Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Violin | Dies Irae

How does one of the greatest violinists of our time respond to the threat of global collapse? Join us for a haunting and powerful evening as violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja joins Princeton University faculty and students to present the East Coast premiere of her Dies Irae project at the iconic Princeton University Chapel. This provocative, semi-staged performance offers a deeply moving musical reflection on the devastating consequences of global warming, resource wars, and the refugee crisis, drawing inspiration from the Gregorian Dies Irae chant, a symbol of fear and impending judgment. Spanning centuries of music, the program contemplates the end of civilization with works including Heinrich Biber’s Battalia à 10, evoking the chaos of war, and George Crumb’s Black Angels, a searing critique of the Vietnam War. The evening’s centerpiece is Galina Ustvolskaya’s intense Dies Irae, with Kopatchinskaja playing percussion alongside eight double basses and piano, creating a visceral and emotionally charged soundscape. Dies Irae, which has toured the world including the Lucerne Festival, Ojai Festival, and Southbank Centre to great acclaim, is a bold, unflinching exploration of today’s most urgent global issues, pushing the boundaries of classical music to challenge our understanding of the world and our role in shaping its future.

Dies Irae

Part concert, part installation, this multimedia work conceived by violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja merges a fierce musical enactment of the day of judgment with a sharp critique of war and the climate crisis as drivers of our self-destruction, weaving together the compositions of Giacinto Scelsi, Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber, George Crumb, Jimi Hendrix, Antonio Lotti, John Dowland, and Galina Ustvolskaya to evoke a haunting final “day of wrath.”

Patricia Kopatchinskaja Violin & Artistic Direction

Conrad Tao Piano & Harpsichord

Zachary Cohen Bass

Princeton University Chapel Choir Nicole Aldrich, Director of Chapel Music

Richardson Chamber Players Princeton University Performance Faculty & Students