Tercentenary tributes to Domenico Scarlatti seem pretty scarce at the moment so a recording of his ten-part Stabat mater with organ continuo is welcome; and especially so in a performance so sympathetic and so technically assured as this one. The music dates from Scarlatti's time in Rome and contains not a hint of the individuality and original turn of mind which characterizes the keyboard sonatas of later years. Indeed, I doubt very much if we would be regarding him as one of the great three whose anniversaries are being celebrated this year if his merits were to be judged by his vocal music. Some critics assert that it shows little if anything over and above professional competence. That, I believe, is too severe but all the same there is a curious aimlessness about the Stabat mater. There are beautiful moments and there are some undeniably lyrical pieces of writing, too, but the overall effect is a little bland. In the course of some 26 minutes or so the piece never quite reaches the level of harmonic intensity which Gesualdo, who is briefly represented on the second side of the record, achieves in a sixth of the time. Scarlatti's Stabat mater is not without intensity and there are plenty of affecting passages—the 'Sancta mater' is perhaps the most memorable of them—but the music is inclined to drift along elsewhere and might appear to lack vitality and interest in the mouths of lesser singers than these. As it is, the monteverdi Choir seek out many of the nuances of the music and give a performance which is never dull.
The same standards of performance are maintained in the three items on Side 2 of which I found the Gesualdo Ave, dulcissima Maria the most interesting. Alas, no texts are included with the record and practically no guidelines at all are offered to the listener concerning layout. Instead there is a rather unhelpful sleeve-note which indulges in hyperbole, refers to a gracefulness in Scarlatti's ariosos as being already totally Mozartian—which is utterly absurd—and begins with the extremely offputting remark that the record ''is a posy in honour of the Virgin''.
Fine performances, however, and a comparatively unfamiliar side to Scarlatti make the record well worth considering. Good sound and a pleasant acoustic on both LP and CD versions.'