Jeff Dunn asked for nominations for the saddest piece of music, and he
cited some possibilities.

I've never found the <Adagio for Strings> all that sad.  Dignified and
noble, yes, but I think any sadness perceived is a conditioned result
of the context in which we often hear it: as a memorial.

The Britten <War Requiem> descends to an abyss of despair in the baritone's
solo "After the blast of lightning from the East," but the tone of the
oratorio as a whole is one of anger, and it ends on a luminous note of
hope.

The disconsolate hopelessness of the finale of the "Pathetique" Symphony
makes it the saddest piece I know.

Nick Jones
Atlanta, Ga., USA