You can list what you think is the most emotional piece you've heard and can talk about what it makes you feel in such or what kind of imagery it gives you. For me, I think Lux Aeterna by Clint Mansell is the most emotional I've ever heard. Heres a link to it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKLpJtvzlEI I don't think I need to comment on it, do I? The music kind of speaks for itself.
'Goldie - mother' while a flawed piece in many ways, has one of the most impressive building string sections ive ever heard. Check it out if you can.
Metamorphosen by Richard Strauss. Technically it's not an orchestral piece since it's scored for thirteen solo stringed instruments. But emotional... It was his last great composition, written after Germany's defeat in WWII. Strauss, like many artists, loved his country but didn't give it much thought, leaving the complicated stuff to the politicians. When the war ended and the average German citizen discovered the depth of what his country had been doing, it engendered emotions that Strauss captured in this piece. It is basically a eulogy for Germany. As far as Strauss was concerned, the Germany he had spent his life loving was dead and buried. It is a very unusual piece, not symphonic obviously, something that could only have been conceived in the musical environment of the 20th century. To say it's sad is an understatement, but it also fails to capture the breadth of the emotions. I saw it performed live once. It does not have a traditional coda, the last note fades away slowly. When it was over, the audience simply sat in utter silence for several minutes, we were that moved. Oh, my other favorite piece: "The Lark Ascending" by Ralph Vaughan Williams. Quite the opposite. I have a happy side too. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
I like Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZvlYyAhVSU http://www.classicalarchives.com/main/r.html#RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Also Rachmaninov's Theme by Paganini. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90MuPqYtV_k
