Thread: Dark Classical

Hello all,


i'm kinda new and dont know anything about this type of music so please excuse me if this is a stupid or weird question...haha.. I enjoy darker and or louder types of music and was wondering if there is any classical music out there that is written like this. A guy i know was telling me that during Mozarts later years he wrote some darker stuff that had to do with depression due to the death of his father...is this true.

I dont know if any of you have seen the movie Requiem for a Dream (2002) but they have a few songs on there that are similar to what i am looking for...i think they are the Winter and Summer Overtures..heres a vid of one of the songs off youtube... http://youtube.com/watch?v=_Is0pxHiUZQ ...anyways...hope someone can give me some info on this, thanks!..

First of all, welcome to TC!

There have been several people asking the same kind of question lately. To begin, try out The Rite of Spring by Stravisnky (frankly, it doesn't get much "darker"), Concerto for Orchestra by Bartok, Totentanz by Liszt (these first three composers, alone, may indulge you), Cello Concerto in b minor by Dvorak (third Mvt), "Uranus," from the Planets Suite by Holst, and possibly Mahler's Sixth "Tragic" (and, NO, this composer was not depressed at the time). And, also check into a lot of the music by Danny Elfman.

Hope this helps.

Shostakovich wrote a lot of dark/loud music in his symphonies - I recommend the 5th.
Shozzy is a good starting point in appreciating more modern music.

Hi Abbyfan,

Here are my recommendations:

Pettersson - Symphony No. 7
Sibelius - Symphony No. 4
Shostakovich - String Quartet No. 8

I don't want to nitpick, but what is this "passion" for highly dark works?

Originally Posted by Handel

I don't want to nitpick, but what is this "passion" for highly dark works?

Probably the same passion that inspired those massive sales of Górecki's Third...

It's a strange age we live in.