Fosca Fantaisie Brillante op. 3

Fosca Fantaisie Brillante op. 3 is a work of great virtuosity on themes from the opera of the same name by Carlos Gomes (1873), who was a great friend of the family and even dedicated his San Sebastian Mass to Alexandre's father, Henrique Luiz. None of the sources consulted indicates a date of composition for this piece, but it is certainly from the beginning of Levy's creative period, as his brother Luiz states that Alexandre's interest in fantasies about operatic motifs is from that period alone, never again having addressed the genre throughout his short life. The edition is by Isidoro Bevilacqua (Rio de Janeiro, 1943). The dedication is “A mon professeur Louis Maurice”. The virtuosity of this work is typical of the 19th century, and Liszt’s idiom is easily recognisable. We remember that Liszt composed several transcriptions of Italian, German and French operas such as the famous Isoldens Liebestod and Tannhäuser by Richard Wagner. This is the first known recording of this work.