About the composer
Antonín Dvořák (1841 - 1904) was born in Nelahozeves, Czechia. As the son of a village
butcher he started his musical education rather late, but still, only just over thirty
years of age Dvořák already was a world famous composer. Especially his Slavonic Dances
contributed to his fame. He is regarded as a Czechian composer par excellence and as a
representative of the Viennese School and the Romantic movement. During the work on the
Stabat Mater he lost his first three children. Nonetheless his Stabat Mater ends in a
major key, as if in expression of hope. The style is a mixture of symphonic poem, German
oratorio and Italian opera, but still it is written from the heart.
A more extended description of Dvořák's life and his Stabat Mater can be found
in a lecture on Theology in Music by Rev.P.Okke
Postma, which he kindly sent to me.
| Date | 1877 |
| Performers | Soprano, alto, tenor, bass, choir and orchestra |
| Length | 86.22 minutes (CD 1), 90.58 minutes (CD 2), 82.46 minutes (CD 3) |
| Particulars | The longest Stabat Mater that I know of. The composition is divided into 10 sections. The text is full of repetitions, in words, sentences or complete stanzas, that are sung separately, together or mixed with other stanzas. The substance of Dvořák's setting is not the treatment of individual words or ideas in the text, but rather the expression of the poem's basic moods and visions. |
| Textual variations | The "Analecta"-text is used, with only one small
variation: - Stanza 4, line 2: not "Et tremebat cum videbat" but "Piam Mater, dum videbat" |
| CD 1 | Deutsche Grammophon 453 025-2 (2 CD's): Dvořák, Stabat Mater * Legends |
| About this CD | Two major works of Dvořák Recorded at the Hercules-Saal, München, in September 1976 |
| Orchestra | Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks |
| Choir | Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks |
| Conductor | Rafael Kubelik |
| Soloists | Edith Mathis, soprano Anna Reynolds, alto Wieslaw Ochman, tenor John Shirley-Quirk, bass |
| Other works | Antonin Dvořák: Legends |
| Added | Unknown (DVO 01) |
| CD 2 | STM 981 (2 CD's): Dvořák, Stabat Mater |
| About this CD | The recording of the first concert organized by the Dutch
Stabat Mater Foundation. Recorded at the Provinciehuis, 's-Hertogenbosch, in March 1998. |
| Orchestra | Orchestre Philharmonia de Paris |
| Choir | Choeur Symphonique de Paris |
| Conductor | Xavier Ricour |
| Soloists | Marie-Paule Dotti, soprano Christine Labadens, mezzo-soprano Patrick Garayt, tenor Jean Louis Serre, bariton |
| Other works | |
| Added | 1999 (DVO 02) |
| CD 3 | KRO ES47.407 (2 CD's): Dvořák, Stabat Mater |
| About this CD | The recording of the fourth concert organized by the Dutch
Stabat Mater Foundation. Recorded at the Sint Petrus Church, Oirschot, in March 2001. |
| Orchestra | Het Brabants Orkest |
| Choir | Brabant Koor |
| Conductor | Jan Willem de Vriend |
| Soloists | Eva-Maria Westbroek, soprano Wilke te Brummelstroete, mezzo-soprano Frank van Aken, tenor Jaco Huypen, bariton |
| Other works | Gregorian chant: Stabat Mater |
| Added | 2001 (DVO 03) |
E-mail:
stabatmater@dds.nl