Recently, a loved one in our family died. His passing was sudden; it was unexpected. He was too young, or so the rest of us insisted, for this to have happened. Like ourselves, he had commitments to ...

Persistent sadness without a clear cause may indicate an underlying issue like depression, which is characterized by a constant feeling of unhappiness that doesn’t improve easily. Several factors ...

Music can heal you in many ways, but nothing comes close to the salve of sad songs when you’re at your lowest. Imagine Emma, who comes home after a long and stressful day at work, dealing with tight ...

"When I wrote it, the feeling of the music was sad, but yet there was this beautiful melody that sat on top," Masterson says. Written for a string orchestra, the piece observes the conventions of ...

The new Pixar film reminds us that sadness is often necessary. “In the Protestant West today,” writes theologian Ben Myers, “smiling has become a moral imperative. The smile is regarded as the ...

Susan Cain’s new book examines how sadness makes us whole. By Pilar Guzmán Have you ever wondered why we love sad songs, or get choked up at a “Thank you, Mom” Olympics commercial? Questions like ...

Music affects our brains in all kinds of wonderful ways. Upbeat music is great for working out and classical music can help you focus, but even sad music has its perks. Here’s why we love listening to ...

Tear-jerkers such as Adele’s Someone Like You frequently top the charts these days, while gloomy classical compositions like Mozart’s Requiem have moved people for centuries. Both portray and bring ...

Tear-jerkers such as Adele’s Someone Like You frequently top the charts these days, while gloomy classical compositions like Mozart’s Requiem have moved people for centuries. Both portray and bring ...

Recently, a loved one in our family died. His passing was sudden; it was unexpected. He was too young, or so the rest of us insisted, for this to have happened. Like ourselves, he had commitments to ...