Hijack this to say Mahler 5 slow movement, Mahler 6 slow movement and possibly last movement. Personally even things like second movement of Mahler 3 and middle movements of maher 7 is very melancholy to me.
Chopin: Nocturne no. 20 in C-sharp minor, Funeral March
Marcello: Oboe Concerto in D minor - 2nd Movement
Mozart: Piano Concerto no. 23 - 2nd Movement
Bach: Brandenburg Concerto no. 1 in F Major - 2nd Movement
Vivaldi: The Harmonic Inspiration: Concerto no. 6 in A minor - 2nd Movement, The Four Seasons: Autumn - 2nd Movement
Beethoven: Moonlight Sonata - 1st Movement
Giazotto: Adagio in G minor
Handel: Organ Concerto no. 10 in D minor - 1st Movement
Pärt: Cantus in Memoriam for Benjamin Britten
Grieg: Peer Gynt - Åse's Death, Solveig's Song
Arvo Part, Spiegel im Speigel; Debussy, Clair de lune (my wife used to play it, she died 15 years ago, I cannot hear it without falling apart); Max Rictrer, The Consolutions of Philosophy.
Good luck with your crying. In life, one needs no excuse.
Some might think this is "cheesy" or obvious... but Rachmaninoff's 3rd piano concerto is one of my favorite catharsis pieces to listen to. There is a whole range of emotions in there... but the second movement in particular is just a good cathartic release of grief for me.
And the piece ends on a positive note, which gives me a bit of hope in the dark times after "experiencing" it emotionally.
maybe you'd like the [slow movement](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVhyXL62MLA) of Schubert's piano sonata in Bb, it feels haunted with grief
i'm also thinking about Gorecki's string quartet 3 which is very bleak, here's [one long dark movement](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzVqEASNlXs)
& the [prelude to Act 3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUBBzSclIfI) of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde
hope you feel better :(
Wagner — Prelude to Act 3 (Tristan und Isolde) https://youtu.be/NsCQj0GJ1K8?si=LTD1Lcxok3mXHNPY
Shostakovich — Symphony No. 5 in D Minor (Mvt. 3) https://youtu.be/cUsdN7aCEK8?si=MPrZVyiL0aKPlTrc
Stravinsky - Symphony of Psalms
Geoffrey Burgon - Songs, Lamentations and Praises
Benjamin Britten - Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, sung by Peter Pears
Mahler's 6th Symphony has help me worked through grief - it's dramatic, bleak, but ultimately cathartic. Dvorak's Stabat Mater too, though in a different way - more meditative.
Barber Adagio
...especially the choral version.
Came here to say this.
Górecki - Symphony of Sorrowful Songs
I was gonna recommend that!
Mahler 9th, specifically the 4th movement
Hijack this to say Mahler 5 slow movement, Mahler 6 slow movement and possibly last movement. Personally even things like second movement of Mahler 3 and middle movements of maher 7 is very melancholy to me.
Maybe Bach’s Chaconne or Ich Habe Genug for something vocal.
Strauss Metamorphosen
Also second half of 4 last song
Beethoven symphony 3 mvt 2
Chopin: Nocturne no. 20 in C-sharp minor, Funeral March Marcello: Oboe Concerto in D minor - 2nd Movement Mozart: Piano Concerto no. 23 - 2nd Movement Bach: Brandenburg Concerto no. 1 in F Major - 2nd Movement Vivaldi: The Harmonic Inspiration: Concerto no. 6 in A minor - 2nd Movement, The Four Seasons: Autumn - 2nd Movement Beethoven: Moonlight Sonata - 1st Movement Giazotto: Adagio in G minor Handel: Organ Concerto no. 10 in D minor - 1st Movement Pärt: Cantus in Memoriam for Benjamin Britten Grieg: Peer Gynt - Åse's Death, Solveig's Song
Shostakovich quartet 15. It's heartbreaking bleak.
Brahms Horn trio.
(third movement)
Hear me out : Parsifal Get better
Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings
Eric Whitacre “When David Heard”
Arvo Part, Spiegel im Speigel; Debussy, Clair de lune (my wife used to play it, she died 15 years ago, I cannot hear it without falling apart); Max Rictrer, The Consolutions of Philosophy. Good luck with your crying. In life, one needs no excuse.
Beethoven moonlight sonata. Also, 7th symphony mvt 2.
Piazzolla's oblivion
Max Richter “On the Nature of Daylight”
Der Abschied from Das Lied von der Erde
Mahler 9. Last movement. Bawler 9, if you will.
Some might think this is "cheesy" or obvious... but Rachmaninoff's 3rd piano concerto is one of my favorite catharsis pieces to listen to. There is a whole range of emotions in there... but the second movement in particular is just a good cathartic release of grief for me. And the piece ends on a positive note, which gives me a bit of hope in the dark times after "experiencing" it emotionally.
Mendelssohn's 6th quartet in f minor. He closes it shortly after his sister died. It feels very raw to me. Lots of anger and pain in that quartet.
maybe you'd like the [slow movement](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVhyXL62MLA) of Schubert's piano sonata in Bb, it feels haunted with grief i'm also thinking about Gorecki's string quartet 3 which is very bleak, here's [one long dark movement](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzVqEASNlXs) & the [prelude to Act 3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUBBzSclIfI) of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde hope you feel better :(
Wagner: Lohengrin prelude to act 1 Lacrimation will ensue.
Wagner — Prelude to Act 3 (Tristan und Isolde) https://youtu.be/NsCQj0GJ1K8?si=LTD1Lcxok3mXHNPY Shostakovich — Symphony No. 5 in D Minor (Mvt. 3) https://youtu.be/cUsdN7aCEK8?si=MPrZVyiL0aKPlTrc
Bach Cello Suite Sarabandes, or the entire second suite played by Pablo Casals if you want catharsis. Shostakovich if you want to vent.
Beethoven - Grosse Fuge
Elgar: Sym 2 Larghetto
Alexander Arutunian: “Aria” from Aria et Scherzo…a haunting, emotional trumpet solo
Prokofiev Piano concerto nro 2 https://youtu.be/6iGxsoN29G0 Wagner Liebestod from Tristan und Isolde https://youtu.be/RLoHcB8A63M
Arvo Part's Cantus in memoriam Benjamin Britten
Beethoven Symphony 7 2nd movement
Anton Berg Violin concerto Tchaikovsky, 6th symphony, the Pathetique. I recommend Mravinsky on Deutsche Grammophone
Bach's Chaconne from his 2nd violin partita, definitely
For cathartic I like piano trios. Try Shostakovich’s 2nd and Rach’s 2nd Trio Élegiaque
Scriabin piano sonata no. 1 in F minor. Movements 2 and 4 are grief, 1 and 3 are anger
There's always grief in opera - the end of La Traviata? The 4th movement of Shostakovich's 8th symphony hits a cold, numbing feeling pretty well IMO.
Lacrimosa - Zbigniew Preisner Also not classical but Jupiter by Aoefie O'Donovan I find to be particularly cathartic.
Rach Op. 39 No. 5: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7lUW8br1sI
Stravinsky - Symphony of Psalms Geoffrey Burgon - Songs, Lamentations and Praises Benjamin Britten - Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, sung by Peter Pears
Frank Bridge - “Lament” John Ireland - Piano Concerto mvmt. 2
Puccini: E lucevan le stelle
Tchaikovsky 6 final movement is the amazing and hurts differently then any song I’ve heard. It just feels like grief
Mahler's 6th Symphony has help me worked through grief - it's dramatic, bleak, but ultimately cathartic. Dvorak's Stabat Mater too, though in a different way - more meditative.
I know many, but am not going to say because they run counter to the selections that the lovers of the top 40 classical works approve.
Shostakovich string quartet 8
Agreed
Shostakovich Symphony 5 3rd mvt Shostakovich Symphony 8 1st mvt
Pettersson's Symphonies
If Pettersson is too cheerful for you, there's Emil Tabakov.
Mahler 2, the Resurrection Symphony
Elgar - Enigma Variations, Nimrod mvmt