The Pēteris Vasks Quartet is a special project, on the occasion of the composer’s 80th birthday in 2026, bringing together four great Latvian musicians to perform in Latvia and across Europe. The quartet’s program focuses on Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, an eight-movement masterpiece of 20th-century chamber music, first performed in a war camp in 1941. This work is very dear to Pēteris Vasks, inspiring him to write his piano trio Episodi e Canto Perpetuo in 1985, also in eight movements (performed in an extended concert version). Arvo Partē’s Fratres is included in the program at Pēteris Vasks’ request.

Peter Vasks – 80

Paliesius Manor

In Pēteris Vasks's Musica serena , the strings engage in an intimate meditation and dialogue as if they were a single, perfectly coordinated instrument, reacting to the conductor's every move. In the Sinfonia concertante , a new creation by the Franco-Argentine composer Strasnoy, Alexandre Tharaud and Jean-Guihen Queyras invent a bold play of mirrors, sometimes fused thanks to unsettling unisons, sometimes rivalry through rhythmic jousts. In the midst of this conversation on the border between concerto and symphony, the orchestra intrudes and establishes itself as a third partner, reacting to each of their phrasings. Finally, Dvořák's Symphony No. 5 reveals its Czech roots, from the folk dances of the scherzo to the incredible rhythmic energy of the finale. Poga and the orchestra will highlight its warm colors and spring-like vitality.

Complicity

Opéra Comédie

Music has long been a voice for resistance, remembrance and renewal.  In this striking and emotionally charged programme, the Sheffield Philharmonic Orchestra explores how composers have responded to injustice, conflict, and the call for change.

EPSG:4326

Protest Notes

In Ludwig van Beethoven's "Egmont" Overture, the poet and composer E.T.A. Hoffmann recognized a "magnificent tone painting" because, "as in a magic mirror," it summarized "the main features of the entire play." The introduction to the music for Goethe's tragedy, composed in 1810 and praising courage in the fight for freedom, is considered a masterful program overture.

Far Light

Zeughaus Neuss

In this concert for four players, the ethereal music of Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks and rousing spirituals of Adolphus Hailstork sit side-by-side with the earthy and joyful music of Antonín Dvořák. Also featured is the premiere of a new chamber music work by Virginia composer Joe Jaxson.

Heaven And Earth

First Unitarian Universalist Church of Richmond

Ravel's Piano Concerto was written for the pianist Paul Wittgenstein, who lost his right arm in the First World War. The paradoxical sonic power with which the soloist performs in this virtuoso concerto is all the more remarkable – with exaggeration, parody, and the constant impression of two hands on the keyboard. Almost ten years earlier, La Valse portrayed the glorious collapse of society dancing to its doom. Pēteris Vasks depicts the opposite path: his response to the loud, garish, and chaotic is silence, to which he ultimately returns – his premonition of eternity.

With Left

Gewandhaus

Aivis Greters conducts the Oslo Philharmonic’s choir and orchestra in Johannes Brahms’ dramatic Schicksalslied, Pēteris Vasks’ meditative The Fruit of Silence, and Igor Stravinsky’s powerful Symphony of Psalms. The Easter concert also features the world premiere of Herman Vogt’s orchestral work Light Shall Shine Out of Darkness.

Easter Concert Aivis Greters Oslo Philharmonic Choir

Oslo Concert Hall

Discover the future of choral music with PASSION Projects, an innovative concert experience that showcases our PASSION FOR ARTISTRY through fresh musical perspectives and emerging leadership. This dynamic program features captivating medium-length works, creating an intimate chamber experience with reduced orchestration that brings you closer to the music than ever before. Witness the next generation of musical leadership as our Assistant Conductors guide the chorus through diverse repertoire that spans genres, eras, and emotions. From powerful dramatic moments to tender reflective passages, each piece reveals different facets of the human experience while highlighting the exceptional artistry that defines our ensemble. This unique concert format allows for deeper exploration of each work, creating an immersive musical journey that celebrates both artistic excellence and the mentorship that ensures the future of great choral music. Join us for an evening that honors musical tradition while embracing innovation and discovery.

PASSION Projects

Westminster Presbyterian Church

Iveta Apkalna: The Queen of Instruments

Mozarteum Foundation

Czech Chamber Music Society • Alinde Quintet

Rudolfinum

Celebrate the 30th anniversary of the English Schools’ Orchestra with an extraordinary concert featuring some of the UK’s finest young musicians.

This year’s programme includes the enchanting overture to Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, Vasks’ powerful Credo, and Mahler’s monumental Symphony No. 1.

Under the baton of Musical Director Lewis Gaston, the Orchestra brings these iconic works to life, showcasing the energy, talent, and dedication of its exceptional players. From the magical charm of Humperdinck to the emotional depth of Vasks and the epic grandeur of Mahler, this concert promises a captivating musical journey.

English Schools’ Orchestra

Cadogan Hall 

Our 65th Anniversary Season opens with ECHOES — a concert that blends traditions of remembrance and celebration. Inspired by All Saints Day and Día de los Muertos, this program highlights the power of music to uplift, connect, and bring joy. From David Conte’s Three Mexican Folk Songs to Dan Forrest’s Introit-Kyrie from Requiem for the Living, Ēriks Ešenvalds’ O Salutaris Hostia to Bach’s Dona Nobis Pacem, and more, the afternoon unfolds in a rich tapestry of sound.

Echoes

San Dieguito United Methodist Church

St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral

The esteemed Paavo Järvi returns with the serene beauty of Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, and the grandeur of Sibelius’s Symphony No. 5, inspired by the natural beauty of the composer’s Finnish homeland. Accordion sensation Ksenija Sidorova adds a fresh twist to the program with Kõrvits’s dynamic Concerto for Accordion and Orchestra.

Debussy & Sibelius

David Pecaut Square

Iveta Apkalna, titular organist of the Elbphilharmonie, opens the organ season with works by Johann Sebastian Bach and Arvo Pärt, who celebrates his 90th birthday this year. In their faith and deep spirituality, the composers, both great organ masters, are kindred spirits.

Iveta Apkalna, organ

Elbphilharmonie Hamburg

Several composers who lived in the Soviet era turned to a spiritually inspired music, in a kind of inner exile. There are several examples; the Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks is one of them. Throughout his work there is a special spiritual tone. Castillo Interior is from 2014, and he says that the title came to him when he was in a meditation house by the Baltic Sea – inspired by a saint far away, the Spanish Teresa of Avila, who in the 16th century wrote a book with the same title, where the soul is described as a castle created from a single diamond.

Shostakovitch & Tchaikovsky

Odense Concert Hall

Garth Newel Piano Quartet

Garth Newel Music Center

Musica dolorosa — Kopatchinskaja · Hinterhäuser · Camerata Salzburg · Ahss

"I am extremely happy, it went very quickly," wrote Antonín Dvořák under the heading of his 12th String Quartet, the sketch of which he completed in just a few days. The natural idyll of rural Spillville inspired him so deeply during his stay in the USA that the composition came easily. Along with his Ninth Symphony, "From the New World," which was also written in America, this string quartet is one of his most famous works. Dvořák's soulful chamber music provides a positive moment of calm in the Alinde Quintet's otherwise melancholic program: in arrangements for wind quintet, the up-and-coming Czech ensemble explores the emotional complexity of Josef Suk's elegiac, pleading meditation, Pēteris Vask's composition "For a Deceased Friend," and Shostakovich's plaintive Eighth String Quartet.

Alinde Quintet

Schloss Favorite, Ludwigsburg

Hear a lively concert of showpieces performed by your own Symphony Nova Scotia musicians! Conducted by Music Director Holly Mathieson, this spotlight on the Symphony highlights the virtuosic chops of our wonderful wind principals Danielle Johannes, Timothy Yung, Gabe Azzie, and Carys Sutherland, and our very own Concertmaster Renaud Lapierre. Mozart’s Sinfonia concertante is the perfect platform for bright, vivid colours from our woodwind musicians, while Renaud brings his crystalline technique to Vasks’ distinctive and achingly beautiful Distant Light.

Livestream: Symphony Soloists Play Mozart

Dalhousie University

Symphony Soloists Play Mozart

The medieval verses of the Marian sequence Stabat mater seem like a symbol of mourning that has endured for ages. Once sung in unison and humbly, the Stabat mater has inspired generations of composers, including the Pole Karol Szymanowski in 1926, whose oratorio-like Stabat mater incorporated elements of Polish folk and church music. Geographically and thematically close to each other are Pēteris Vasks' political and personal mourning work of the Musica dolorosa , Arvo Pärt's meditation on the Shroud of Turin and Witold Lutosławski's short Lacrimosa from the image-rich death sequence of the Dies irae.

Stabat Mater

Sacred Heart Church Munich

In the touching piece Music for Fleeting Birds, written in 1977 for wind quintet, the Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks gives nature a voice, as he does in many of his other works. Some of the sounds are reminiscent of the calls of migratory birds flying away, heralding the darkness and cold of winter in Latvia. Niels Gade, one of the most important Danish composers of the Romantic period, who was a close friend of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy and Robert Schumann, follows. The latter recognized a "decidedly distinct Nordic character" in Gade’s music. His novelettes for piano trio were particularly popular among lovers of sophisticated domestic music. Carl Nielsen, one of Gade's students, whose wind quintet from 1922 forms the conclusion of the concert, was also known as the "Danish Strauss" due to his symphonic works. The Trio by Trygve Madsen, one of Norway’s most versatile contemporary composers, whose music is also influenced by jazz, blends in between the two Danish composers.

5. Chamber Music Concert

Liederhalle Cultural and Congress Center

The short prelude to the third act of Wagner's opera "Lohengrin" is a lively and festive piece - the ideal concert overture. In the opera, this prelude leads directly into the famous bridal chorus ("Treulich geführt"). Incidentally, "Lohengrin" was first performed in 1850 in the Goethe city of Weimar on Goethe's 101st birthday.

Heroes with Violin

Anneliese Brost Musikforum Ruhr

Iveta Apkalna has described all the organ compositions written by Latvian composers as a "mirror of her soul". As part of the portrait series dedicated to her, the Latvian is now dedicating an entire concert evening to her homeland for the first time.

Iveta Apkalna

Museum Ludwig

In the depths of winter warm your soul and explore a rich selection of music, which weaves between past and present, combining seamlessly to create a beautiful sonic tapestry, in some of Scotland’s most atmospheric settings.

Concerts by Candlelight with Scottish Ensemble

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

Drawing on their Czech heritage, Trio Bohémo performs Central European music with vigor and insight. Their enthusiasm is infectious, whether in rousing folk dances or contemplative slow movements. 

During our Friday Concerts, patrons enjoy an up-close musical experience in the vibrant atmosphere of uniquely Tulsa venues. Wine and hors d’oeuvres are available.

Trio Bohémo

LowDown

Tulsa Performing Arts Center

In cooperation with the Nordic Film Days Lübeck 2024.
The Nordic Film Days Lübeck, which have been presenting outstanding filmmaking from the Scandinavian countries since 1959 and from the Baltic countries since 1990, have become a trademark of the Hanseatic city with a national appeal. For the 66th edition of the festival in November 2024, a sound image concert will accompany the program for the first time. The focus is on "Wood Works", a unique collection of Scandinavian folk melodies that the renowned "Danish String Quartet" has been playing and publishing in its own arrangements since 2013.

Sound images concert

House Eden

Immerse yourself in the world of ballet with the captivating performance of "LUDMILLA," a mixed bill presented by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. This extraordinary event is set to take place from October 24th to 26th, 2024, at the prestigious Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, Place des Arts. With performances scheduled at 2 P.M. and 8 P.M., this event promises to be a highlight of the 2024-2025 season.

"LUDMILLA" pays homage to the boldness and visionary spirit of Ludmilla Chiriaeff, the founder of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens and the École supérieure de ballet du Québec, on the occasion of her 100th birth anniversary. As a pioneer of dance in Canada, Chiriaeff's legacy is celebrated through the works of renowned choreographers who have been influenced by her or have crossed paths with her. The program features creations by Jean Grand-Maître, James Kudelka, George Balanchine, and Ginette Laurin, offering a vibrant exploration of Ludmilla's enduring impact on the world of dance.

The performance includes the following pieces:

- "The Four Temperaments" by George Balanchine, set to music by Paul Hindemith, is a neo-classical masterpiece that explores human character traits through expressive and precise body language.
- "Le Funambule" by Ginette Laurin, a compelling quest for balance that stretches the boundaries of bodily expression, set to music by Andreas Burckhardt.
- "Desire" by James Kudelka, a series of pas de deux that delve into the dynamics of human relationships, set to the waltzes of Sergei Prokofiev.
- "Continuum" by Jean Grand-Maître, a piece that honors Ludmilla's roots and the journey of an artist, set to traditional Latvian music and featuring the talents from the École supérieure de ballet du Québec.

This event not only showcases the artistic excellence of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens but also offers a unique opportunity to save up to 40% with package bookings, allowing audiences to enjoy exclusive benefits. Join us in celebrating the legacy of Ludmilla Chiriaeff and experience the magic of ballet through the visionary works of these acclaimed choreographers.

Ludmilla

Place des Arts

The award-winning pianists Simone Dinnerstein and Awadagin Pratt join together for one incredible evening of music making. The unique expressive qualities of both pianists are highlighted in this intimate curated program, featuring individual solo works along with two-keyboard masterpieces.

Simone Dinnerstein and Awadagin Pratt

Columbia University

Autumn Classics: Anchorage Subscription Concert 5 - Awadagin Pratt In Recital

Fine Arts Building

A Thursday concert where three masterpieces from the Baltics and the Nordic tradition come together to create a musical journey through emotions and landscapes under the direction of Aivis Greter.

Around the Baltic Sea with Sibelius & Vasks

Malmö Concert Hall

In collaboration with the SF Public Library, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble explores the music of primarily Californian composers whose music is connected to the earth and to the climate, music which asks us to listen deeply to the natural world.

Deep Ecology and Deep Listening

San Francisco Public Library

Join us for our third summer subscription concert featuring star pianists Awadagin Pratt and Natasha Paremski.

Pianissimo!!! Awadagin Pratt & Natasha Paremski - Summer Subscription Concert Number 3

Harrigan Centennial Hall

By annual tradition, a few of the musicians of the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra participate in the Afternoon Concerts of Antwerp.

Afternoon concert

AMUZ (Festival van Vlaanderen Antwerpen)

Join us for an extraordinary evening of music as Simone Dinnerstein & Awadagin Pratt, two of the classical music world's most acclaimed talents, come together for a unique piano performance. This remarkable event is scheduled for Monday, October 30, 2023, at 7:30 PM, taking place in the prestigious setting of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Terrace Theater.

For over two decades, Simone Dinnerstein and Awadagin Pratt have each earned widespread acclaim for their individual contributions to the world of classical music—Pratt as an award-winning pianist, conductor, and educator, and Dinnerstein for her exquisite piano interpretations spanning the works of Bach, Glass, and more. This performance marks a special collaboration as they share a single instrument, playing simultaneously on the same keyboard in a display of impeccable coordination and musicality.

The evening's program promises to be a blend of technical challenge and lyrical beauty, featuring an arrangement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Pastorale, and Schubert’s Fantasie in F Minor, showcasing some of the most expressive phrasing in the composer’s repertoire. Additionally, the duo will perform Johann Sebastian Bach piano transcriptions arranged for four hands by György Kurtág, alongside solo works by Philip Glass, and more.

This performance is not only a showcase of individual brilliance but also a testament to the power of collaboration in the classical music realm. It is made possible through the generous support of sponsors including Mary and Chris Mahle, The Honorable Mary V. Mochary, and the Dallas Morse Coors Foundation for the Performing Arts, with additional support from Betsy and Robert Feinberg, and lead supporters Jacqueline Badger Mars and Mars, Incorporated, among others.

Don't miss this opportunity to witness two masters of the piano come together for a night of unforgettable music. Reserve your tickets now and be part of a truly special musical experience.

Simone Dinnerstein & Awadagin Pratt, piano

Kennedy Center

Salon de Virtuosi presents its acclaimed Gala Awards Concert, featuring 2023 Career Grant Winners Renee Murphy, Harp, Keila Wakao, Violin, Daniel Hodos, Violin, Merz Trio, Ivalas Quartet and 2020 Career Grant Winner Remi Geniet, Piano. The program will showcase works by Debussy, Ravel, Brahms, Chausson, Vasks and others.

Salon de Virtuosi 2023 Gala Awards Concert

Kaufman Music Center

Hailed as “entrancing” (BBC Music Magazine) and "artists in the deepest sense of the word" (CutCommon), Merz Trio have established themselves at the forefront of the US chamber music scene, with upcoming debuts at Carnegie Hall, Amsterdam's Concertgebouw, Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, CM Houston, CM Detroit, MN's Schubert Club, DC's Strathmore Mansion, and Music Mountain, among others. Winners of the Naumburg, Concert Artists Guild, Fischoff, and Chesapeake Competitions, they have been lauded for their “stunning virtuosity . . . fresh and surprising interpretations” (Reading Eagle), and “perfection of intonation and ensemble” (Hudson Review). Merz Trio are passionately committed to reshaping the narrative of classical music through vibrantly dynamic programming and wide-ranging interdisciplinary collaboration. Their narrative programming style juxtaposes classical standards, new music, and their own arrangements of familiar and forgotten works, fluidly interwoven and guided with speaking from the Trio’s members. Their interdisciplinary collaborations include ongoing projects with directors Emma Jaster and Jon Levin, dancer Caroline Copeland, and Sandglass Puppet Theater.

Merz Trio: Of Light And Darkness

Krannert Center for the Performing Arts

One stage, three moods. Explosive energy. Deep resonance. Unstoppable drive. Feel the pulse of ballet now.

Rhythm Riot

Sadler's Wells Theatre

Drop in during your lunch break and discover a wide range of performances for free with our Monday and Thursday Lunchtimes.

Thursday Lunchtimes: Talland Quartet

Royal Northern College of Music

Shostaković | Vasks | Beethoven

Imperial Baths

Experience the raw power of one of classical music’s most famous masterpieces. The Brooklyn Youth Chorus joins conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali and the New York Philharmonic for Orff’s thunderous Carmina Burana. From the iconic "O Fortuna" to the playful and rhythmic movements in between, our choristers will bring their signature energy and precision to this epic celebration of life, fortune, and the changing seasons.

NY Philharmonic - Rouvali Conducts Carmina burana

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts

Beginning in the 1970s, composers influenced by so-called minimalist music began fusing the repetition and tonal progressions associated with this movement with religious plainchant and motives of liturgical music.

Vasks, Pärt & Górecki

Walt Disney Concert Hall

The evening opens with Pēteris Vasks’s Grāmata Čellam, featuring solo cellist Nathan Cook, followed by Johann Sebastian Bach’s Cantata No. 4, where choir and strings bring a sense of
solemn ritual and expressive depth. For the Cantata we also welcome Yukichi Hattori, dance who will present beautiful world premiere choreography.

Stabat mater

Memorial University School of Music

Creative Partner Vadim Gluzman takes center stage to lead ProMusica for a luminous season finale. Pēteris Vasks’ deeply moving Distant Light offers haunting beauty and shimmering intensity, brought to life by Gluzman’s artistry. Beethoven’s Eighth Symphony sparkles with playful charm and infectious energy, closing our 48th season with joy and exhilaration.

Pēteris Vasks

Events

Upcoming events

Sep 24 - Oct 3, 2026

Rhythm Riot · English National Ballet

Oct 22, 2026

Thursday Lunchtimes: Talland Quartet · Royal Northern College of Music

Jan 21, 2027

Shostaković | Vasks | Beethoven · Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra

18 - 20 Feb, 2027

NY Philharmonic - Rouvali Conducts Carmina burana · Brooklyn Youth Chorus

26 - 27 Feb, 2027

Vasks, Pärt & Górecki · Los Angeles Philharmonic

Past events

Aug 8, 2026

Peter Vasks – 80 · Paliesius Manor

Jun 19, 2026

Complicity · Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier

About

Pēteris Vasks hasn't added a bio