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Stanford

Charles Villiers Stanford

About the composer

Charles Villiers Stanford (1852 – 1924) was born in Dublin, Ireland, but a convinced Protestant. Though he was Irish to the marrow (his third symphony is called “the Irish”, and he composed six “Irish Rhapsodies”) he worked all his life in England, especially in Leeds. He composed many choral works, for instance Songs of the Sea and Songs of the Fleet, a Requiem and five operas. It is not known why the Protestant Stanford composed a Stabat Mater.

About the Stabat Mater

Date: 1906
Performers:

Soprano, alto, tenor, bass, choir and orchestra

Length: 43.06 minutes
Particulars:

The composition is divided into five sections, of which the first, the Prelude, and the third, the Intermezzo, are instrumental. Stanford himself gave it the subtitle "Symphonic Cantata".

Textual variations:

The "Analecta"-text is used, with a single change:
- Stanza 16, line 2: not "Passionis ejus sortem" but "Passionis fac consortem"
However, in two places Stanford breaks through the order of the poem's stanzas: after the "dum emisit spiritum" the soprano repeats "Stabat Mater Dolorosa" and after the third stanza in the second section the chorus repeats the opening sentence "Eia Mater, fons amoris".

Colour bar:

stanford

Information about the recording

CD: Chandos CHAN 9548: Stanford, Stabat Mater – Te Deum – Bible Songs
More info:

Recorded at the Leeds Town Hall, November 1995.

Orchestra: BBC Philharmonic
Choir: Leeds Philharmonic Chorus
Conductor: Richard Hickox
Soloists:

Ingrid Attrot, soprano
Pamela Helen Stephen, mezzo-soprano
Nigel Robson, tenor
Stephen Varcoe, baritone

Other works:

Te Deum laudamus
Bible Songs

Code: STA-01

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