Time 18:00
Saviour’s Church, Rynek 12, Tarnowskie Góry
The concert is part of the 10th Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczyki International Festival
The moving text of the medieval sequence Stabat Mater Dolorosa has for centuries been an inexhaustible source of inspiration for painters, sculptors, poets, and above all – composers. The dramatic description of the suffering of the Mother of God looking at the martyrdom of her only Son, was constantly present in the works of the greatest of artists: Gioacchino Rossini and Giuseppe Verdi, and later, in the 20th century, Karol Szymanowski, Arvo Pärt, and Krzysztof Penderecki, to name a few.
One of the greatest works of the Baroque era to take on this subject is Stabat Mater by Antonio Vivaldi. The composer used only half of the original liturgical text, concentrating on the most faithful depiction of the weeping Mary. The skillful application of rhetorical figures as well as harmonic solutions led to the creation of an exceptionally meaningful and deeply moving composition.
It was in Stabat Mater that the genius of the prematurely deceased Giovanni Battista Pergolesi revealed itself in an exceptional way. Tormented by his illness and suspecting that the end was near, the then barely 25-year-old composer created a true masterpiece, astounding with its suggestive musical content and clarity of construction. Despite a modest cast (soprano, alto, two violins, and basso continuo), the composition dazzles with enchanting melodies, moving arias, and striking instrumental sequences. It is this power of expression that has granted Pergolesi a leading position among the numerous artists who depicted the story of Our Lady of Sorrows grieving by the cross.
PROGRAM
Antonio Vivaldi – Stabat Mater
Stabat Mater dolorosa
Cujus animam gementem
O quam tristis
Quis est homo
Quis non posset
Pro peccatis suae gentis
Eja mater, fons amoris
Fac ut ardeat
Amen
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi – Stabat Mater
Stabat Mater dolorosa
Cujus animam gementem
O quam tristis et afflicta
Quae moerebat et dolebat
Quis est homo qui non fleret
Vidit suum dulcem natum
Eja Mater, fons amoris
Fac ut ardeat cor meum
Sancta Mater, istud agas
Fac ut portem Christi mortem
Inflammatus et accensus
Quanto corpus morietur
PERFORMERS
MARTA BOBERSKA SOPRANO
ANETA ŁUKASZEWICZ MEZZOSOPRANO
THE PERIOD INSTRUMENTS ENSEMBLE OF THE POLISH ROYAL OPERA CAPELLA REGIA POLONA
KRZYSZTOF GARSTKA POSITIVE ORGAN, CONDUCTOR
Duration: approx. 1h
Patron of the Polish Royal Opera
Patron of Opera on Tour
Patron of Opera on Tour
Patron of Opera Workshops
Patron of Opera on Tour
