet makes 'that' different sounding note.
2. Vaughan-Williams - Tallis Fantasy. 
3. "So stürben wir um ewig einig ohne End..." - the singing love of Tristan and Isolde (Wagner), Act II.
4. Mahler - Symphony Nr.2, when the chorus is very soft singing growing to sound-explosion in the fifth part of this monumental symphony.
5. Puccini - Edgar Prelude to Act III and the following "Requiem"-music. Amazing!


----------



## echo

lol


----------



## Guest

Pieces I can't listen to without tears coming to my eyes? Well, the list is long, and it very much depends on how you see "tears in one's eyes". For me, I get excrutiating tears of dismay and revulsion with the following:
a) Muzak;
b) [Which kind of leads me to] Christmas compilation CDs featuring "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas..." and such like;
c) Rap;
d) Free jazz;
e) Etc.


----------



## echo




----------



## hpowders

Harry Janos Suite by Kodály....but I was peeling onions into a salad while listening.


----------



## Loge

Wagner- Die Walkure - Wotan's Farewell

The bit just after he says "one freer than I der Gott".

Music just doesn't get any better.


----------



## hpowders

Rachmaninov's Second Symphony.....while I am chopping some ripe Bermuda onions for my evening salad.

This worked so well, I'm bringing it back!!! :tiphat:


----------



## poconoron

*Mozart Figaro aria act IV - "Contessa perdono"*

The ultimate aria of reconciliation from Mozart's Figaro - undescribeable beauty here.........


----------



## kirsten

TalkingHead said:


> Pieces I can't listen to without tears coming to my eyes? Well, the list is long, and it very much depends on how you see "tears in one's eyes". For me, I get excrutiating tears of dismay and revulsion with the following:
> a) Muzak;
> b) [Which kind of leads me to] Christmas compilation CDs featuring "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas..." and such like;
> c) Rap;
> d) Free jazz;
> e) Etc.


Aww, you don't like free jazz?


----------



## hpowders

The only piece I can listen to and achieve the desired effect without any help from the onions is the second part of Mahler's Symphony No. 8.


----------



## andyadler

Strauss's "Four Last Songs," with either Schwarzkopf/Szell or Janowitz/Karajan. I guess I'm a rank sentimentalist.


----------



## techniquest

> Pieces I can't listen to without tears coming to my eyes? Well, the list is long, and it very much depends on how you see "tears in one's eyes". For me, I get excrutiating tears of dismay and revulsion with the following:
> a) Muzak;
> b) [Which kind of leads me to] Christmas compilation CDs featuring "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas..." and such like;
> c) Rap;
> d) Free jazz;
> e) Etc.


Absolutely - makes one want to _tear_ ones ears off!



> Wagner- Die Walkure - Wotan's Farewell
> 
> The bit just after he says "one freer than I der Gott".
> 
> Music just doesn't get any better.


I *so* agree - musical perfection.


----------



## BaronScarpia

The Willow Song from Otello, either Verdi's or Rossini's - so far, the latter only when sung by Joyce DiDonato.


----------



## BaronScarpia

And the Baïlèro from Chants d'Auvergne. My favourite renditions:

Kate Royal





Victoria de los Ángeles





Patricia Rozario


----------



## Shibooty

Borodin's "String Quartet no. 2" 
Saint-Saëns' "Symphony no. 3" (every movement gets to me except the scherzo)


----------



## Loge

Just to pipe in again, another piece that always gets me is Brangane's Warning from Tristan und Isolde. It is so haunting, mystical and beautiful. Anyway it got me when I listened to this at the Proms the other year.


----------



## Jobis

Loge said:


> Just to pipe in again, another piece that always gets me is Brangane's Warning from Tristan und Isolde. It is so haunting, mystical and beautiful. Anyway it got me when I listened to this at the Proms the other year.


I was at that performance, terrific mezzo! And yes an incredible moment in the opera.


----------



## hpowders

The Alban Berg Piano Sonata, Opus One. However I was eating a hamburger with lots and lots of Bermuda onions on it at the time.


----------



## HaydnBearstheClock

Currently no such piece.


----------



## Dutchman

Adagio from Hammerklavier sonata.


----------



## Pugg

Nimrod from the Enigma variation by Elgar


----------



## hpowders

When the radio announcer says "and now we'll listen to the Schubert String Quintet in C Major", I usually cry hysterically.


----------



## EDaddy

The Andante from this his specific performance destroys me every time I hear it and has since the first time I heard it when I was 11. Oddly, other versions of this same piece do not hit me the same way. There are certainly some other really good versions but nothing tops this one. The heavens opened on this particular day with Szell, Casadesus and the CSO and the angels poured forth!


----------



## hpowders

Berg's Piano Sonata.....of course I was peeling onions at the time.


----------



## CypressWillow

The Finale of Der Rosenkavalier. The bittersweet beauty of the Marschallin bidding farewell to her much-younger lover and turning away from her own viability in order to allow him the joy of his touching true love. Youth calls to youth, the story of this Finale, so beautifully expressed in some of Strauss's finest writing, has meaning for us at any age, and is especially poignant for those of us at a certain *sigh* age. 
I can't imagine a lovelier performance than this:

[yt] 



[/yt]

It's almost impossible for me not to shed a tear as she turns and walks away, and at the joy in Octavian's eyes as he realizes what is happening.


----------



## Marschallin Blair

CypressWillow said:


> The Finale of Der Rosenkavalier. The bittersweet beauty of the Marschallin bidding farewell to her much-younger lover and turning away from her own viability in order to allow him the joy of his touching true love. Youth calls to youth, the story of this Finale, so beautifully expressed in some of Strauss's finest writing, has meaning for us at any age, and is especially poignant for those of us at a certain *sigh* age.
> I can't imagine a lovelier performance than this:
> 
> [yt]
> 
> 
> 
> [/yt]
> 
> It's almost impossible for me not to shed a tear as she turns and walks away, and at the joy in Octavian's eyes as he realizes what is happening.


Oh absolutely!

But you know what part really slays me?-- is toward the end of Act I where the Marschallin-- in this case I have Elisabeth Schwarzkopf firmly in mind-- is looking in the mirror in her boudouir, soliloquizing to herself with this sighing _Innigkeit_ about how her beauty days are numbered.

Schwarzkopf's characterization of the Marschallin's vulnerability, Karajan's perfect chamber-like, bittersweet balancing of orchestral accompaniment-- I, I. . . just don't even have words for how exquisitely-sublime the experience is for me.

Anyway, right on! _;D_


----------



## hpowders

The collected compositions of Pierre Boulez at the height of the allergy season.


----------



## Wandering

hpowders said:


> The collected compositions of Pierre Boulez at the height of the allergy season.


The mountain cedar is horrible here.


----------



## hpowders

Clovis said:


> The mountain cedar is horrible here.


Excellent! I'll bring the Boulez! :cheers:


----------



## Badinerie

Kathleen Ferrier singing 'What is Life' Gluck. Almost hurts, but most of the way through 'La Boheme' I'm a mess!
I remember watching it live outside the ROH on a big screen in the 1980's in a large crowd Everyone was in tears by the end.
I was so upset a nice young lady from Clapham had to take me home and give me a nice strong cup of tea...............


----------



## shangoyal

The opening mov of the B flat sonata by Schubert. Wow, one of the great great pieces of music.


----------



## Triplets

Manxfeeder said:


> I have a recording of Ravel's Pavanne - can't recall which off the top of my head - but the last time the theme comes in, it always brings misty eyes.


The Concerto For Raw Onion and Dicer by little known Neopolitan Composer Whazzamattayou always makes me tear up.


----------



## hpowders

Schubert's Ninth Symphony at the height of the allergy season.


----------



## scratchgolf

All your jokes aside, I consider Schubert's 9th Symphony, and his String Quintet to be two of the finest works in the Classical Music canon. Both are extremely diverse and moving. The tumultuous opening movement of the 9th Symphony is a roller coaster of emotions. The horns blare with ominous foreshadowing. The strings haunt with their beautiful melodies. The 2nd movement of the String Quintet? What more could one ask for? With both pieces, the highs are incredibly high. The lows reach the saddest and most desolate of human spirit. True indications of the genius, and despair that was Schubert. I'd put Schubert 9, Schubert's String Quintet, and Schubert's 14th String Quartet up against any three compositions by any composer in the history of music. Insulting them for shock value may be fun and rewarding for short term self satisfaction but the enjoyment of these three works of genius will last me a lifetime. The absence of any one of these works would surely move me to tears. Certainly, I'm not alone in these thoughts.


----------



## trazom

scratchgolf said:


> All your jokes aside, I consider Schubert's 9th Symphony, and his String Quintet to be two of the finest works in the Classical Music canon. Both are extremely diverse and moving. The tumultuous opening movement of the 9th Symphony is a roller coaster of emotions. The horns blare with ominous foreshadowing. The strings haunt with their beautiful melodies. The 2nd movement of the String Quintet? What more could one ask for? With both pieces, the highs are incredibly high. The lows reach the saddest and most desolate of human spirit. True indications of the genius, and despair that was Schubert.* I'd put Schubert 9, Schubert's String Quintet, and Schubert's 14th String Quartet up against any three compositions by any composer in the history of music. *Insulting them for shock value may be fun and rewarding for short term self satisfaction but the enjoyment of these three works of genius will last me a lifetime. The absence of any one of these works would surely move me to tears. Certainly, I'm not alone in these thoughts.


I agree with this 66.6666666(...)percent. I still enjoy the 9th, but it doesn't thrill me quite as much as the Unfinished Symphony. Though, someone does cough audibly during the second movement of the recording for his 9th that I have, maybe that's why I don't listen to it as much as the other.


----------



## hpowders

Schubert's Unfinished symphony during pollen season.


----------



## DiesIraeCX

I heard this phrase used today in conversation, "_Beating A Dead Horse_". What does it mean?

For the thread topic, I've stated already that it does depend on how I'm already feeling. But some works are the 3rd Movement of Beethoven's _15th String Quartet_, Mahler's _Adagietto_, the opening of Mahler's 9th, and only a couple others. The list isn't long and aren't really "tear jerkers", they're just beautiful works!


----------



## KenOC

"beat/flog a dead horse: to attempt to revive a discussion, topic, or idea that has waned, been exhausted, or proved fruitless." Like talking about Wagner and anti-Semitism I suppose.

It seems people used to beat horses to make them haul a cart or whatever. Nice.


----------



## hpowders

Seriously, I've yet to have any piece of music bring tears to my eyes. I ain't that weak.

Movies though...I'm a sentimental fool.


----------



## shangoyal

Also, the opening movement of the Jupiter Symphony brings me copious tears of joy.


----------



## Guest

Before I had a child, I could listen to Ravel's "Pavane pour une infante defunte" and simply think it's a lovely piece. Now when I listen I think of what it is about. Then I imagine how I would feel at the funeral of my own baby and I burst into tears.


----------



## hpowders

Music doesn't make me well up with tears, but the most poetic, passionate, "emotional" music for me are:

Copland Appalachian Spring

Mahler Symphony No. 8 second part

Bach, Well-Tempered Clavier, both books

Mozart Piano Concertos No.'s 23 and 27

Beethoven A minor String Quartet slow movement

Mahler Symphony No. 10 slow movement

Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4

Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3

Bartok Violin Concerto No. 2

Ives Concord Piano Sonata

Ives Symphony No. 3


----------



## Albert7

Crying hmmm... as a kid I used to cry to Beethoven's 9th Symphony and Mahler's 5th Symphony. Very riveting.

I wish that in my middle age that I stop overanalyzing the music and get into the groove emotionally with the pieces I listen to.


----------



## Figleaf

Jerome said:


> Before I had a child, I could listen to Ravel's "Pavane pour une infante defunte" and simply think it's a lovely piece. Now when I listen I think of what it is about. Then I imagine how I would feel at the funeral of my own baby and I burst into tears.


Before I had a son I could listen to Alessandro Moreschi and not get (too) weirded out. Those days are gone!

It is strange how even the thought of bad stuff happening to children, even in the distant past, makes us imagine how terrible it would be if something similar happened to our own. Hopefully it makes us more empathetic people.


----------



## hpowders

Myaskovsky Sixth Symphony while I was dicing onions.


----------



## Guest

I know, I've posted this before, but listen to this JS Bach cantata (*at the 5-minute mark*) for the exquisite dissonances between the solo 'cello and alto & tenor voices that are like drops of blood squeezed from tortured flesh (BWV 4): 




PS: Don't be put off by the silly "cup cake" image accompanying this YouTube extract.


----------



## scratchgolf

hpowders said:


> Myaskovsky Sixth Symphony while I was dicing onions.


This is an interesting regurgitation of a joke you've made multiple times. Interesting because you admitted to never listening to it. Perhaps it's time for that first go. You might just surprise yourself and be moved to tears.


----------



## EDU

> I really do think the most perfect melody ever written is the Adagio of the Pathetique sonata... I think there are works with more bite, or more interesting developments, but that melody is as perfect as a human being will ever write.


I agree with that entirely. The initial exposition of that melody (and every note of its counterpoint) is indescribably perfect, and always moves me to tears. I always feel vaguely let down by the rest of the Adagio because of course nothing can match the utter perfection of that opening. Elgar's Nimrod Variation, which of course alludes to Beethoven's melody, is another that moves me deeply and is probably more consistent from start to finish but in some ways just teases with that melodic reference.


----------



## hpowders

Schubert's C Major String Quintet at the height of allergy season.


----------



## Andreas

The only thing that comes to mind is Schubert's Ave Maria, particularly the entry of the singer. Differs from version to version, but if it's there, I can't help it.


----------



## gHeadphone

I found the choral piece Spared by Howard Goodall moves me not to tears but to actual sobbing. It is based on a poem by Wendy Cope about 911 and is incredible.

Loads of non classical stuff, but hopefully ill redress the balance as i get deeper into this new classical obsession


----------



## 20centrfuge

Barber: Symphony no1
Faure: Requiem
Elgar: Enigma Variations

These three always seem to get me.


----------



## Azol

Mahler 9 Finale as performed by Abbado/Lucerne
La Fanciulla del West, Act III Finale
La Boheme, grand love duet in Act I
L'assedio di Corinto, 'Giusto ciel' as performed by Sills

Guess it's the power of human voice mostly.


----------



## manyene

Any number of Cello Concertos, an instrument that intrinsically conveys sadness: Dvorak, Elgar, Finzi, Martinu 1, Rautavaara 1, Philip Glass.


----------



## ArtMusic

Middle movement of Bach's double violin concerto. The single most perfect violin concerto slow movement ever written by mankind.


----------



## hpowders

The first movement of the Sibelius Violin Concerto with Hilary Hahn.

So depressingly slow, the tears were welling up from my being depressed.

Excruciating!!


----------



## Dim7

If I was more sentimental person, I could imagine Parsifal prelude, 3th movement of Rachmaninoff's 2nd symphony and the slow beginning of Sibelius 7th symphony might do the trick.


----------



## hpowders

Schubert's B Flat Major Piano Sonata while I'm peeling a nice big fat bermuda onion.


----------



## Gaspard de la Nuit

I The girl with flaxen hair, especially arranged for other instrumentation. This one works really powerfully on my emotions.

Final movement of Sibelius 5.

Maybe the Jupiter movement from the planets.


The lark ascending, middle movement of tuba concerto, 1st symphony first movement, Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Signore ascolta aria from turandot.

Guess I'm generic, oh well.

Oh, and I guess it would be an exaggeration to say that they are always tear-inducing for me, but they have been at some point.


----------



## hpowders

Gaspard de la Nuit said:


> I The girl with flaxen hair, especially arranged for other instrumentation. This one works really powerfully on my emotions.
> 
> Final movement of Sibelius 5.
> 
> Maybe the Jupiter movement from the planets.
> 
> The lark ascending, middle movement of tuba concerto, 1st symphony first movement, Ralph Vaughan Williams.
> 
> Signore ascolta aria from turandot.
> 
> Guess I'm generic, oh well.
> 
> Oh, and I guess it would be an exaggeration to say that they are always tear-inducing for me, but they have been at some point.


The girl with flaxen hair. Jascha Heifetz had a fine performance of it, arranged for violin.


----------



## brotagonist

Biber's Rosenkranzsonaten.

While I have Holloway's recording, the cover of Manze's is etched in my mind, when I hear the music:









The red rose is a symbol for my other Oma, my great grandmother, whose favourite flower it was.


----------



## jtbell

Mahler's 4th, end of the final movement. The Raskin/Szell/Cleveland version is the one I came to know it by.

_Die englischen Stimmen
Ermuntern die Sinnen
Daß alles für Freuden erwacht.
_


----------



## BermondseySE1

Barber: Knoxville Summer of 1915

_One is my mother who is good to me. One is my father who is good to me. By some chance, here they are, all on this earth; and who shall ever tell the sorrow of being on this earth, lying, on quilts, on the grass, in a summer evening, among the sounds of the night. _

...especially the Leontyne Price recording...


----------



## Ingélou

Vivaldi's Stabat Mater
Carolan's Farewell to Music
'When I am laid in earth... remember me' from Purcell's Dido & Aeneas
Purcell's Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary
Schubert's Ave Maria
Beniamino Gigli sings Cottrau's "Santa Lucia" - from childhood, because I was told that he'd died


----------



## Heliogabo

The finale of Bruckner's 8th


----------



## Baregrass

BermondseySE1 said:


> Barber: Knoxville Summer of 1915
> 
> _One is my mother who is good to me. One is my father who is good to me. By some chance, here they are, all on this earth; and who shall ever tell the sorrow of being on this earth, lying, on quilts, on the grass, in a summer evening, among the sounds of the night. _
> 
> ...especially the Leontyne Price recording...


Leontyne Price, what a great voice!


----------



## Baregrass

Barber's Adagio
Albinoni's (Giazotto's) Adagio
Dolly Parton's "Coat of Many Colors"


----------



## Adam Weber

Shostakovich's 14th Symphony ruined me once. Haven't listened to it since. Perfect music from the pits of hell. I didn't so much cry as slowly recoil. Beautiful music, but I can't take it. Too much, too much! When you gaze into Shostakovich, Shostakovich gazes also into you...


----------



## hpowders

The second movement of the Sibelius Violin Concerto performed by Hilary Hahn.


----------



## TwoPhotons

The ending of the 1812 Overture always gets to me (Bernstein's NYPO recording)


----------



## vamei

Shostakovich - Piano Concerto No. 2: II. Andante


----------



## helenora

something by Rachmaninoff, in minor key. His music is quite depressing...even though I've heard different opinion about it...being said it's powerful and energetic...well, it is powerful yet many of his compositions are extremely depressing. They don't make me cry but they could.


----------



## PlaySalieri

Callas singing O Mio Babino Caro

nobody else - cant listen to anyone else singing this song


----------



## Prat




----------



## Steve Mc

"Gratias agimus tibi" from Bach's B minor Mass.
Bach's _Chaconne_

_Remembrances_ from Schindler's List by John Williams.


----------



## Baregrass

Barber's Adagio. Wonderful! Saw I already posted on this! Oh well, at least I am consistent.


----------



## Pat Fairlea

vamei said:


> View attachment 104739
> 
> 
> Shostakovich - Piano Concerto No. 2: II. Andante


Me too.
Reminds me of an old friend.


----------



## MusicSybarite

Sad pieces would be the easy choices. Nevertheless, pieces of great beauty bring tears to my eyes as well. Three pieces that never cease to move me are Respighi's San Gregorio Magno from Vetrate di Chiesa, Alwyn's Lyra Angelica, and the ending from the Sibelius's 2nd symphony. Music of ineffable loveliness.


----------



## Phil loves classical

For me, some of the simpler music is most moving. Vivaldi's Spring 2nd movement, Ravel's Pavane, Saint Saens the Swan. Also Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake Scene.


----------



## Mozart555

The final trumpet chorale of Mahler's 3rd.


----------



## Brahmsian Colors

Portions of the adagietto from Mahler's Fifth Symphony and the adagio from Rachmaninoff's Second Symphony, each for different reasons.


----------



## Roger Knox

_Song:_ L'invitation au voyage by Henri Duparc; Morgen by Richard Strauss; Das verlassene Magdlein by Hugo Wolf. _Piano:_ Impromptu in G-flat Major by Franz Schubert played by Maria Joao Pires; Barcarolle by Frederic Chopin played by Dinu Lipatti.

Etude op. 25, No. 1 ("Harp") played by great artists of the past on scratchy old 78rpm recordings -- I mention this wondering if anyone else gets this emotional upheaval from archival piano recordings with a bit of flutter in the tone -- or is it "just" nostalgia?


----------



## DeepR

Scriabin - Sonata No. 3 - Andante

Possibly the most beautiful moment in all late romantic solo piano music. I also feel it is a turning point of some kind, because after the transitional 4th sonata it's the 5th where his music clearly went in other (great) directions.


----------



## Urban Strata

A few:

Adams _On the Transmigration of Souls_
Adams _The Dharma at Big Sur_
Beethoven String Quartet 15, Op. 132
Bruckner 9
Górecki 3
Mahler 2
Mahler 3
Mahler 8
Mahler 9
Puccini _La bohème_
Saint-Saëns 3 (poco adagio)
Scriabin _Le Poème de l'extase_
Sibelius 7
Strauss _Ein Heldenleben_
Strauss _Tod und Verklärung_
Wagner _Tannhäuser_ overture

What can I say? Incredible music moves me.


----------



## hiroica

Mozart555 said:


> The final trumpet chorale of Mahler's 3rd.


Same here. If you haven't heard it already you need to listen to Abbado's live performance on YouTube. It's one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard


----------



## Kollwitz

The end of Bruckner 5. The return of the brass chorale is completely overwhelming. Eyes water, I get shivers down my spine, breathing changes, vision loses focus briefly. An overwhelming, visceral experience. A completely indescribable emotional response, entirely derived from the music. Beautiful and euphoric doesn't really do it justice.


----------



## Urban Strata

Kollwitz said:


> The end of Bruckner 5. The return of the brass chorale is completely overwhelming. Eyes water, I get shivers down my spine, breathing changes, vision loses focus briefly. An overwhelming, visceral experience. A completely indescribable emotional response, entirely derived from the music. Beautiful and euphoric doesn't really do it justice.


I wish I could understand this (really). I've listened to all the major recordings of Bruckner 5 -- Abbado/VPO, Barenboim/BPO, Barenboim/CSO, Celi/Munich, Haitink/RCO, Jochum/BRSO, Karajan/BPO, Maazel/BRSO, and Wand/NDR -- and I just can't find the "sweet spot" that causes me to connect to the music in the same way I connect to Bruckner 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9. (Or even Bruckner 1!) Celi came closest, I suppose.

Perhaps another listening is due...


----------



## Siri von Thyssen

Mozart555 said:


> The final trumpet chorale of Mahler's 3rd.


Yes, indeed; and Urlicht from the 2nd Symphony.

Also - Händel:


----------



## Pat Fairlea

Baregrass said:


> Barber's Adagio. Wonderful! Saw I already posted on this! Oh well, at least I am consistent.


Earlier today I was listening to this in its original form as the slow movement of Barber's Op.11 String Quartet. I almost think I prefer it. The 4tet format gives a fragility and intimacy that the full string orchestra can lack.
And it's a fine 4tet.


----------



## JeffD

Saint Saen's Organ Symphony, when the long awaited organ finally takes her place on the stage. One might say all the stuff before was designed to make want that one moment, want it really badly. And then when it is delivered, you are relieved from yearning, and overawed at how it is just what you wanted (like nothing ever is just what you want), and you swallow your cheers and it comes out in tears.


----------



## JeffD

I watched a whole audience brought to tears by a performance of Beethoven's Ninth at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC). It is an outdoor venue, and many people moved in close for the last movement and were just overwhelmed. Once one person sees another tear up, its over, everyone is crying.

A beautiful moment.


----------



## Baregrass

Did he write it as a quartet? I tend to agree with you that a well played quartet version might be superior.


----------



## Baregrass

Pat Fairlea said:


> Earlier today I was listening to this in its original form as the slow movement of Barber's Op.11 String Quartet. I almost think I prefer it. The 4tet format gives a fragility and intimacy that the full string orchestra can lack.
> And it's a fine 4tet.


And since I messed up the quote---let's try again!

Did he write it as a quartet? I tend to agree with you that a well played quartet version might be superior.


----------



## Kollwitz

Urban Strata said:


> I wish I could understand this (really). I've listened to all the major recordings of Bruckner 5 -- Abbado/VPO, Barenboim/BPO, Barenboim/CSO, Celi/Munich, Haitink/RCO, Jochum/BRSO, Karajan/BPO, Maazel/BRSO, and Wand/NDR -- and I just can't find the "sweet spot" that causes me to connect to the music in the same way I connect to Bruckner 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9. (Or even Bruckner 1!) Celi came closest, I suppose.
> 
> Perhaps another listening is due...


As a novice, I found Benjamin Zander's talk/lecture that accompanies his recording of the symphony extremely interesting and accessible, yet challenging. It pointed out aspects of the structure that I would never have noticed unaided and gave the work more meaning. I don't know if this accounts for the emotional response I feel, but the sense of resolution/homecoming after an epic journey was for me, strengthened greatly by my increased understanding of it. A more advanced listener wouldn't get as much out of it though. I think his performance is good too. It's on the brisk side, but I think it works. Also, his pacing of the finale seems to integrate the return more naturally. Others may find it a bit bland and prefer a more dramatic reading.

I can't really connect to 4 or 6 as much as 5, 7, 8 or 9.


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## ShaunRoche

Shostakovichiana said:


> Shostakovich's Symphony no. 5 (3rd movement, no need to say). His 11th symphony also gives me goose bumps..
> Beethoven's Emperor Concerto I can agree on: incredibly beautiful...
> But perhaps the most sad of them all must be, again Shostakovich, Piano Concerto No. 2- II. Andante... sigh..


Interestingly, Beethoven said that (I can't remember which) one of Mozart's piano concertos was the greatest thing ever to be written by Man - but then writes the middle movement of the Emperor concerto, most likely the most beautiful and moving work ever.....


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## DeepR

DeepR said:


> Scriabin Piano Concerto - Movement 2: Andante. The repeat of the main theme near the end (the recording with Ashkenazy as conductor is best). I recently listened to it in the morning while going to work, looking out the train window at the beautiful sunrise outside and it was just perfect. If that isn't one of the most sublimely beautiful, straight from the heart moments in music, then I don't know what is.


Here's said recording. Slow movement starts at 8:22. The magic happens 15:00 -16:15.


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## DaveM

DeepR said:


> Here's said recording. Slow movement starts at 8:22. The magic happens 15:00 -16:15.


Thanks for that. I've been ignoring Scriabin unfairly.


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## Pat Fairlea

Baregrass said:


> And since I messed up the quote---let's try again!
> 
> Did he write it as a quartet? I tend to agree with you that a well played quartet version might be superior.


Yes, the Adagio started out as the slow 2nd movement of Barber's Op. 11 string quartet. He subsequently rescored the movement for full string orchestra, in which form as 'Adagio for Strings' it has become well known.
I'm certainly not dismissing the string orchestra arrangement, but there is something up close and personal about the original string quartet scoring that I love.


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## Pat Fairlea

While we're on the subject, I was listening to Richter playing Rachmaninoff's 1st piano concerto. The slow movement really is superb.


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## beetzart

Chopin's Nocturne in C minor Op. 48 No. 13. There is something so brutal and stark about this piece but I also see it as a relentless onslaught upon the senses. It breaks my heart because I can't bare to imagine what Chopin was going through to compose such a piece of music. Even though he is one of the greatest composers to have ever lived this was traded in for living that what appears to have been a brief and miserable life.


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## Baregrass

Pat Fairlea said:


> Yes, the Adagio started out as the slow 2nd movement of Barber's Op. 11 string quartet. He subsequently rescored the movement for full string orchestra, in which form as 'Adagio for Strings' it has become well known.
> I'm certainly not dismissing the string orchestra arrangement, but there is something up close and personal about the original string quartet scoring that I love.


Thanks for the info. I don't know much about him except when I first heard the Philadelphia Orchestra's version of it it I was overcome.
T


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## millionrainbows

Parts of Copland's Appalachian Spring cause me to get very emotional, even teary-eyed, at times, mostly when I am very tired.


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## Star

Some of the awful music being written today moves me to tears - that I have to listen to it


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## les24preludes

Some music is just downright spooky and makes musicians emotional. I know of an orchestral musician who ran offstage in Mahler 9 and a pianist who burst into tears after playing Schumann's Piano Concerto. Two composers who could be very near the bone. I'm quite uncomfortable listening to the last of Strauss' Vier Letzte Lieder, "Im Abendrot". Tend to avoid that one.


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## les24preludes

Dim7 said:


> If I was more sentimental person, I could imagine Parsifal prelude might do the trick.


Not when Boulez conducts it!


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## EddieRUKiddingVarese

millionrainbows said:


> Parts of Copland's Appalachian Spring cause me to get very emotional, even teary-eyed, at times, mostly when I am very tired.


Good to see your still posting here


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## mbhaub

I've read this thread over several months with interest, trying to understand what moves people so much. There are only a couple of moments in all of music that even choke me up, much less bring tears. Then today happened....

I was on a road trip and like I always do, grabbed some disks for the drive. I was listening the soundtrack of The Wizard of Oz of all things, and found myself choked up, tearful even, several times. Maybe it was memories of being a kid entranced by the film, memories of watching it with my family - all deceased now. Something sure triggered a huge emotional response. The beauty of the score? Don't know. Funny, how this 80 year old movie score affects me more than the great works of Brahms, Mahler, Elgar...


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## MusicSybarite

This kind of music touches the fibers of my soul, something that cacophonic music can't do.


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## DaveM

MusicSybarite said:


> This kind of music touches the fibers of my soul, something that cacophonic music can't do.


Yes, it's a wonderful work! And Schmidt uses it in his Fantasy for Piano & Orchestra. Start at 4:00:


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## MusicSybarite

DaveM said:


> Yes, it's a wonderful work! And Schmidt uses it in his Fantasy for Piano & Orchestra. Start at 4:00:


Yes indeed! I didn't know it. It's a gorgeous fragment, isn't it? I'll listen to the whole piece in due course.


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## Iota

hiroica said:


> Same here. If you haven't heard it already you need to listen to Abbado's live performance on YouTube. It's one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard


IF that's his 2007 Proms performance with the Lausanne Festival Orchestra, I'd concur (if it's not, I'll search it out), and it's spooky, I was about to respond to Mozart555's post to say exactly the same thing, then saw your post!

No other ensemble I've ever heard has got close to the expressivity of that final brass chorale, so quiet, almost choking with inner intensity, it's a moment scorched deep in my memory. Everybody else always seems too loud after that .. Boulez gets closest.


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## JayBee

The last several minutes of the final movement of Brahm's second symphony just about always bring tears or threat of same. Doesn't seem to matter the conductor.


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## adriesba

Lots of things.

Barber: Adagio for Strings

Beethoven: second movement from the "Emperor" piano concerto, Symphony no. 9 — third movement and several parts of the fourth movement 

Bizet: Entr'acte before Act III of Carmen 

Gorecki: Symphony no. 3 (especially the second movement)

Holst: middle section of Jupiter from The Planets 

Orff: "In trutina" from Carmina Burana 

Prokofiev: various parts of Alexander Nevsky (especially "Song about Alexander Nevsky" and "Field of the Dead")

Puccini: lots and lots. I'm still a bit intimidated to really get into Madama Butterfly or La Bohème.

Schmidt: Hallelujah chorus at the end of Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln

R. Strauss: "Of the Backworldsmen" from Also Sprach Zarathustra 

Tchaikovsky: a few short parts here and there throughout the Nutcracker. I don't know why, but for some reason this makes me more sentimental and emotional each year. Don't pick on me. 

Wagner: the first half of the overture and Rienzi's prayer from Rienzi; the beginning and ending of the overture, the first pilgrims' chorus in Act III, and the end of the opera from Tannhäuser; "War es so schmählich" and Wotan's farewell (especially the part where the orchestra restates "War es so schmählich") from Die Walküre; Siegfried's funeral march and parts of the Immolation scene from Gotterdammerung

Weber: "Und ob die Wolke" from Der Freischütz 

Probably several things I'm forgetting.


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## Dorsetmike

Just read through this complete thread and I'm surprised only one mention (by Ingélou) of Purcell's Dido's lament - "When I am laid in earth" from those first few bars on the double bass the tears start.


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## adriesba

Dorsetmike said:


> Just read through this complete thread and I'm surprised only one mention (by Ingélou) of Purcell's Dido's lament - "When I am laid in earth" from those first few bars on the double bass the tears start.


I was actually going to put that in my list and forgot. I knew something was missing!


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## Rogerx

adriesba said:


> Lots of things.
> 
> Barber: Adagio for Strings
> 
> Beethoven: second movement from the "Emperor" piano concerto, Symphony no. 9 - third movement and several parts of the fourth movement
> 
> Bizet: Entr'acte before Act III of Carmen
> 
> Gorecki: Symphony no. 3 (especially the second movement)
> 
> Holst: middle section of Jupiter from The Planets
> 
> Orff: "In trutina" from Carmina Burana
> 
> Prokofiev: various parts of Alexander Nevsky (especially "Song about Alexander Nevsky" and "Field of the Dead")
> 
> Puccini: lots and lots. I'm still a bit intimidated to really get into Madama Butterfly or La Bohème.
> 
> Schmidt: Hallelujah chorus at the end of Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln
> 
> R. Strauss: "Of the Backworldsmen" from Also Sprach Zarathustra
> 
> Tchaikovsky: a few short parts here and there throughout the Nutcracker. I don't know why, but for some reason this makes me more sentimental and emotional each year. Don't pick on me.
> 
> Wagner: the first half of the overture and Rienzi's prayer from Rienzi; the beginning and ending of the overture, the first pilgrims' chorus in Act III, and the end of the opera from Tannhäuser; "War es so schmählich" and Wotan's farewell (especially the part where the orchestra restates "War es so schmählich") from Die Walküre; Siegfried's funeral march and parts of the Immolation scene from Gotterdammerung
> 
> Weber: "Und ob die Wolke" from Der Freischütz
> 
> Probably several things I'm forgetting.


Don't spin the in one day, you be left without tears for the rest of your life.


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## adriesba

Rogerx said:


> Don't spin the in one day, you be left without tears for the rest of your life.


Just listening to one or two of some of these in a day could be too much sometimes.


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## Jim Norton

Elgar's Enigma Variation, especially Nimrod.
Rachmaninoff's Second Symphony slow movement


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## Allegro Con Brio

Final 4 minutes of Mahler's 2nd.

The first 5 minutes of Mahler 9, first movement and all of the finale.

Climax of Bruckner 7 Adagio.

Bach's "St. Anne" fugue in E flat major.

Too many Bach cantata movements to list.

Beethoven's "Heiliger Dankgesang" from the 15th quartet.

Last 5 minutes of Tristan und Isolde.

First movement from Brahms's German Requiem.

Pretty much all of both Faure and Durufle's Requiems.

No. 3 of Strauss's Four Last Songs.

The last few chords of Liszt's B Minor Sonata.

--------------------------------------------------

All of them move me for different reasons, and even if they don't bring physical tears to my eyes they at least give me goosebumps and send shivers down my spine.


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## Ariasexta

Bad music, everytime I happen to hear or ever remind myself of them, I want to cry out of misery.


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## HerbertNorman

Beethoven : Emperor concerto , allegretto of 7th symphony , 9th symphony, 14th string quartet,...
Schubert : D.960 piano sonata, String Quintet , there's quite a few Lieder too that move me (Gute Nacht in Winterreise , D827 Nacht und Träume,...)!
Schostakovich : 2nd piano concerto, slow movement
Tchaikovsky : Piano concerto , parts of Nutcracker too... 
Barber: Adagio for strings
Rachmaninov 2nd piano concerto beginning

etc.. etc...


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## MusicInTheAir

The Emperor second movement. Agreed.
Dance of the Blessed Spirits. Agreed.
The "Eroica" second movement.
The New World Symphony second movement.
Trio section of Schubert's Ninth Symphony.
The Lacrymosa from Mozart's Requiem.
"Somewhere" from Bernstein's West Side Story (I know, a musical).


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## Guest

_Chanson de l'Oignon_

The Chanson de l'Oignon ("Song of the Onion") is a French marching song from around 1800.

According to legend, it originated among the grenadiers of Napoleon's Imperial Guard. Before the Battle of Marengo, Napoleon found some grenadiers rubbing an onion on their bread. "Very good," he said, "there is nothing better than an onion for marching on the road to glory."

_J'aime l'oignon frit à l'huile,
J'aime l'oignon car il est bon.
J'aime l'oignon frit à l'huile,
J'aime l'oignon, j'aime l'oignon.

Refrain:
Au pas camarades, au pas camarades,
Au pas, au pas, au pas,
Au pas camarades, au pas camarades,
Au pas, au pas, au pas.

Un seul oignon frit à l'huile,
Un seul oignon nous change en Lion,
Un seul oignon frit à l'huile,
Un seul oignon un seul oignon

Refrain

Mais pas d'oignons aux Autrichiens,
Non pas d'oignons à tous ces chiens,
Mais pas d'oignons aux Autrichiens,
Non pas d'oignons, non pas d'oignons

Refrain

Aimons l'oignon frit à l'huile,
Aimons l'oignon car il est bon,
Aimons l'oignon frit à l'huile,
Aimons l'oignon, aimons l'oignon_

I love an onion fried in oil,
I love an onion, it's so tasty
I love an onion fried in oil,
I love an onion, I love an onion

Refrain:
In step, comrades, in step, comrades,
In step, in step, in step
In step, comrades, in step, comrades,
In step, in step, in step

Just one onion fried in oil,
Just one onion turns us into lions
Just one onion fried in oil,
Just one onion, just one onion

Refrain

But no onions for the Austrians,
No, no onions for those dogs
No onions for the Austrians,
No onions, no onions

Refrain

Love the onion fried in oil,
Love the onion, it's so tasty
Love the onion fried in oil,
Love the onion, we love an onion.


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## Tera Dactil

Gorecki 3, of course.
Prokofiev 1st violin concerto - it's not sad by any means, but i'm moved by its sheer beauty
Shostakovich 3rd string quartet - that ghostly finish gets me every time
Shostakovich 13th symphony 5th movement - see above
JS Bach Ave Maria - my wife wanted it played at her funeral.


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## Bxnwebster

Only a few of many:
⁃	Brahms: Violin sonata No. 3, 2nd movement
⁃	Elgar: Piano quintet, 2nd movement
⁃	Korngold: String quartet No. 1, 2nd movement
⁃	Korngold: Elizabeth, The Queen (from The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex)
⁃	Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2, 3rd movement
⁃	Reger: Piano quartet op. 133, 3rd movement
⁃	Reger: Concerto in the Old Style, 2nd movement (my all-time favorite piece)
⁃	Stenhammar: String quartet No. 2, 2nd movement
⁃	Stravinsky: Violin concerto, 3rd movement
⁃	Reinecke: Harp concerto, 2nd movement
⁃	Rachmaninoff: Cello sonata, 3rd movement
⁃	Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5, 3rd movement
⁃	Reger: Hiller variations, 2nd variation
⁃	Zelenka: Requiem ZWV 46, Christe eleison

*Pretty much any usage of the circle of fifths progression gets to me*


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