Stood the Mother beneath the Cross…

1st April, 2021 (Holy Thursday)

Stood the Mother, near the Cross, crying.

Even just these few words give us a heartfelt image of a Mother in deep grief and distress witnessing the torture and painful death of her beloved, unjustly accused Son.

These opening lines of the Sequence of Our Lady of Sorrows have, over the ages inspired many composers to set this moving text to music.

During our Lenten journey, the Cathedral Choir and soloists sang the Stabat Mater as set by Venetian-born composer Antonio Caldara (1670 – 1736) this past Sunday (5th Sunday of Lent) – our annual special Lenten tribute to Our Lady.

This lesser known version of the Stabat Mater is a later work of Caldara: written in 1725 after he had moved to Vienna. Structurally, it is a series of short movements strung together, each movement conveying something of the pathos of its text and its rather chromatic language helps to portray the deep grief and distress of our Blessed Mother.

One of our Cathedral Cantors, Christopher Martin who sang the bass solo in this piece and also the aria ‘Komm suses Kreuz’ (Come, sweet Cross) from St Matthew Passion of JS Bach shares a few thoughts:

‘Preparing for the 5th Sunday of Lent has been a great joy and a truly moving spiritual experience that has brought me closer to God as we head closer to Holy Week. In particular preparing both solos for Caldara’s Stabat Mater and Bach’s Komm Susses Kruez gave me a deeper appreciation for what it means to carry the cross alongside Jesus: the main message of the Bach Aria from his St Matthew’s Passion. I hope that we can all walk alongside Jesus this Easter and gain a greater understanding for the spiritual mysteries that surround us.’.

Also, some thoughts from one of choristers who starting singing with the Cathedral Choir as a treble and is, this Holy Week, taking on some junior cantor roles:

‘Since Year 3 as a soprano, I have found Lenten music to be incredibly beautiful and special. It is often the most reverent and reflective music of the entire year, and being able to sing both in the choir and vocal ensemble has allowed me to work with different types of Lenten music and see the intricacies of both chant, polyphony, and other styles. As a bass in Year 12, my many years of singing in the Cathedral helps me to understand the awesome power of God reaching out through music’.

May Jesus and his Blessed Mother bless us abundantly as we celebrate these very special and significant days marking his Passion, Death and glorious Resurrection.

Jacinta