Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina ( 1525 – 2 February 1594) was an Italian Renaissance composer of sacred music and the best-known 16th-century representative of the Roman School of musical composition. He had a lasting influence on the development of church music, and his work is considered as the culmination of Renaissance polyphony.
Stabat Mater (Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina)
The text predates Palestrina's composition and dates as far back as the 13th century. The author of the text is unknown. Some possible authors include: St. Bonaventure, Pope Innocent III, and Jacopone da Todi, a Franciscan Friar. The liturgical text is centered on Mary's suffering at the Crucifixion of Christ. It has both a regular meter – frequently trochaic – and an intricate rhyme scheme, both of which are qualities that most academics date back to the 12th century.