Servais - Souvenir de Bade, Op. 20 (Urtext Edition, Piano Version)

Souvenir de Bade is a revised version of Fantaisie La Romantique, one of Servais’s earliest successes as a composer. Although the original Fantaisie was performed as early as 1834, it was never published during Servais’s lifetime. The revised version appeared under the title Souvenir de Bade and was published by Schott in 1863.

The earliest known performance under the new title took place on 23 February 1860. The work was likely connected to Servais’s frequent appearances in Baden-Baden, where, according to Peter François, he performed almost every year from 1856 to 1866. The published edition was dedicated to the wife of casino director and cellist Edouard Bénazet.

Unlike Fantaisie La Romantique, Souvenir de Bade is largely monothematic. A developed orchestral introduction leads to a virtuosic cadenza, followed by the theme and variations. The slow variation features a sweeping harp-like accompaniment, while the finale replaces the original polonaise with a tarantella-like close. Unusually for Servais, the work ends quietly, apart from the final chord.

ASTA Level: 6