JAVS Summer 2025

coloring, the piece is no less technically demanding than other virtuosic works of the period. A particularly striking feature is the use of left-hand pizzicato—an effect reminiscent of Paganini’s Caprice No. 24 , composed at nearly the same time. Additionally, Weber’s employment of right-hand pizzicato connects intriguingly with operatic history: although the technique first appeared in viol repertoire roughly twenty years earlier, its most notable early use on modern string instruments is in Claudio Monteverdi’s Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda (1624), where pizzicato vividly depicts a battle scene. To most violinists—and violists—today, Jacques-Féréol Mazas is remembered primarily for his pedagogical études, but his contributions to the musical world extend far beyond his educational legacy. At the age of twenty, he was admitted to the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied under Pierre Baillot (1771–1842). Upon graduation, he quickly drew public attention and embarked on a successful solo career that took him across Europe. In addition to performing, Mazas served as concertmaster of the Palais-Royal Orchestra, taught violin in Orléans— where he also directed the city’s Opéra Comique—and later became director of the Cambrai Conservatoire. His compositional output is wide-ranging and includes vocal works, operas, chamber music, and numerous pieces for violin. Notably, Mazas appeared to be one of the many violinists of his era who regularly performed on the viola, likely due to his appreciation for its distinctive timbre. In 1830, during a series of concerts in Paris, Mazas consistently featured a viola work in nearly every program. A contemporary review praised his approach, noting that he deeply understood the instrument’s capabilities and established a distinctive style focused on expressive, singing phrasing rather than technical showiness. Mazas wrote both a Method for Viola and a Fantaisie for Viola and Orchestra , the latter of which he performed on March 9, 1834, for the Société des Concerts du Conservatoire. Unfortunately, both works appear to be lost. His Élégie , Op. 73 for viola and orchestra, published in 1838, survives and reveals his operatic style and his sensitivity to the viola’s warm, plaintive tone. 5 Le Songe - Fantaisie sur La Favorite, Op. 92 by Jacques Féréol Mazas (1782-1849)

Figure 4. Paris Opéra, where La Favorite was premiered.

The Fantaisie discussed here is a posthumously published work, issued around 1850 by the Parisian publisher Aulagnier. It was likely composed between 1840 and 1845 and may have originally included orchestral accompaniment, though only the version with piano reduction survives. The principal theme is drawn from La Favorite , a four-act French grand opera by Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848), composed during the Italian composer’s prolific late period while he was working in Paris. La Favorite premiered at the Paris Opéra on December 2, 1840, with a libretto by Alphonse Royer (1803–1875) and Gustave Vaëz (1812–1862). The opera repurposed material from Donizetti’s earlier, unperformed L’Ange de Nisida , originally intended for the Théâtre de la Renaissance, which had gone bankrupt. Notably, Richard Wagner edited the vocal score of La Favorite . Set against the backdrop of fourteenth-century Spain during the Moorish invasion and tensions between the monarchy and the Church, the opera follows the tragic love story between the monk Fernando and Leonora, the mistress of King Alphonse XI. After renouncing his monastic vows for love, Fernando learns of Leonora’s true identity and returns to the monastery in anguish. In the final act, Leonora finds him and pleads for forgiveness. Moved but unable to alter their fate, Fernando embraces her as she dies in his arms. The theme Mazas chose for his Fantaisie comes from Fernando’s aria in Act IV, Scene 3, a classic da capo aria newly composed for La Favorite . The aria was so stirring that it often interrupted performances with applause— an uncommon occurrence in continuous operatic productions. The English translation of the aria’s opening line reads: “Pure angel, whom I thought I had found in a

Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 41, Summer 2025 Online Issue

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