Stabat Mater

Joseph Haydn's Stabat Mater, Hob. XXa:1, is a setting of the Stabat Mater sequence, written in 1767 for soloists, mixed choir and an orchestra of oboes, strings and continuo. The first performance is believed to have taken place on 17 March 1767 at the Esterhazy court. A performance in Vienna the following year began a wide distribution. His setting is regarded as an important one among around 600, along with the earlier by Pergolesi and the later compositions by Rossini and by Dvořák.