Madonna in Sorrow, 1554 by Titian Photo: Public Domain
Stabat Mater is a medieval Latin poem in which the poet contemplates the sorrowing figure of the mother of Christ weeping at the foot of the cross and begs that he may share her grief.
It is based upon the prophecy of Simeon that a sword was to pierce the heart of his mother, Mary.
The text originated in the 13th century during the height of Franciscan devotion to the crucified Jesus and has been attributed to Pope Innocent III, or more usually Jacopone da Todi who is generally considered to be the real author.
The Stabat Mater has long been part of the ‘Stations of the Cross’ devotions.
Since the 15th century, composers have made musical settings for use in the liturgy while later composers, such as Rossini and Dvorak, have made more expansive concert versions.
Music Details:
PERGOLESI: Stabat Mater Dolorosa - Gillian Fisher,Michael Chance,King’s Consort/R.King (Hyperion CDA 66294)
HAYDN: Eja Mater, Flammis Orci - Jurg Krattinger, Chorale Philippe Caillard, Les Solistes de Paris/Henri-Claude Fantapie (Divine Art DDA 21212)
DVORAK: Tui Nati Vulnerati - Prague Philharmonic Choir, Czech Philharmonic/Jiri Belohlavek (Chandos CHAN 8986)
PALESTRINA: Stabat Mater - Cambridge Singers/John Rutter (CSCD 508)
POULENC: Infammatus et Accentus, Quando Corpus - Kathleen Battle, Tanglewood Festival Chorus, Boston Symphony Orchestra/Seiji Ozawa (DG 427 304-2)
JENKINS: Lament - Jurgita Adamonyte, RLPO & Chorus/Karl Jenkins (EMI DDD 5 00283-2)
VERDI: Stabat Mater (Four Sacred Pieces) - Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus/Robert Shaw (Telarc CD 80254)
