Romance on a Theme from S. Moniuszko's Opera 'Halka' - Prepared for Viola and Piano

Henri Vieuxtemps was a remarkably productive composer who wrote seven violin concertos, concert etudes, two viola sonatas and a dozen or so chamber works, yet the bulk of his output consists of works for violin and piano. Vieuxtemps's favorite musical form was the then-fashionable fantasy on themes from well-known operas, of which he left us quite a number. The Romance originally composed for violin and piano is based on a theme from Stanislaw Moniuszko's national opera Halka (Jontek's famous aria 'Szumia jodly na gor szcycie'  The firs sough on the mountain top. ). The present edition is based on Zdzislaw Jahnke's 1952 edition. This work gives the player the opportunity to display a beautiful tone and proficiency in both the left and right hand; it is also a marvelous exercise in rubato playing.