Antonín Dvořák

Stabat Mater op. 58

Antonín Dvorák's impressive Stabat Mater for soloists, chorus and orchestra is probably the best-known of the composer's sacred works. Some painful experiences - in 1875 his first daughter died, and in 1877 he lost two other children in quick succession - may have led to Dvorák's preoccupation with the suffering of the Mother of God, who stands weeping beneath the cross of her son. The music enters into the different moods of the liturgical texts with great sensitivity. Nine movements in slow to moderate tempi serve as a kind of Passion meditation, before the ecstasy of a vision of the resurrection wins the upper hand at the end of the tenth movement. With our newly-published arrangement for chamber orchestra (flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon, timpani, and strings), smaller choirs now have the opportunity of performing this work without the choir being drowned out by a large-scale symphony orchestra. The symphonic character of the work is nevertheless preserved. This scoring offers an optimal balance between transparency and orchestral sound. All vocal parts (soloists and chorus) are identical with the original version. Vocal score and choral score can be used also together with the original version, which is in preparation.