About the composer
Licinio Refice was born in Patrica, Italy, in 1885. He studied at the Liceo
di Santa Cecilia in Rome. In 1910 he became a priest and for some 40 years
he teached church music at the Scuola Pontificia Superior di Musica Sacra of
the Vatican. He was a friend and admirer of Lorenzo Perosi, choirmaster and
composer at the Sistine Chapel, who made his first publication financially
possible. Refice's music was regarded by some of his contemporaries as a little
too theatrical for sacred music, and in fact Refice composed some quite
successful operas, the most well-known being Cecilia. It was also regarded as a
bit scandalous that he appeared in theatres to conduct these works. Therefore,
to some it may have appeared a kind of justification that Refice died while
conducting his opera Cecilia (Rio de Janeiro, 1954).
Refice composed a great body of sacred music, for instance some 30 masses and 10
oratorio.
| Date | ca. 1916 |
| Performers | Soprano, tenor and pianoforte |
| Length | 26.22 minutes |
| Particulars | In this performance of the Stabat Mater a pianoforte is used instead of more extended instrumentation. The work is not divided into clearly discernable sections. Generally, the music is simple and melodious, quite suited for use in liturgy. |
| Textual variations | The "Vatican" text is used, with no changes. |
| CD | ARES di Verona - Licinio Refice, Stabat Mater |
| About this CD | Not the real CD, but a copy. Beside the Stabat
Mater it contains a number of other compositions of Refice. It was recorded at the Chiesa di S.Giovanni Battista, in Patrica, February 2000. I received this CD as a present from my friend Franco Nava from Rho, Italy. |
| Choir | Coro da Camera "Daniele Paris" |
| Conductor | Antonio d'Antò |
| Soloists | Anita Selvaggio, soprano Francesco Marsiglia, tenor Giovanni Valle, pianoforte |
| Other works | Ombra di Nube Natale Dormi non plangere Tu scendi dalle stelle Ave Maria Berceuse Cor Jesu flagrans Benedicat vobis Dominus Lauda Jerusalem |
| Added | REF 01 |
E-mail:
stabatmater@dds.nl