# Strongest Emotions



## Lisztfreak (Jan 4, 2007)

I'm quite an emotional person, though my problem is that I usually keep emotions for myself so they incline to melancholy. Music is a special thing. Evokes most powerful emotions in people, and most varied.

As certainly all of us music-lovers do, I also have some pieces that are of particular emotional strength for me. Mind sharing some of those with us?

For me, for example:

*Beethoven: *Hammerklavier Sonata, 3rd mvt. Adagio - most bitter, anguished melancholy.
*Liszt:* Consolations Nos. 3 and 4; Valse mélancolique - just calm and nostalgic profundity.
*Liszt: *Dante Symphony, 2nd mvt. Purgatory - a truly purifying 20-some minutes.
Sibelius: Symphony No.5, 3rd mvt. Allegro - an instrumental Requiem (or just the 'In paradisum' part.)
*Britten: *War Requiem, Sanctus - makes me want to make a great film about the horrors and heroism of war.
*Fauré: *Requiem, In paradisum - if such music is the music of heaven, then it really is Heaven!
*Elgar:* Elegy for Strings; Sospiri - when I listen to them at night, they leave a strong melancholic aftertaste.
*Holst:* St Paul's Suite - I feel like running out of the house and rolling in the meadows.
*Vaughan Williams: *The Lark Ascending - I want to inhale the essence of Spring.
*Schubert: *Der Einsame, D800 - I would give everyone a big kiss after hearing this.

Just a few... hope I don't sound too sentimental.

P.S. A nice, non-trivial 200th post for me!


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## Handel (Apr 18, 2007)

I rather like optimistic music who brings to me joy and exuberance (sp?). Maybe why I prefer Haydn over Mozart. Even if do not dislike dark emotions in music, I do not look specially for them. I like too the sublime in music when you feel you are in Heavens. For example, Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring from Bach or the Dance of the Blessed Spirits from Gluck.


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## robert newman (Oct 4, 2006)

Sometimes (to me) the very mention of great music and of great musicians is as wonderful as the music itself. Here are 3 statements on JS Bach which I get emotional about, even by reading them -

_1. To consider human nature until its divine attributes are made clear, to inform ordinary activities with spiritual fervor, to give wings of eternity to that which is most ephemeral; to make divine things human and human things divine - such is the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, the greatest and purest moment in music of all time._ - Pablo Casals

_2, And if we look at the works of JS Bach - a benevolent god to which all musicians should offer a prayer to defend themselves against mediocrity - on each page we discover things which we thought were born only yesterday, from delightful arabesques to an overflowing of religious feeling greater than anything we have since discovered. And in his works we will search in vain for anything the least lacking in good taste._ - Claude Debussy

3. "_She played Bach. I do not know the names of the pieces, but I recognized the stiff ceremonial of the frenchified little German courts and the sober, thrifty comfort of the burghers, and the dancing on the village green, the green trees that looked like Christmas trees, and the sunlight on the wide German country, and a tender cosiness; and in my nostrils a warm scent of the soil - and I was conscious of a sturdy strength that seemed to have its roots deep in mother earth, and of an elemental power that was timeless and had no home in space."_ - W. Somerset Maugham (from 'The Alien Corn')


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## opus67 (Jan 30, 2007)

Most recently, Elgar's cello concerto. I'm waiting to get a CD of this work.

Enjoy!


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## Guest (Jun 30, 2007)

In the "strongest emotions" department, Schubert leaves them all standing in my opinion.

Among his many single lieder there are some astonishingly beautiful pieces. There are too many to list. D 800 was mentioned earlier, but there are many others. Anyone not famliar with this genre should drop everything and get listening to some of it. 

Schubert's late piano sonatas are every bit as good as, in my opinion better than, Beethoven's. They contain some of the loveliest, most moving pieces in the whole piano repertoire. For me, at least, they reign supreme. 

I've reached this view after many previous love-affairs with other composers whom I thought at the time were invincible. It's probably best for people to discover their own path to musical Nirvana, but if anyone wants a jump start to the front of the queue go direct to Schubert.


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## robert newman (Oct 4, 2006)

I actually agree with Mango. I actually agree !!!! Schubert's late piano sonatas are truly wonderful.


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## rojo (May 26, 2006)

Wow, that`s something; Mango and robert newman agreeing! So there`s hope after all... 

I`ll probably get into big trouble for saying this, but for me, no other art form comes close to creating an emotional response such as music. Not the bard`s written or spoken word, not the artist`s canvas nor the dancer`s movements.

I like all the emotions music provides, but my favourite works are those that give me intense thrills and excitement. Followed by works of a glorious and uplifting nature. There is waaaay too much stuff to list here, but I`ll give some of my top pics. Some of you already know what works I`ll list; oh well, why should that stop me.

Debussy - La Mer. The greatest of all musical roller coaster rides of emotion.
Ravel - Daphnis and Chloe. Just the opening is enough to knock one`s socks right off. And the rest is fantastic as well.
Ravel - La Valse. The wildest and most chaotically driven waltz of all-time, hands down.
Dvorak - New World Symphony. First and last movements. Thrilling.
Stravinsky - Firebird. One of the most exciting endings of a work ever.
Shostakovich - 5th Symphony. The intensity is overpowering.


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## JohnM (Aug 12, 2006)

rojo said:


> for me, no other art form comes close to creating an emotional response such as music. Not the bard`s written or spoken word, not the artist`s canvas nor the dancer`s movements.


Could we consider music to be the most intrinsically abstract art form?


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## opus67 (Jan 30, 2007)

rojo said:


> no other art form comes close to creating an emotional response such as music. Not the bard`s written or spoken word, not the artist`s canvas nor the dancer`s movements.


I feel that way, too! There are songs where the lyrics are deeply emotional, poems that stimulate and paintings that take your breath away, but it doesn't happen always. But music does it almost every single time. And it has probably got the largest reach among the arts. There should be some definite reason behind this, but I'm not neuroscientist.


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## Guest (Jul 1, 2007)

opus67 said:


> I feel that way, too! There are songs where the lyrics are deeply emotional, poems that stimulate and paintings that take your breath away, but it doesn't happen always. But music does it almost every single time. And it has probably got the largest reach among the arts. There should be some definite reason behind this, but I'm not neuroscientist.


I had to learn this for an English Literature exam:

From Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, 1601:

DUKE ORSINO:

_If music be the food of love, play on;
Give me excess of it, that, surfeiting,
The appetite may sicken, and so die.
That strain again! it had a dying fall:
O, it came o'er my ear like the sweet sound,
That breathes upon a bank of violets,
Stealing and giving odour! Enough; no more:
'Tis not so sweet now as it was before.
O spirit of love! how quick and fresh art thou,
That, notwithstanding thy capacity
Receiveth as the sea, nought enters there,
Of what validity and pitch soe'er,
But falls into abatement and low price,
Even in a minute: so full of shapes is fancy
That it alone is high fantastical._​
It says it all for me. And this was written some 120 years before any really decent music hit the scene.


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## Leporello87 (Mar 25, 2007)

Mango said:


> And this was written some 120 years before any really decent music hit the scene.


Ever heard Perotin? He predates _Twelfth Night_ by roughly four centuries. Some quite cool stuff, definitely at least "decent."


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## Kurkikohtaus (Oct 22, 2006)

Lisztfreak said:


> *Sibelius*: Symphony No.5, 3rd mvt. Allegro - an instrumental Requiem (or just the 'In paradisum' part.)


OK, I'm going to humble myself here and ask about your "In Paradisum" reference... I'm not sure where this comes from, I have never heard of it! If this is an official Sibelian label to some theme in that movement, than I am humbled and shamed for not knowing it.

If not, and it is your idea, I am very curious and eager to hear more about this...


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## toejamfootball (Jun 27, 2007)

Thanks for the great thread.. I am somewhat like you (emotional but keep emotions to myself) ... I dont have my own list (just discovered Classical style music) but I will be glad to check out your selections!


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## Marc (Jun 15, 2007)

A 'few' came to mind:

Poulenc: Salve Regina
Mozart: Duetto "Ah perdona al primo affetto" from La Clemenza di Tito
Ouverture "Don Giovanni"
Sonata for Violin & (Forte)piano in E minor, KV 304
Bach: opening choir Johannes-Passion & Aria "Zerfließe, mein Herze..."
Choral "O Mensch, bewein dein Sünde groß" Matthäus-Passion
Cantata "Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit" BWV 106
Sarabandes from second and fifth Suite for Violoncello
Passacaglia & Fugue for organ
Händel: "I know that my Redeemer liveth" Messiah
Purcell: "When I am laid in earth" Dido and Aeneas
Byrd: "Agnus Dei" Mass for four voices
Stravinsky: Elegia for viola
Schubert: last two songs of Winterreise
Mahler: final chorus of Second Symphony
Scherzo from Fifth Symphony
First movement of Seventh Symphony
"Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen"
Tchaikovsky: Sixth Symphony, especially the final movement
Pergolesi: "Quando corpus morietur" Stabat Mater
Pärt: De profundis
Rachmaninov: "Nunc dimittis" Vespers
Duruflé: "Tota pulchra es" Quatre motets gregoriennes
Bizet: final duetto from "Carmen"

But I think there are a lot more. Later?


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## Lisztfreak (Jan 4, 2007)

Kurkikohtaus said:


> OK, I'm going to humble myself here and ask about your "In Paradisum" reference... I'm not sure where this comes from, I have never heard of it! If this is an official Sibelian label to some theme in that movement, than I am humbled and shamed for not knowing it.
> 
> If not, and it is your idea, I am very curious and eager to hear more about this...


No, no, it is nothing official. It's just my feeling about it, don't know why. Perhaps because the solemn motif in that movement resembles the calls of the cranes, and I remembered an anecdote about Sibelius seeing a flock of cranes not much before his death, after which he said 'Cranes! The birds of my youth!'.

I imagine in this movement a soul set free from the ties of a dead body (the agitated, yet merry beginning) ascending towards the Heavens (the crane motif), where it meets all those who he/she knew and loved once (the lyric melody set against the motif). Then the soul sees those who were dearest to it (a silent part with the melody) and approaches to see the Creator (the disintegrating, terrifyingly solemn coda) and in the end finally Understands the secrets of universe, revealed for him/her (the end and the most original final cadenza).


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## zlya (Apr 9, 2007)

Mango said:


> I had to learn this for an English Literature exam:
> 
> From Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, 1601:
> 
> ...


You do realize that Orsino is saying that music, like love, is sweet and fresh at first but soon becomes old and worthless. "Give me excess of it, that, surfeiting, the appetite may sicken and so die." "Enough, no more, 'tis not so sweet now as it was before." "Oh spirit of love . . . nought enters there . . . but falls into abatement and low price."

Of course, Orsino is talking about some infatuation, having not yet realized his true love for Viola. Perhaps were he thinking of dear Viola he might not tire of the music so quickly.


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## Amy (Aug 3, 2006)

> Ever heard Perotin? He predates Twelfth Night by roughly four centuries. Some quite cool stuff, definitely at least "decent."


 I completely agree with you, Leporello- Leonin is awesome too. In regard to this topic, I actually find that earlier music evokes a much more powerful emotion in me than a lot of other genres. The bareness and almost chilling barren quality of modal music is spine tingling- especially when suddenly the composer fills the bare fifths with a major or minor third. Emotionally, I never feel as close to God as when I am performing Tallis or Weelkes or Eccard. Saying that, the first time I ever heard the climax of Beethoven's 9th performed by the Orchestra Revolutionaire I felt as though a door had opened onto another plain- a plain that was filled with the most wonderful and powerful emotions imaginable. It is said that we use only a tiny portion of our brains and I definately believe that certain pieces of music strike a chord that is unreachable by anything else...


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## Mark Harwood (Mar 5, 2007)

And this was written some 120 years before any really decent music hit the scene.
(Mango)

I nearly rose to that one too.


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## Morigan (Oct 16, 2006)

What the hell?? Mango was banned? ¬_¬


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## Chi_townPhilly (Apr 21, 2007)

There is a _wide_ variety of music which affects me emotionally. Opera, having the force of words and staging behind it, has latterly been making more of an impact on me. However, since the thread has been addressing instrumental music, I thought I'd stay in that category, for consistency's sake. Two examples sprung readily to mind:

a) the opening movement of Berlioz _Symphonie Fantastique_. It places you into its swirl of a world that reminds me of W.B. Yeats turn of phrase "perne in a gyre" (i.e.: face-down on a merry-go-round).

b) people talk about the peaceful fading conclusion of Mahler's 9th, and rightfully so... but another example of peaceful terminus is the end of Saturn from Holst's _Planets_. Could this be the most underrated passage in the whole work? If you ask someone what they find memorable in _The Planets_, what are the chances that they'll mention this?!


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## Guest (Jul 10, 2007)

Sometimes, emotions are too strong, and nearly insufferable…
Mahler’s “die Kindertotenlieder”, for example, bring me such too dark feelings.


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## Leporello87 (Mar 25, 2007)

Morigan said:


> What the hell?? Mango was banned? ¬_¬


I just noticed this too. I'm not sure when it happened, but I wondered why she suddenly fell silent in the threads.

More on the topic of the thread: there's that cool part at the end of the 1st movement of the Mendelssohn Scottish Symphony, where there are these interlaced chromatic tremolo scales in the violins. I've always thought maybe these were a musical representation of fog blowing into the Scottish highlands or something. But, the way the chromatic scales weave in and out of each other, there's almost something maddening about it. Not that it would necessarily make you crazy, since the music is slightly too well-bred for that. But, if someone who was on the brink of going crazy were to listen to that part, that passage might just be the thing to push them over the edge.

I'm not sure when this situation would ever actually come up, though


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## Amy (Aug 3, 2006)

> But, the way the chromatic scales weave in and out of each other, there's almost something maddening about it.


 I guess I didn't really think of considering musical emotions like these- it's a very valuable point to make that when talking about music being emotionally inspiring it does not necessarily mean the emotion has to be a great uplifting. I went to see The Sixteen last night (who have been one of my favourite vocal groups for sometime) and accidentally burst into tears because it was just so eerily perfect and beautiful. They sang Allegri's Misereri along with some absolutely sublime works by Palestrina and Anerio. The setting was perfect- York Minster; a renaissance Cathedral of immense proportions and elaborate brilliance with beams of evening sunlight coming through the stained glass. I love the way music can touch me like nothing else can, even if I do have a very powerful reaction to it. There were about 3,000+ audience members yet I was the youngest by far and my alternative and revealing outfit drew disapproving glances. However, my only disappointment was in the faces of the audience which merely appeared full of cool, rigid 'approval'. I know it's hardly a mosh pit where you can really go for it and holler your appreciation of the band, but I can't understand how people keep their emotion so well hidden. Yet I know that the other people must have been just as affected by the music as I was- it was impossible not to be...


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## Guest (Jul 11, 2007)

Amy said:


> However, my only disappointment was in the faces of the audience which merely appeared full of cool, rigid 'approval'. I know it's hardly a mosh pit where you can really go for it and holler your appreciation of the band, but I can't understand how people keep their emotion so well hidden.


I feel the same, and rather think that it is hopeless, alas… 
Why do you think a Netrebko is so popular, and give so much emotions to her public? Is it because she sings better than a Callas or a Tebaldi? Pfff… 
Try to sing with a short night dress, the next time, and you will astonished 
by the concentration of the public…  ... :angry: ...


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## fox_druid (Feb 12, 2007)

Bach's music makes me sooo faithful. I think his music is too powerful. His St. Matthew passion really makes deep sorrow, his secular works also gives flaring spirit to me. even if it is performed plainly without any dynamic change.


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## 4/4player (Nov 17, 2006)

I believe Tchaikovsky would be good in the emotional department, especially his "Pathetique" Symphony.

Sibelius- the last movement of his Symphony No. 2, I just love the rising climax!( Kirki, did you read this?, hehe).
Handel- "Hallelujah!" Chorus from his "Messiah
I'll be sure to list anymore I come across or remember!


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## LaciDeeLeBlanc (Jul 17, 2007)

*Tchaikovsky*: Symphony no. 6 "Pathetique" (Mainly 1st movement)
*Richard Strauss*: Eine Alpensinfonie; Don Juan; Till Eulenspiegel
*Bruckner*: Symphony no. 8 (Particularly 4th movement)
*Ottorino Respighi*: Pines of Rome; Fountains of Rome; Festivals of Rome
*Dvorak*: Symphony no. 8; Symphony no. 9
*Mahler*: Symphony no. 1 "Titan"; Symphony no. 5; Lieder eines fahren Gessellen(Songs of a Wayfarer)
*Mozart*: "Lo ci darem la mano" from _Don Giovanni_; "Come mai creder deggio dalla sua pace" from _Don Giovanni_
*Leonard Bernstein*: _Candide_ (particularly "Auto da fe", "Candide's Lament", and "Make Our Garden Grow"); Symphonic Dances to _West Side Story_
*David Maslanka*: _A Child's Garden of Dreams_ for Wind Orchestra
*Eric Whitacre*: Lux Aurumque; Ghost Train; Sleep; Cloudburst
*Wagner*: The Ride of the Walkyries from _Die Walkure_; Prelude to Act III from _Lohengrin_; Sailor's Chorus from _Der Fliegende Hollander_; Overture to _Der Fliegende Hollander_; Siegfried's Funeral March from _Gotterdammerang_; Finale to _Gotterdammerang_; Overture to _Tannhauser_
*Stravinsky*: The Rite of Spring; The Firebird; Symphony of Psalms
*Holst*: _The Planets_ (particularly "Neptune: The Mystic", and "Uranus: The Magician", but truly I love all the movements)
*Orff*: Carmina Burana
*Berlioz*: Royal Hunt and Storm from _Les Troyens_
*Gershwin*: An American in Paris
*Rimsky-Korsakov*: Scheherazade
*Dan Welcher*: Minstrels of the Kells for Wind Ensemble
*Percy Grainger*: Down Longford Way; Irish Tune from County Derry; Lincolnshire Posy

All of these inspire emotion from me. Some more than others. Many of the emotions vary from passionate, elated, anxious, peaceful, powerful, ease, delight, and awe. However, my list of such works are not restricted to those above. Neither are my emotions restricted to those above. I do not believe it possible to list them all.


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## Barnali Kar (Jun 3, 2007)

> I'm quite an emotional person, though my problem is that I usually keep emotions for myself so they incline to melancholy. Music is a special thing. Evokes most powerful emotions in people, and most varied
> As certainly all of us music-lovers do, I also have some pieces that are of particular emotional strength for me. Mind sharing some of those with us?
> 
> 
> ...


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## dexter (Aug 2, 2007)

They said that music has a unique classical emotion. Whatever genre of music that we listen to affects our emotional life. Every time I listen to a song especially if the lyrics and melody are too emotional, reminds me of my past experiences. It gives me a relief from pain if I'm sad, angry or whatever feelings I have. Some music though has the power to make me feel other emotions which I have not felt before. Some people hate to listen to sad music and some do not. It is really a mystery why sad music affects our emotions.


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## Oneiros (Aug 28, 2006)

I'm overly-emotional as well, but I don't show it any more. I prefer to keep my emotions to myself, and express them through music. I remember sitting dead still through a performance of Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, though on the inside, what a profound experience!

I prefer deeply moving, predominantly dark music (all "classical"). The strong religious feeling in Bach's music really strikes a vain with me as well, mostly the minor key pieces.

Favourites:

Bach: Cello Suites, D minor Piano Concerto, various WTC preludes and fugues
Schoenberg, Transfigured Night
Brahms, D minor Piano Concerto (the first few minutes anyway...)
Messiaen - Quartet for the End of Time


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## EricIsAPolarBear (Aug 18, 2007)

Tchaikovsky's Symphony 06 and Elgar's Cello Concerto in E Minor Op. 85 are amongst the most emotional pieces that I own so far. For me there is something about string instruments that is inherently evocative.


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## opus67 (Jan 30, 2007)

EricIsAPolarBear said:


> Tchaikovsky's Symphony 06 and Elgar's Cello Concerto in E Minor Op. 85 are amongst the most emotional pieces that I own so far. For me there is something about string instruments that is inherently evocative.


Ditto that.


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## ChamberNut (Jan 30, 2007)

Some of the pieces that have almost overwhelmed me completely upon the 1st listen were:

Barber's Adagio for Strings

Beethoven - Cello Sonata No. 4 (live version with Jacqueline Du Pre and Daniel Barenboim)

Beethoven's Cavatina mvt. to String Quartet No. 13.


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## Lisztfreak (Jan 4, 2007)

Recently I've discovered some other highly emotional pieces of music.

Alkan - the violin melody in the middle section of Grand Duo Concertant.

Elgar - 2nd movement of his Piano Quintet.

Messiaen - 'In praise of the eternity of Jesus' from Quatour pour la fin du temps.

Rachmaninov - 2nd movement of Piano Concerto No.4.

Berlioz - Lacrymosa and Sanctus movements from his Requiem.

P.S. Should have posted this in the 'Today I discovered...' thread, perhaps. But then, I didn't discover it today.


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## ilikepie (Aug 27, 2007)

music that touch me...
Beethoven: Symphony No.6 "Pastoral"-- I love this one the most out of the nine
Sibelius: Violin Concerto..... So sad <3
Rachmaninov: Prelude in C#, Piano Concerto No.2 and 3
Liszt: Mazeppa, La Chasse, Liebestraume no.3, and the consolations
Brahms: Symphony No.4
HOLST: The Planets suite-- Jupiter-- makes me wanna dance around and shout with joy ^.^
Mahler: Symphony No.7
Bach: Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring
and... thats about it XD


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## Keemun (Mar 2, 2007)

Here's what I came up with:

Barber: Adagio for Strings (the climax is breathtaking)

Mahler: Symphony No. 2, 5th mvt. (very powerful)

Shostakovich: Violin Concerto No. 1, 3rd mvt. (bittersweet)

Elgar: Cello Concerto, 1st mvt. (this evokes mixed emotions)

Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending (Spring has arrived!)

Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto, 2nd mvt. (such a sweet melody)

Gorecki: Symphony No. 3, 1st mvt. (sorrowful)


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## Lisztfreak (Jan 4, 2007)

It would be time for me too to mention Elgar's Cello concerto. Beautiful.

Just listening to the Adagio of Bruckner's 7th. The sense of sorrow and lamentation brought to the most solemn possible level (expressive strings, brass fanfare).


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## Egregious Professor (Oct 23, 2007)

Barnali Kar said:


> . . . one Bengali poet-cum-musician, Rabindranath Tagore. He won the Nobel Prize for literature (lyrics of his songs) in 1913. Though his music is not pure classical but there are classical tunes (derived from Ragas) as well. His songs express varied emotions & its quite phenomenal that most of us (Bengalis) can express ourselves through the words and tune of his music almost all the time. We can express our joy, our sorrow, our anger, love, devotion and every emotion through his music. He has created waves. Some of his songs are based on western tunes also as he travelled extensively and incorporated different tunes in his songs. We call him "Gurudev".


Probably many Members will be aware that Zemlinsky's _Lyric Symphony_ is based upon seven songs from Tagore's anthology "_The Gardener_" (see >>this link<<)

We did not know that he himself was a musician, but thanks to Mr. Kar's interesting contribution we shall now seek out Tagore's songs. By the way, what does "Gurudev" mean?


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## opus67 (Jan 30, 2007)

Egregious Professor said:


> By the way, what does "Gurudev" mean?


A respectful way of addressing a teacher. (in Hindi)
Guru - Teacher
Dev - Lord


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## Guarnerius (Oct 15, 2007)

Dear Lisztfreak,


First of all, I would like to mention, what an interesting theme for discussion! And at the same time, it is so difficult to choose, they are so many.

Before listing some, I would like to advice You, dear Lisztfreak (I'm also fond of Liszt!), please don't keep Your emotions too much inside. Sooner or later You'll notice it is a great releaf when You can share Your thoughts with somebody...

So the main subject was the music with greatest emotions. For me, it is all the Romantic Era Piano, Violin and Opera music. For example Rachmaninov piano concertos (especially Nos 2+3), Chopin etc. Simply, the music, which rips off Your heart and leaves You with tears on the eyes...In Operas they are the composers like Puccini, Verdi, works like La Boheme, Butterfly, Manon Lescaut, Aida, Otello, Don Carlo etc.

My latest discovery is Ambroise Thomas: Hamlet. The French soprano Natalie Dessay is really putting her sole when performing Ophelie's mad scene. Both DVD versions existing(recorded in Paris and Barcelona, the latest) are just stunning!

Wish You All the Most Enjoyful Musical Experiences!


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## silmarillion (Oct 24, 2007)

Many pieces evoke strong emotions. For me the most powerful work is still Mozart's Requiem. The Requiem Aeternam, Kyrie fugue and Lacrymosa are overpowering some times. The Adagio for Strings (Samuel Barber) also moves me greatly, especially if performed very slowly. I can really feel every single note's emotional energy. Other pieces that I find touching are Vaughan Williams' Fantasia on theme by Thomas Tallis, and in another way, the fugal part of the finale to Beethoven's Ninth.


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## terotero (Oct 22, 2007)

Let me add Beethoven Raszumovsky quartet no1 slow movement.


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## Manuel (Feb 1, 2007)

The third movement of the Hammerklavier.


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## ChamberNut (Jan 30, 2007)

Manuel said:


> The third movement of the Hammerklavier.


Ohh yeah!  Definitely.


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## Lisztfreak (Jan 4, 2007)

Try Tippett's Concerto for Double String Orchestra, or Little Music for Strings (the Vivace section, at the end)... so much uncontained joy! Taking all the world in one big embrace!


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## Manuel (Feb 1, 2007)

ChamberNut said:


> Ohh yeah!  Definitely.


Yes. But I noticed it works better if listening to the whole sonata, and not the movement apart. The problem is it takes much more time...


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## Hexameron (Oct 7, 2006)

Dark, somber and melancholy piano music of the 19th and early 20th century is what affects me more than any other music. The following are some particular favorites:

*Liszt*

- Glanes de Woronince "Ballade ukraine"
- Harmonies Poetiques et Religieuses "Pensee des Mort" and "Andante lagrimoso"
- Both La Lugubre Gondolas
- Transcription of the Sarabande from Handel's Almira
- Symphonic Poem No. 8 Heroide Funebre (for two pianos)
- "Il Penseroso" from the 2nd Annees de Pelerinage
- "Sunt lacrymae rerum" from the 3rd Annees de Pelerinage
- Funeral Prelude and Funeral March
- Station II and VIII from Via Crucis (Liszt's piano transcription)

*Alkan*

- Prelude No. 8 Op. 31 "The Mad-Woman by the Sea Shore"
- "Mortituri te salutant" from Esquisses Op. 63
- "Gros temps" from Les Mois Op. 74
- "Le Vent" and "Morte" from Op. 15
- "Promethee enchaine" (last movement) from the Grande Sonate Op. 33
- "L'Enfer" from Grand Duo Op. 21
- "Salut, cendre du pauvre" Op. 45

*Franck*

- Prelude, Fugue and Variation Op. 18 (Bauer's piano transcription)
- "Allegretto poco mosso" from the Violin Sonata
- "Prelude" from the Prelude, Chorale and Fugue (M. 21)
- Pastorale Op. 19 (Bauer's piano transcription)

*Rachmaninov*

- "Elegie" Op. 3
- "Intermezzo-Adagio" from PC 3
- Isle of the Dead (Taubmann's two-piano arrangement)
- Etudes-Tableaux Op. 39 No. 2 in A minor and No. 7 in C minor

*Beethoven*

- "Adagio sostenuto" from the Op. 106
- "Adagio ma non troppo" from Op. 110
- "Agnus Dei" from the Missa Solemnis

*Busoni* - Fantasia nach J.S. Bach
*Schubert* - "Andantino" from Piano Sonata D. 959
*Godowsky* - Passacaglia on the Opening of Schubert's 'Unfinished' Symphony
*Scriabin* - second movement and the "Funebre" from Piano Sonata No. 1
*Stanchinsky* - "Fuga-Lento expressivo" from Piano Sonata No. 2
*Draeseke* - "Introduzione e Marcia funebre" from Piano Sonata Op. 6
*Brahms* - Ballades No. 1 and 4
*Tchaikovsky* - "Finale" from the 'Pathetique' Symphony (Niemann's piano transcription)


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## terotero (Oct 22, 2007)

Richard Strauss : Metamorphosen....very sad


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## Guarnerius (Oct 15, 2007)

To Hexameron,


I'm wordless. Just Wow! Excellent list including Master Liszt, too

Got there some fine tips, for example those rare Alkan works etc. Would be useless to start analyzing other examples detailly... Fine examples!

Have a Great Musical Experiences, U and Everybody else here!


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## Morigan (Oct 16, 2006)

Hexameron said:


> Dark, somber and melancholy piano music of the 19th and early 20th century is what affects me more than any other music.


Dear Hexameron, one could say you're like a "classical music emo"!  Haha, I mean no offense really. Thank you for the list, I'll look into some of these works.


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## alan sheffield (Oct 26, 2007)

There are a number of pieces that consistently do the emotion thing for me including:

Mahler 2nd Symphony - The last movement from the initial hushed entry of "Aufersteh'n" to the last chords. I remember seeing Berstein on TV doing this in an English cathedral in the 70's. I am an emotional wreck after this piece!

Malcolm Arnold - 5th Symphony. Last movement. The switch from brainless march to heart rending tune and descent into silence is perhaps the finest moment of this underrated composer.

Samuel Barber - 1st Symphony slow third section. 5 minutes of development of a great tune culminating in a moment of almost unbearable tension before collapsing into the finale

I also find that live music can affect me in a totally unexpected way. Music that I wouldn't listen to on record can produce a moment of emotion just by adding that live dimension. Schubert songs are not normally my cup of tea but a rendition of Standchen with guitar accompaniment in a local church was unforgettable.


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## beethoven_fan92 (Nov 15, 2007)

Beethoven: Allegretto movement, 7th symphony.   
Beethoven: "Eroica"- second movement...  
Mozart: Piano concerto no. 23. Adagio movement...
Chopin: Nocturne, op. 9, no.2.  
Liszt: Nuages gris...
Beethoven: Piano concerto no. 4, Andante con moto...
and..... Beethoven symphony no. 5........


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## beethoven_fan92 (Nov 15, 2007)

_And i forgot Beethovens "Moonlight sonata"!! :-( :-( 
its sad, sad, sad, sad, SAD!!!!!_


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