Antonio Vivaldi: Stabat Mater (RV 621)

Stabat Mater for solo alto and orchestra, RV 621, is a composition by Antonio Vivaldi on one of the Sorrows of Mary. It was premiered in 1712. Vivaldi’s Stabat Mater only uses the first ten stanzas of the hymn. The music is keyed in F minor, and is generally slow and melancholy, with allegro only being used once in the Amen, and all the other movements not going faster than andante. Movements 4, 5, and 6 are identical to the first three musically.