Remember When

In this piece, the composer goes far beyond simply transcribing music from his favorite opera. He expands it, elaborates upon it, and gives to it his unmistakable virtuosic voice. This special type of transcription, called "reminiscences" or "memories," was popular with Romantic composers, who relished the act of filtering and transforming older works through their own sensibilities. The story of this opera, about an unrepentant seducer, also appealed to the composer, although he probably came away from the opera with a different lesson than was intended…