Stabat Mater And Requiem

Antonín Dvorák's Stabat Mater, Op. 58, truly merits the adjective "tragic"; it was written after the deaths of two of the composer's children in succession, and his grief rolled out in great, Verdian waves. There are several strong recordings on the market, including an earlier one by conductor Jiří Bělohlávek himself, but for the combination of deep feeling, technical mastery from musicians and singers who have spent their lives getting to know the score, and soloists who not only sound beautiful but are seamlessly integrated into the flow, this Decca release may be the king of them all. To what extent was the strength of the performance motivated by Bělohlávek's likely fatal illness (he died days after the album entered the top levels of classical charts in the spring of 2017)? It's hard to say, although he also delivered top-notch performances of Dvorák's Requiem in his last days. The members of the Prague Philharmonic Choir sing their hearts out in the gigantic, shattering opening chorus, which has rarely if ever had such a mixture of the impassioned and the perfectly controlled. Sample the chorus "Virgo virginium praeclara" to hear the magically suspended quality Bělohlávek brings out of the singers in lightly accompanied passages.

Dvořák’s Stabat Mater was a work brought about by personal tragedy of almost incomprehensible proportions, after the composer lost all three of his then living children. A setting of the mediaeval Latin prayer to the bereaved mother of the crucified Christ, it was to become both a work of mourning and a work of healing. The shifts of mood from grief and near despair to hope and faith run throughout the work, before the glory and solace of the final Amen. Neeme Järvi conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir in this live concert recording.

Three of Szymanowski’s most important works show Rattle’s ability to energise music in which he believes. Sensuality and cogency blend in refined sound.

Restored by Mayr expert Frans Hauk from two extant manuscript versions and heard here in its world première recording, Simon Mayr’s Stabat mater in F minor was singled out by a contemporary biographer “for its marvellous effect” and “heavenly beauty”. Mayr himself frequently returned to this work, recycling one of its movements in his great Requiem. The song-like Ave maris stella builds on a hymn that dates back to the 8th century.

Poulenc's Stabat Mater, which the composer described as, "a requiem without despair," was written in 1950 following the death of Christian Berard, a leading figure of 1940s Paris who designed the sets for Cocteau's films and plays. This masterly work, dedicated to the Virgin of Rocamadour, gives pride of place to the chorus and clearly shows its line of descent from the French motets of the age of Louis XIV. It is paired with the Sept Repons de Tenebres, Poulenc's last choral work. Although sacred in nature, it was written for a non-religious celebration, the opening of New York's Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. This recording's superb cast features soprano Carolyn Sampson and the Estonian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra led by Daniel Reuss.

There are many lovely settings to the text of "Stabat mater" (a Mother was standing), a part of the Roman Catholic liturgy and of only theoretical authorship, that has been a popular text for composers since the mid 1200s. The Dvorak version is particularly lovely, and it is rivaled by that of a composer more known for his comic operas. Rossini's <Stabat mater> was written on a commission; and, late as always, the Italian asked for help from other composers. But later on he finished it himself and it stands as a magnificent work from the composer of "The Barber of Seville" and "William Tell." Do not be surprised then to hear a good deal of operatic intensity in this work just as there is in the Verdi "Requiem."…
By F. Behrens

Dvorak: Stabat Mater - Sinopoli
Classical | 2 CDs | WMA 615 kbps| BOOKS COVERs | 408 MB
Deutche Gramphon 471033-2 | Release Date: 2003

Like Mozart writing his Requiem, this live recording of Dvorak's Stabat Mater has taken on great significance being released in the weeks following the death at 55 of the conductor Giuseppe Sinopoli in May 2001.

Antonín Dvorák’s success in Europe during the 1880s led to invitations to visit England and the commissioning of his oratorio Saint Ludmila for the Leeds Festival. It tells the moving and turbulent story of Ludmila’s conversion to Christianity, an important event in Bohemian history that led to her becoming Bohemia’s patron saint. Written for large forces and with a predominant part for the chorus in the tradition of Handel, Saint Ludmila is full of Dvorák’s typical warmth and melodic beauty, and stands alongside his Stabat Mater and Requiem as one of his greatest works.