. (listen) Stravinsky was raised in the Russian Orthodox Church, but in his young adult life, his religious practices were 'put on hold' so to speak.
It wasn't until he returned to the church that he wrote a series of three motets intended for use within the orthodoxy: 'The Lord's Prayer' (1926), 'Credo' (1932), and 'Ave Maria' (1934). Stravinsky composed all three works in Slavic text, then fifteen years later, after moving to the United States, he republished the works with Latin texts. (listen) This sublime aria is sung in the fourth act of 's opera, 'Otello', by Desdemona. Knowing she may die that evening at the hands of her husband Otello, Desdemona asks her servant Emilia to prepare her wedding gown with instructions to bury her in it in case she dies that evening.
After Emilia leaves, Desdemona prays to Virgin Mary, asking her to pray for the sinner, the weak, the oppressed, the mighty, the unfortunate, and for them in the hour of their death.
Ave Maria!, (Latin: “Hail Mary”) song setting, the third of three songs whose text is derived of a section of Sir Walter Scott's poem The Lady of the Lake (1810).