Stabat Mater
Written by Andrew Johnstone
11 & 12.04.2006 - Stabat Mater, Dublin
Resurgam, Irish Baroque Orchestra/Duley. St Nicholas of Myra Church, Dublin
The Irish Baroque Orchestra and its affiliate choir Resurgam marked Holy Week with three 18th-century settings of the crucifixion hymn Stabat Mater. Alomgside Pergolesi's much-loved version for solo soprano and alto were Vivaldi's for solo alto and Domenico Scarlatti's for a cappella chorus and continuo - an intelligent mix of the familiar and the recherché.
Few penitential texts have inspired such lively and varied music. The sentiments may be doleful, but their expression in short stanzas prompts the composers frequently to change the mood.
Packed with a large crowd, the church of St Nicholas of Myra lost none of its acoustic bloom. While its stone surfaces resisted the impact of the bass tones (and hence also the harmonic effect of chorus and continuo), they added extra colour to melodic nuances and ornaments.
Creating some splendid resonances of his own was countertenor Owen Willetts, whose falsetto was no less impressive for its sumptuous low notes than for its ringing high ones. He showed an innate sense of the music's style, both as a soloist in the Vivaldi and in duet in the Pergolesi with equally strong soprano Lynda Lee.
Mark Duley, the IBO's artistic director, doubled as conductor and continuo organist with characteristic efficiency and verve. His instinct for the music's natural pace ensured smooth transitions between tempos.
Though the sparser aspects of Scarlatti's quirky polyphony brought out certain inconsistencies of choral timbre, Resurgam's 20 voices added up to a luxuriant tutti suggesting more numerous forces.
From within their ranks came some lively solo singing, particularly in the culminating Amen chorus. Here, Duley's unremitting drive made for a thrilling conclusion. At its best moments, the IBO's gut-strung playing had a steely lustre. It was a sure sign of their progress from a merely idiomatic to a truly distinctive early music sound.
