Dies Irae

views updated

Dies Irae (Day of Wrath). A section of the Requiem Mass. The poem is probably by Thomas of Celano (d c.1250). The plainsong tune has frequently been introduced into instr. mus., as in Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique, Saint-Saëns's Danse macabre, Rachmaninov's Paganini Rhapsody, etc. Settings of the Requiem by Verdi, Berlioz, and others contain vivid depictions of the Dies Irae.

More From encyclopedia.com