CBS Music presents “Stabat Mater” Concert

CBS Music presents Pergolesi’s “Stabat Mater” to mark the Lenten season and will be the highlight of a concert on Sunday 21st February 2016, 3.00 p.m. in St Mary’s Pro Cathedral, 373 Manchester Street, Christchurch.

The Stabat Mater has been widely performed and become very popular since its completion in the early eighteenth century by Pergolesi shortly before his death at the age of 26.  It is a reflective poem about Mary at the foot of the cross , full of emotional intensity and beautiful melodies, sung by two female voices accompanied by string orchestra.  The soloists will Elizabeth Emeleus and Louisa Pilkington, and the CBS Orchestra will be led by Natalia Lomeiko.

The Cathedral Choir will contribute appropriate motets, including Colin Mawby’s ecstatically beautiful setting of the Ave Verum, which the group performed to much acclaim on their tour last year of Ireland and the United Kingdom.  Admission will be free, with a retiring collection, and all are warmly welcome.