When composers need to express a dark emotion such as grief, depression, or even terror, they often turn to the sound and character of the viola. Often, those pieces have ended up being the final works those composers ever wrote.

Number 1 on this list is currently my favorite piece, and it is probably the darkest musical work you will ever hear.

Vieuxtemps also wrote a gorgeous short piece called Capriccio for Solo Viola, but I only wanted to put one Vieuxtemps piece. On the same vein, Hindemith has a plethora of dark movements in his sonatas that could deserve a spot on this list. I just chose the work of his which I thought was darkest.

How many of these pieces had you heard of before? Do you know one you think I have missed? Let me know in the comments!

Links (DON'T SPOIL THE VIDEO FOR YOURSELF BY PEEKING AT THEM!)
Vieuxtemps Elegy:    • Henri Vieuxtemps: Elegy for viola and...  
Wieniawksi Reverie:    • Ken Hamao plays viola: Wieniawski Rev...  
Glazunov Elegy:    • Glazunov Elegie for viola & piano | D...  
Liszt Romance Oubliee:    • An Imperfect Instrument: Jennifer Stu...  
Britten Elegy:    • Benjamin Britten - Elegy for Solo Viola  
Ligeti Sonata:    • Yana Kucherova - Gyorgy Ligeti Sonata...  
Hindemith Trauermusik:    • Paul Hindemith: Trauermusik for Viola...  
Howells Elegy:    • Howells Elegy Op.15 - Solo viola, str...  
Stravinsky Elegy:    • Igor Strawinsky: Élegie für Viola Sol...  
Shostakovich Sonata:    • Dmitri Shostakovich - Viola Sonata - ...