The Seven Last Words of Christ is an orchestral work by Joseph Haydn, composed in 1786. Structured as a series of contemplative movements framed by an introduction and a final meditative movement, it features austere, hymn-like textures, expressive harmonic shifts and dramatic silences, and Haydn later arranged it as a string quartet (1787) and adapted it into a choral-orchestral oratorio (1796), reflecting his engagement with sacred forms in his late career.
