Servais - Le Carnaval de Venise, Op. 9 (Urtext Edition, Piano Version)
  • Servais - Le Carnaval de Venise, Op. 9 (Urtext Edition, Piano Version)
  • Servais - Le Carnaval de Venise, Op. 9 (Urtext Edition, Piano Version)
  • Servais - Le Carnaval de Venise, Op. 9 (Urtext Edition, Piano Version)

Servais - Le Carnaval de Venise, Op. 9 (Urtext Edition, Piano Version)

In cart Not available Out of stock
$12.99

Carnaval de Venise was first penned under the title Fantaisie Burlesque, dedicated to Arkady Rachmaninoff, the paternal grandfather of the famous Russian composer. The first known performance of this work was on 3 September 1838 in Halle, Belgium. The published title page retains the title of Fantaisie Burlesque but adds the subtitle ou le Carnaval

Carnaval de Venise was first penned under the title Fantaisie Burlesque, dedicated to Arkady Rachmaninoff, the paternal grandfather of the famous Russian composer. The first known performance of this work was on 3 September 1838 in Halle, Belgium. The published title page retains the title of Fantaisie Burlesque but adds the subtitle ou le Carnaval de Venise. Three early sources of Fantaisie Burlesque are housed at the Brussels Conservatory. The first two sources are in the hand of Ulysse Claes. The MS 45.116 is an autograph. The progression of the sources points in the direction of MS 45.106 (9) coming first, as it is a working copy and is heavily revised. The next is MS 45.119, a fair copy of the previous revision. Finally, MS 45.116 most closely resembles the printed version, although it is still fairly different in many respects, it contains the finale that was originally used in Fantaisie élégante and Fantaisie et Variations No. 18, the early versions of Souvenir de St. Pétersbourg. The engraver’s copies of the piano version (Mus.Schott.Ha 11079-2) and the orchestra version (Mus.Schott.Ha 11080-2) are housed at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich.

Many composers used this theme of “Cara mamma mia” for their variation sets, including Niccoló Paganini and Heinrich Ernst for violin, and Friedrich Dotzauer (published in 1850) for cello.

Carnaval de Venise, like many other fantasies by Servais, is constructed in variation form. The introduction is based on a song about Pulcinella. This melody makes another appearance later in the Fantaisie finale beginning in m. 278. The main theme of the work is the aforementioned melody “Cara mamma mia.”

The Fantaisie has two key centers and some chromatic peculiarities. The introduction centers around the key of A, both major and minor. The recitative that follows begins in A minor and makes the music seem like it will return to A major, but then abruptly turns to C major for the “Cara” theme. The “Cara” theme is treated with two variations, exploring octaves, trills, up-bow staccatos, and the entire range of the cello. Variations 1 and 2 are followed by a short, orchestral interlude and a longer, unnumbered, slow variation in E major. The next interlude is lengthier than the first. The finale begins with the Pulcinella melody in A major. In one of the Pulcinella iterations, at mm. 286-293, the tonality is obscured with chromaticism. The rest of the work is filled with virtuosic arpeggiation in the solo part, while the orchestra mixes the Pulcinella and “Cara” themes. The section that begins in m. 318 was originally used as the finale of Fantaisie élégante and Fantaisie et Variations No. 18.

Read more…