From Heavenly Harmony
With Mary & a Cloud of Witnesses
There are many texts that have been employed in the music of Holy Week. The Passion accounts in the Gospels are the most immediate candidates, and have produced—augmented with sensitive and theologically alert poetry—some of the most memorable works in the canon of sacred music (e.g., J. S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion).
The book of Lamentations is another biblical source for musical expression during Holy Week (see last year's column, "The Depths of Solemn Grandeur"). Beginning in the fifteenth century, many of the greatest composers working in the Western Church wrote settings of Lamentations to be used at matins on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. Last year, I singled out Robert White's little-known setting, but also notable are those by Morales, Tallis, Palestrina, Lassus, Byrd, and Victoria. Readers would do well to spend time in the week before we celebrate the Resurrection to allow the expression of sorrow conveyed in the work of one or more of these servants of the Word to get into their ears and heart.
Another text that has inspired a huge catalog of music for Holy Week is the medieval poem Stabat Mater Dolorosa, "The Sorrowful Mother Was Standing." While its authorship has been attributed to various hands, including St. Gregory the Great, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Pope Innocent III, St. Bonaventure, Pope John XXII, and Pope Gregory XI, it was likely (but not certainly) the work of Jacopone da Todi (c. 1230–1306). Born into a noble family in northern Italy, Jacopone had been a successful lawyer until the tragic death of his pious wife prompted a dramatic conversion. He wrote many hymns, mystical poems, and satirical verses in addition to Stabat Mater Dolorosa, a 20-stanza poem probably intended for private devotional rather than liturgical use.
Expressing & Sharing in the Suffering
The subject of the poem is the emotional reaction of the Mother of Jesus standing at the foot of the Cross. The first ten stanzas describe Mary's grief and agony, inviting us as readers to imagine both what she felt and what we ought to feel: "Who is it that would not weep, seeing Christ's Mother in such agony? Who could not feel compassion on beholding the Holy Mother suffering with her Son?" The final ten stanzas address Mary in the hope of sharing in her suffering: "Grant that my heart may burn in the love of Christ my God, that I may greatly please Him."
As early as 1417, the poem appeared in prayer books, by which time it had already long been chanted in simple, repetitive chant, although not yet a formal part of the liturgy. In fact, it was not added to the Roman Catholic liturgy until 1727. By that time, many composers had created intricate and often quite intense musical works that attempted to translate into sound—felt with the body—something of the suffering of Mary sharing in the sufferings of her Son.
Just as the poet who wrote Stabat Mater Dolorosa (often called simply Stabat Mater) attempted to give form to the feelings of Mary at this decisive moment in her life—a pivotal moment in cosmic history—so hundreds of composers have dedicated many agonizing hours to adding another dimension of form to express those feelings, and to enable those feelings to become ours.
Mary watches her Son die, and participates in his suffering. A poet then meditates on Mary's experience and, in capturing it in words, participates in her grief. A composer reflects on this poem and enters into the heart of the poet, who entered into Mary's loving heart, who entered into the agonies of the Man who had been in her womb years earlier, the one who was Love incarnate.
Sympathetic Witness
The Crucifixion did not happen apart from sympathetic witnesses. It could have been possible for the death of Christ—with all its atoning significance—to have occurred in seclusion, without anyone present to watch and weep. But the presence of Mary and John at the foot of the Cross established a pattern of sympathetic witness that is carried on in poetry, music, and other expressive art. The death of Christ is not simply a factual event; it was an experienced event, and not just by Jesus.
Philosopher Susanne Langer, in Problems of Art, argued that
Ken Myers is the host and producer of the Mars Hill Audio Journal. Formerly an arts editor with National Public Radio, he also serves as music director at All Saints Anglican Church in Ivy, Virginia. He is a contributing editor for Touchstone.
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33.3—May/June 2020
Bach's Cantata BWV 106, Gottes Zeit ist die allerbesteZeit (God's time is the very best time) by Ken Myers
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