Eja, mater, fons amoris (O, Mother, fountain of love) sets an extract from the 13th-century latin poem Stabat Mater, a hymn to the Virgin Mary describing her suffering during her son s crucifixion. It was commissioned by the Choir of Clare College, Cambridge for a special Passiontide service of music and readings, during the college s 50th-anniversary year of female admissions.