Réminiscences de La juive (with ossia), S.409a - Franz Liszt/Fromental Halévy

Franz Liszt/Fromental Halévy: Réminiscences de La juive – Fantaisie brillante sur des motifs de l'opéra de Halévy (with ossia), S.409a. It is impossible to say for certain whether the fantasia on La Juive was composed swiftly on Liszt hearing of Thalberg's Parisian success, or whether this simply persuaded him to expedite its publication. La Juive itself was performed for the first time on February 23rd 1835 at the Paris Opéra, and Liszt's fantasia had certainly been sent to Schlesinger before November of the same year. The likelihood is that it had been gestating in Liszt's mind before he had heard of Thalberg, although was perhaps not fully worked out. Halévy never again enjoyed a success quite as enduring as that of La Juive, an opera which triggered an avalanche of fantasias and pot-pourris by various hands. Liszt's piece is the only one of these which is even occasionally performed today, when perfomances of La Juive itself are of rare occurrence. Réminiscences de la Juive is evidently of greater sophistication than his last surviving complete fantasia—on La Fiancée (    • Grande fantaisie sur la tyrolienne de "La ...   )—which is only to be expected after a gap of six years and after the group of remarkable exploratory compositions published during this period. [...] The La Juive fantasia is a pot-pourri, allowing scope for dramatic juxtaposition and affording the possibility of thematic combination—a feature which becomes increasingly prominent in later fantasias after acquaintance with Thalberg's music. The three numbers on which the fantasia is based are the chorus "Quel Plaisir" which opens Act V, the Malédiction of Act IV, and the Boléro of Act III. The first two are directly connected with the persecution of the Jews, the Chorus being one of rejoicing at the imminent death of Eléazar and Rachel, while the Malédiction is a curse on Léopold for consorting with a Jewess. The third number has nothing to do with the persecution and is merely a solicitous aria sung by Eudoxie. This melody is the most attractive and haunting of the three, but it does destroy any possibility that there might have been some overall guiding principle governing the choice of themes, as we sometimes find later. Paradoxically, the third theme, which interrupts an arrangement of music connected with the savagery of the persecution, is both dramatically inappropriate as an associate of the previous two and much more interesting as a melody than anything which has gone before—for all its popular success, La Juive is not replete with good tunes. Liszt's fantasia begins and ends with the opening chorus of Act V, which forms a frame for the Malédiction and a substantial set of variations on the Bolero. Melodically and tonally the piece is in the form of an arch, with an introduction based on Halévy's own introduction to Act V, but with several extensions and omissions—particularly effective being the pianistic cadenza of 0:46. The ensuing six bars are a good example of Liszt's increasing mastery of the art of transition. A fragment of the opening melodic figure is combined with the rhythm of the next theme (the Malédiction) over a dominant pedal. The arrangement of the Malédiction ( 1:00 ) provides numerous examples of Liszt's passion for variants, as he subtly alters the harmony or extends phrases. As the Malédiction progresses, its melody is gradually combined with fragments from the introduction, which completely take over by 1:56. The fragments are then treated to a sequential development into which is interpolated a compressed version of the Malédiction theme ( 2:22 ). Bars 2:40 correspond with 0:20, creating an impression of a varied recapitulation of the introduction. At 4:18 of the fantasia we come upon a theme that turns out to be Liszt's own invention, as is the "scherzando" melody at 4:31. This is a relatively rare procedure for Liszt, although Thalberg constantly introduces original themes into his fantasias. At first it might seem that 4:50 is also Liszt's own invention, but a comparison with the section "vous l'entendez: ils vont passer" shows that the latter is an ingenious virtuosic paraphrase of the former. Liszt's initial treatment of the Boléro theme ( 6:04 ) is relatively conventional, decorating it with predictable semiquaver figurations, but on the arrival of the second variation ( 9:03 ) we seem to step into another world, to a passage of truly heartfelt emotion. This is a very free treatment indeed of the theme, thrown into greater relief by the unbroken figuration preceding it. Remarkable "quasi-improvisato" harmonies unfold over what is basically a pedal anchored to E flat. [...] (notes by Kenneth Hamilton) Version without ossia:    • Réminiscences de La juive, S.409a - Franz ...   Version with optional cuts:    • Réminiscences de La juive (with optional c...   Our Discord Server:   / discord