Stabat Mater

5 things to know about Rossini’s Stabat Mater

1° What is a 'Stabat mater'?

In Latin, 'stabat mater dolorosa' means 'the sorrowful mother was standing' and refers to the biblical scene of the Virgin Mary weeping at the foot of the cross where her son was crucified. The text dates from the 13th century and has been attributed to the Italian Franciscan Jacopone da Todi. It is a sequence that has inspired many composers throughout the history of both ancient and contemporary music.

2° A particular period in the life of the composer

After he composed his opera William Tell, which was premiered in 1829 at the Paris Opera, Rossini had something of a creative block: he did not write any opera for nearly 40 years! The reasons are unclear. Writing William Tell required more energy than any of his previsous works and some of his letters written at that time betray his desire to leave the world of opera. Tired, sick, diminished by the death of his father and his mother, Rossini also had independent means, so he did not need to compose for a living. It was at the beginning of this period that he composed his Stabat Mater, between 1831 and 1841.

3° Two versions of the Stabat Mater

It was during a trip to Spain in 1831 with his friend, the banker Alexandre Aguado, that Rossini was commissioned to write a Stabat Mater by State Councilor Fernandez Varela. At first, Rossini wrote only half of the score and then asked his friend Giovanni Tadolini, especially because he was ill, to complete it. It was not until 10 years later that Rossini, especially under the pressure of his publisher Eugène Troupenas, decided to completely recompose the work done by Tadolini, giving rise to what could be called a second version of the work.

4° An exceptional conductor...

The Paris premiere of Rossini's Stabat Mater took place at the Italian theatre in Paris in 1842. The Italian premiere was in Bologna and the conductor was none other than... Donizetti! Both events were a great sucess. Donizetti wrote: 'The enthusiasm is impossible to describe. Even at the last rehearsal, which Rossini attended in the middle of the day, he went home amid the loud applause of more than 500 people. The same thing the first night, under his window, since he had not appeared in the hall... '. Rossini was very moved that Donizetti should conduct his music.

5° A very special event at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna

On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Rossini's death, conductor Michele Mariotti and soloists Yolanda Auyanet, Antonino Siragusa, Veronica Simeoni and Marko Mimica present the composer's Stabat Mater in the same magnificent hall of the Archiginnasio Library where the work was given for the first time, March 18, 1842. It is known as the Stabat Mater Hall.