(P.77)Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, 1710-1736 : a thematic catalogue of the Opera Omnia, with an appendix listing omitted compositions. Marvin E. Paymer (New York : Pendragon Press, 1977). is a musical setting of the sequence, composed by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi in 1736. Composed in the final weeks of Pergolesi's life, it is scored for soprano and alto soloists, violin I and II, viola and .
The autograph manuscript of the work is preserved in the Benedictine Abbey of Monte Cassino.
Background Many pieces which were said to have been composed by Pergolesi have been misattributed; the is definitely by Pergolesi, as a manuscript in his handwriting has been preserved. The work was composed for a Neapolitan confraternity, the , which had also commissioned a Stabat Mater from Alessandro Scarlatti. Pergolesi composed it during his final illness from tuberculosis in a Franciscan monastery in Pozzuoli, along with a setting, and finished it shortly before he died.
Reception
The is one of Pergolesi's most celebrated sacred works, achieving great popularity after the composer's death. Jean-Jacques Rousseau showed appreciation for the work, praising the opening movement as "the most perfect and touching duet to come from the pen of any composer". Many composers adapted the work, including Giovanni Paisiello, who extended the orchestral accompaniment, and Joseph Eybler, who added a choir to replace some of the duets. Bach's is a parody cantata based on Pergolesi's composition.
The work was not without its detractors. Padre Martini criticised its light, operatic style in 1774, and believed it was too similar to Pergolesi's comic opera to adequately deliver the pathos of the text.
Structure
The work is divided into twelve movements, each named after the of the text. Much of the music is based on Pergolesi's earlier setting of the sequence.
"", , F minor, common time; duet "", , C minor, 3/8; soprano aria "", , G minor, common time; duet "", , E-flat major, 2/4; alto aria "", , C minor, common time; duet —"", , C minor, 6/8 "", , F minor, common time; soprano aria "", , C minor, 3/8; alto aria "", , G minor, cut common time; duet "", , E-flat major, common time; duet "", , G minor, common time; alto aria "", , B-flat major, common time; duet "", , F minor, common time; duet —"Amen..." , F minor, cut common time
Recordings +Release yearSoloistsConductorOrchestraLabelCatalog Number1935Ina Souez Rose BamptonLeopold StokowskiPhiladelphia Orchestra His Master's VoiceDB 27041949 (excerpts recorded 1939)Hans Schneider Hans Frank, Erich KucharVictor Gomboz History2052071947Joan Taylor Kathleen FerrierRoy HendersonThe Boyd Neel OrchestraDeccaAK1517 - AK15211951Anna Maria Augenstein Hetty PlümacherHans GrischkatTon-Studio Orchestra of StuttgartNixa5301953Victoria de los Ángeles Oralia DomínguezArturo ToscaniniNBC Symphony OrchestraRCA Victor GD602721955Teresa Stich-Randall Elisabeth HöngenMario RossiVienna State Opera OrchestraBach Guild5491956Friederike Sailer Hanne MünchGünter KehrMainzer KammerorchesterVox99601958Margot Guilleaume Jeanne DeroubaizMatthieu LangeSüdwestdeutsches KammerorchesterArchiv140981965Judith Raskin Maureen LehaneFranco CaraccioloOrchestra Rossini di NapoliDecca61531966Evelyn Lear Christa LudwigLorin MaazelBerlin Radio Symphony OrchestraPhillips35901990 (live 1968 performance)Gundula Janowitz Maureen ForresterClaudio AbbadoBerlin PhilharmonicMyto905.251969Margaret Tynes Anita Turner-ButlerMassimo BruniPrague Chamber OrchestraSupraphon1112 06201972Luciana Ticinelli-Fattori Maria MinettoEdwin LoehrerSocietà Cameristica di LuganoErato550461973Mirella Freni Teresa BerganzaEttore GracisSolisti Dell'Orchestra "Scarlatti" NapoliArchiv2533 1141973Ingeborg Müller-Ney Tuula Nienstedt Heidelberger KammerorchesterSastruphonSM 0070471979Margaret Marshall Alfreda HodgsonGünter KehrMainzer KammerorchesterCandide311181979Klaus Brettschneider, Stefan Frangoulis Christian Siferlinger, Michael StumpfGerhard Schmidt-GadenEnglish Baroque EnsemblePhilips6501 0111979Ileana Cotrubas Lucia Valentini-TerraniClaudio ScimoneI Solisti VenetiErato711791980Felicity Palmer Alfreda HodgsonGeorge GuestArgo Chamber OrchestraArgo5910231981Magda Kalmar Julia HamariLamberto GardelliLiszt Ferenc Chamber Orchestra, BudapestHungaroton12201-21983Sebastian Hennig René JacobsRené JacobsConcerto VocaleHarmonia Mundi11191985Margaret Marshall Lucia Valentini-TerraniClaudio AbbadoLondon Symphony OrchestraDeutsche Grammophon4151031986Kiri Te Kanawa Agnes BaltsaLeonard SlatkinSt. Louis Symphony OrchestraRCA Red SealRCD1-51941987Mieke van der Sluis Gérard LesneRené ClemencicClemencic ConsortAccord2000621987Véronique Dietschy Alain ZaepffelPaul ColleauxEnsemble StradivariaAdda5810161988Gillian Fisher Michael ChanceRobert KingThe King's ConsortHyperion662941989Emma Kirkby James BowmanChristopher HogwoodAcademy of Ancient MusicDecca425 692-21990Krisztina Laki Julia HamariAgostino OrizioOrchestra da Camera del Festival Internazionale di Brescia e BergamoFonè90 F 031991Mária Zádori Derek Lee RaginPál NémethCapella Savariaharmonia mundi39030112000 (recorded 1993)Cecilia Gasdia Delores ZieglerClaudio ScimoneI Solisti VenetiWarner8573-812761993June Anderson Cecilia BartoliCharles DutoitMontreal SinfoniettaDecca4362091993Dennis Naseband Jochen KowalskiHartmut HaenchenCarl Philipp Emanuel Bach Chamber OrchestraBerlin Classics1151121994Dorothea Röschmann Catherine RobbinBernard LabadieLes Violons du RoySono Luminus901961995Arthur Stefanowics Brigitte FournierAndrzej MysinskiConcerto AvennaElysium7051995Anna Gonda Julia FaulknerMichael HalászCamerata BudapestNaxos85507661995Regina Klepper Martina BorstBamberg String QuartetCapriccio Records105171996Katia Ricciarelli Manuela CusterGiorgio CrociI FilarmoniciTactus7116021998Gemma Bertagnolli Sara MingardoRinaldo AlessandriniConcerto ItalianoOpus 111 / NaïveOpus 111 – OPS 30-1601998Evelyn Lear Christa LudwigLorin MaazelBerlin Radio Symphony OrchestraPhilips4620541999Barbara Bonney Andreas SchollChristophe RoussetLes Talens LyriquesDecca4661342000Véronique Gens Gérard LesneGérard LesneSeminario MusicaleVirgin Classics452912004Pino De Vittorio Patrizia BoviOlivier SchneebeliLe Poème HarmoniqueAlpha Productions92004Roberta Invernizzi, soprano Sonia Prina, contraltoOttavio DantoneAccademia BizantinaParagon per AmadeusAM 180-22006Michael Chance Jörg WaschinskiHelmut Müller-BrühlCologne Chamber OrchestraNaxos85574472006Bettina Rubertone Chiarastella OnoratiFlavio Emilio ScognaBenedetto Marcello Chamber OrchestraTactus7116032006Dorothea Röschmann David DanielsFabio BiondiEuropa GalanteEmi Classics633402008Mikael Bellini Susanne RydénStockholm Baroque OrchestraProprius-audiosource20402009Elisabeth Norberg-Schulz Nathalie StutzmannRoy GoodmanHanover BandRCA612152009Katia Ricciarelli Lucia Valentini-TerraniClaudio AbbadoMilan Teatro alla Scala OrchestraEuroarts20723782009Barbara Hendricks Ulrika TenstamDrottningholm Baroque EnsembleArte Verum72009Lawrence Zazzo Angharad Gruffydd JonesTimothy BrownCambridge EnsembleBrilliant Classics939522010Anna Prohaska Bernarda FinkBernhard ForckAcademy for Ancient Music BerlinHarmonie Mundi9020722010Rachel Harnisch Sara MingadoClaudio AbbadoOrchestra MozartArchiv477 80772010Elin Manahan Thomas Robin BlazeAshley SolomonFlorilegiumChannel ClassicsCCS SA 298102011Anna Netrebko Marianna PizzolatoAntonio PappanoSanta Cecilia Academy Rome OrchestraDeutsche Grammophon0015444022012Valer Sabadus Terry WeyMichael HofstetterNeumeyer ConsortOehms8312013Philippe Jaroussky Julia LezhnevaDiego FasolisI BarocchistiErato191472014Jonah Schenkel Alex PotterAlphons von AarburgBarockorchester CapriccioTudor Records71662015Evelyn Tubb Terry BarberPredrag GostaNew Trinity BaroqueEdition Lilac1511082016Sara Mingardo Silvia FrigatoFederico FerriAccademia degli AstrusiConcerto20972017Tim Mead Lucy CroweDavid BatesLa Nuova MusicaHarmonia Mundi9075892019Magali Léger Paulin BündgenJean-Marc AndrieuLes PassionsLiga3279122019Mariella Devia Francesca ProvvisionatoDaniele CallegariOrchestra Filarmonica MarchigianaFonè1302020Sandrine Piau Christopher LowreyChristophe RoussetLes Talens LyriquesAlpha Productions4492021Samuel Mariño Filippo MinecciaMarie Van RhijnOrchestre de l'Opéra RoyalChâteau de Versailles Spectacles033
References
Further reading
Richard Wagner's of Pergolesi's Stabat Mater: An IMSLP-hosted scan of Pergolesi's manuscript, viewed here 15.6MB
External links
Pergolesi Stabat Mater Video of a historical performance of the Stabat Mater on original instruments by the ensemble Voices of Music using original baroque instruments.