Servais - Fantaisie sur des Motifs des Huguenots (Urtext Edition, Piano Version)

Schott published four of Servais’s fantasias posthumously in 1876, a decade after the composer’s death. Three were written for cello and orchestra, or cello and piano, and one for two cellos and piano. Among them, the Fantaisie sur des motifs des Huguenots de Meyerbeer appeared as Œuvre posthume No. 3.

Servais evidently had a special fondness for Meyerbeer’s Les Huguenots, as he composed three separate fantasies on themes from the opera: one as a solo work, one in collaboration with Jacques Gregoir, and one with Henry Vieuxtemps. The admiration was mutual, since Vieuxtemps, in collaboration with Gregoir, also dedicated his own Huguenots fantasy to Servais.

The fantasy begins with a solemn, almost funereal introduction based on Urbain’s aria “Une dame noble et sage.” A lighter 6/8 section follows, leading to a direct presentation of the aria, a theme also used in Servais’s collaborative fantasy with Gregoir. A festive polonaise-style variation gives way to a lyrical slow section based on Raoul’s aria “Beauté divine enchanteresse.” The finale draws on several dramatic choral excerpts from the opera, including the Chœur des Meurtriers, the Catholic men’s chorus “Abjurez, Huguenots, le ciel l’ordonne,” with its brief quotation of “Ein feste Burg,” and the Vision scene “Ah! voyez, le ciel s’ouvre et rayonne.”

One of Servais’s shorter fantasies, this work offers a compact but vivid example of his operatic concert style, combining solemn drama, lyrical song, dance character, and brilliant theatrical momentum.

ASTA Level: 6