# Music to Stave off the Darkness



## Huilunsoittaja (Apr 6, 2010)

What works of music help you to fight off the "darkness" in your life? Things not only to cheer you up, but to really fight bitter thoughts, to fight hatred, etc. Music instead that brings "light" to the mind and soul, brings empathy, courage, peace, etc.

Please feel free to share examples.


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## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

So many choices. Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra: if he can write such music while terminally ill, I guess I can cope. The Prokofiev PC #3: so much beauty and energy in one relatively short piece. Sibelius Symphony #5: it was good for Sibelius; it's good for me. 'nuff said.


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## isorhythm (Jan 2, 2015)

Mozart's clarinet quintet.


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## Klassic (Dec 19, 2015)

Sibelius Symphony No.5 final movement.


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## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

I have never had need of such music :tiphat: Darkness "in your life"? What's that? I have darkness in my living room when I want to get into serious listening :lol:


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## Becca (Feb 5, 2015)

Vaughan Williams - Symphony #5
Bruckner - Symphony #7 (first 2 movements)


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## Klassic (Dec 19, 2015)

Becca said:


> Vaughan Williams - Symphony #5


Lush and beautiful adagio in this symphony.


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## Morimur (Jan 23, 2014)

Just a few...

Requiem (György Ligeti)
Signs, Games, and Messages (György Kurtág)
Sonate de Requiem (Olivier Greif)
Choral Music (Arnold Schönberg)
Cello Sonatas (J.S. Bach)


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## Cosmos (Jun 28, 2013)

Mahler - Symphony 1, mov. 1
Mozart - Piano Concerto 21
Medtner - Violin Sonata no. 1


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## Eva Yojimbo (Jan 30, 2016)

Handel's Acis and Galatea is one of the most tuneful and cheeriest works in the repertoire. Even the death comes so lightly and is followed by such bliss that it doesn't darken the work. I dare anyone to frown while hearing this:


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Peer Gynt "Morning" Grieg

Mozart Piano Concerto No. 15

Mozart Piano Concerto No. 21

Beethoven Symphony No. 6

Beethoven Diabelli Variations

Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3

Prokofiev Symphony No. 1

Haydn Symphony No. 94

Haydn Symphony No. 102


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## Dawood (Oct 11, 2015)

I find that when I get really low I can't listen to music. Sad but true. I wish there was a tune that filled some hours with light.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Dawood said:


> I find that when I get really low I can't listen to music. Sad but true. I wish there was a tune that filled some hours with light.


I can, but I tend to listen to dark music on the principle that misery loves company. It helps to realize I am not the only person who gets down.

If I want to break out of the mood, I'll probably put on some early J. Geils Band. That helps get the adrenaline pumping.


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

Bohuslav Martinu does the trick for me. The Second Symphony or this little piece called Intermezzo for Orchestra.


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## HaydnBearstheClock (Jul 6, 2013)

Huilunsoittaja said:


> What works of music help you to fight off the "darkness" in your life? Things not only to cheer you up, but to really fight bitter thoughts, to fight hatred, etc. Music instead that brings "light" to the mind and soul, brings empathy, courage, peace, etc.
> 
> Please feel free to share examples.


Haydn's late masses are filled with 'light' and positive energy, imo .


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## Xaltotun (Sep 3, 2010)

Different personalities can use different methods. Some works of music are just full of light; they might remind the listener of the light and joy. Some works have both light and darkness; they remind the listener of the struggle, both the realities and the ideal. And some utterly dark works can help some listeners to come to terms with the reality of things, making the situation manageable and not beyond reach.

I have a feeling that the middle approach might work best with most people, it usually works best with me. (It also depends on the strength of the darkness one is in, I think.) So - light and darkness, from darkness to light (with an emphasis on the light). Some excellent examples have been mentioned: Sibelius symphony 5, Bruckner symphony 7. Maybe I'll also add Braunfels' _Te Deum_, although there the initial emphasis on darkness is rather strong. And Mahler's symphony 2 is rather self-evident.

But I think it's all about identifying your needs (your personality and the situation), identifying the amounts of darkness and light one needs to remedy the situation, and then searching for the right music.


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## Fugue Meister (Jul 5, 2014)

Here are a handful...

Borodin - String Quartet No. 1 in A - First movement

Beethoven Missa Solemnis - Such a beautiful gift to humanity (I just picked the best representative of this in Beethoven, but a lot of his work makes me exceedingly happy).

Haydn - String Quartet in Bb Op. 76 No. 4 (Sunrise) - First movement

Ives - String Quartet No. 1 - First movement

Liszt - Hungarian Rhapsody No. 10 in E

Mahler - Symphony No. 4 in G - First movement

Mozart - Serenade No. 10 in Bb - First movement & last movement (Again most of Mozart is brimming with cheer so there are many pieces but I've been listening to this one lately)

Mozart - Violin Concerto No. 3 & 5 - Opening movements (Like I said this guys got a bunch of happy, too much really)

Rubbra - Symphony No. 4 - First movement (yeah, there's a bit of darkness but more light and it's hopeful to me)

Schubert - String Quintet in C - First movement

Shostakovich - String Quartet No. 6 in G - Second Movement (a rare bit of happiness from the king of depression, check out the first movement of his 9th symphony too)

Strauss - Oboe Concerto in D - First movement & last movement

Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker - Act Two: Waltz of the Flowers (He may have hated it but I really enjoy it especially this piece)

Tishchenko - String Quartet No. 5 - First movement (It walks the line a bit but I think it's happy)

Wagner - Siegfried Idyll

and I know it's not in the same ball park as the rest but this makes me just as glad to be alive as the rest listed...






Guess that's more than a handful but it's a great line up of joy.


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## Orfeo (Nov 14, 2013)

*Sir Arnold Bax*: Symphony no. III (the glowing epilogue couldn't be more wonderful).
*Sir Arnold Bax*: Symphony no. VII.
*Anton Bruckner*: Symphonies nos. V (finale), VII (adagio), VIII (movements II-IV, esp. the climax of mov't III).
*Alexander Glazunov*: Raymonda (coda of Act II), The Sea, Symphony no. IV (finale).
*Philip Sainton*: The Island.
*Elgar*: Symphony no. I (finale).
*Walton*: Symphony no. I (finale).
*Parry*: Symphony no. III "English."
*Stanford*: Symphonies III & V (finales).
*Kurt Atterberg*: Symphony no. III (the exhilarating coda that ends this magnificent work).
*Ernest Moeran*: Symphony.
*Sibelius*: Symphony no. II (esp. the transition from the third movement right onto the finale).
*John Ireland*: The Almond Trees (magical).
*Cyril Scott*: Lotus Land, Japanese Serenade.
*Melartin*: Cherry Blossoms in Japan (from the 24 Preludes), Symphony no. IV.
*Janis Ivanovs*: Symphony no. VI (first and third movements).
*Adolfs Skulte*: Symphony no. I (finale).
*Tchaikovsky*: Symphony no. V (finale, part II).
*Anton Rubinstein*: opera "The Demon" (apotheosis).
*Alfven*: Symphony no. III (esp. the scherzo, marked Presto).
*Boris Lyatoshynsky*: Symphony no. III (finale, esp. its climax).
*Gliere*: Symphony no. II (Theme et Variations 2nd mov't).
*Joly Braga Santos*: Symphony no. IV (esp. the coda).
*George Lloyd*: Symphonies VIII & IX.
*Karl Goldmark*: Rustic Wedding Symphony.


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## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

I have dark days, often blurring into weeks. I agree with previous suggestions of Sibelius 5. But the piece that gets me out of it for a while is Tippett's Double String Concerto. The opening is like having an excited, good-natured red setter dog bouncing around the room. Such energy! Difficult not to respond to that.


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## Klassic (Dec 19, 2015)

*To Orfeo:* I must say, your catalog of music is excellently broad. I know you have dedicated tons of time to listening. I really appreciate people that can save me time in evaluating music, because there is so much to evaluate! This is my favorite thing about this forum.


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## Lukecash12 (Sep 21, 2009)

Monteverdi's masses instantly come to mind:


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## Orfeo (Nov 14, 2013)

Klassic said:


> *To Orfeo:* I must say, your catalog of music is excellently broad. I know you have dedicated tons of time to listening. I really appreciate people that can save me time in evaluating music, because there is so much to evaluate! This is my favorite thing about this forum.


Thank you *Klassic*. Music is, afterall, my chief escape.


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## regenmusic (Oct 23, 2014)

A selection of keyboard works by William Byrd played by Sokolov.


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)

At the moment I'm really into the orchestral version of Ravel - Le Tombeau de Couperin. The prelude puts me in a bright mood right away. 




 (Boulez)


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## Howling Moon (Jan 8, 2015)

Mysterious Mountain by Alan Hovhaness warms the soul immediately.


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## Klassic (Dec 19, 2015)

Not classical, but still good, *Undying Love*:


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## Huilunsoittaja (Apr 6, 2010)

Orfeo said:


> Thank you *Klassic*. Music is, afterall, my chief escape.


I can always count on you to give excellent music recommendations.  I like your choices of what I know there too, hehe...

Very interesting picks, people! Yes, this was meant to be a subjective thread, what staves off the darkness for you. I'm very interested at the fact so many people picked Sibelius 5. Yes, that Swan Hymn in the last movement, that is expansive light...

As to myself, what would I say? Hm...

Rather than a quasi-violent expression of light breaking forth, I'd go for the subtle dawn, sometimes.

Something like this...

Or this...

And for the cases of more intensely extroverted emotion, yeah I'd agree with Orfeo on the finale of Glazunov 4. And this...


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## Avey (Mar 5, 2013)

Becca said:


> Vaughan Williams - Symphony #5





Fugue Meister said:


> Beethoven Missa Solemnis





Orfeo said:


> *Elgar*: Symphony no. I (finale).
> *Walton*: Symphony no. I (finale).


+1 to many works already listed.



Huilunsoittaja said:


> I'm very interested at the fact so many people picked Sibelius 5. Yes, that Swan Hymn in the last movement, that is expansive light...


I, too, was intrigued by all the *Sibelius' Fifth* mentions. But it is unsurprising. The grand scale of development and inherent struggle throughout is palpable. Without pause, it comes out like one massive, broad stroke of self-reflection. Yet, the thing is written in such spare form (orchestration) and thrives on standard fourths, which may speak to its clean sound. And, agreeing with what you say, I have long appreciated this discussion on the Fifth, particularly, this quote: _"When the horns introduce the theme, during a flurry of action in the strings, it's as if they had always been playing it, and the listener had only begun to hear it."_

There is nothing like that theme, and yet, it too is transfigured toward the end, passing away in harsh cadence as if lost again in the silence -- or simply cohering to it.

Otherwise, for me *Elgar's First Symphony* has, and continues to be, a saving grace in my life -- a narrative for resilience and resolve amidst struggle. As well, *Mahler's Ninth* and *Eighth* have been a significant factor in my worldview. A fleeting, yet profoundly honest glimpse of life.

*Schuman - Symphony No. 3* - Power, and some more of it, will get you through. 
*Britten - Quartet No. 1; Walton - Quartet in A Minor* - Music that makes me a _feeling person_. I love the dichotomy between bashful play and almost painful reflection in each of these works. Tons of similarities between the two, markedly the role of the isolated and estranged voice of the cello.
*Hindemith - Quartet No. 2* - But I prefer the viola, and so let it shine forth here, which always settles me and quiets all that other noise outside.
*Ives - Symphony No. 2* - An effulgence of sound. A sense of place. An awareness of memory. The music animates all the black and white. It never ceases to inspire and enlighten my being.


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## vaugar (Jan 30, 2016)

Symphony of sorrowful songs - Henryk Gorecki.
Song for Athene- John Tavener.


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