On our ‘Missing CDs’ page, you will find a list of 575 composers, all of whom have composed a Stabat Mater that has never been released on CD, recorded, or perhaps even performed. Number 96 is Giovanni Carlo Maria Clari (1677 – 1754) who wrote a Stabat Mater for four soloists, mixed choir, strings and continuo, first published in 1744.

Mr. Wim Looyestijn from the Netherlands has a passion for the retrieval and contemporary transcription of ancient music manuscripts. Through his endeavors, he has discovered numerous compositions including a handwritten copy of Clari’s Stabat Mater. He converts these into contemporary digital musical notation. The advantage of digital musical notation is that you can immediately make it audible. Not with the correct lyrics, but with something that closely resembles. Of course it may sound somewhat synthetic but it provides a sense of the work. With the hope that it inspires musicians and choirs to perform it, his work is available for free download. For Clari’s composition, he created an MP3 file and we added the sheet music for the first part. Listen on our YouTube channel.

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