Francis Edward Bache 1833-1858

[giles.enders]

Francis Edward Bache  Born 14 September 1833  Birmingham  -  Died 24 August 1858  London

The son of Samuel (Unitarian Minister)and Emily Bache, he was the eldest of seven children* and initially studied with James Stimpson, a Birmingham City organist and with the violinist/conductor Alfred Mellon.  He also took private lessons with William Sterndale Bennett.  In 1853 he went to Leipzig to study under Moritz Hauptmann and Ludwig Plaidy and later in Dresden he studied with Johann Gottlieb Schneider.

The fourth brother, Walter, was a very fine pianist. A former pupil and champion of Liszt.
His sister Constance was a specialist in Russian music and wrote and lectured as well as composing a few songs.

Orchestral

Piano Concerto in E major  Op.18 1852
Piano Concerto in G minor
Morceaux de Concert  Op.22
Andante and polonaise for piano and orchestra  Op.9  1850
Flute concerto  1852
'Jessie Gray'  overture
Overture in E 
March

Chamber

Piano Trio in D minor  Op.25 pub. by Kistner & Co.
String Quartet in F  1851
Romance for piano and violin or cello  Op.21
Duet for violin and piano; Introduction, air, four variations, intermezzo, fugue.  pub by Augener & Co.
Duo Brillante for violin and piano

Piano

'Moments de recreation', three impromptus  Op.1
'Reve d'amour'  Op.2
'La belle capricieuse - morceaux de salon  Op.3
'Reverie du soir'  Op.4
'L'Irrestible'  - galop di bravura  Op.5   pub. by Augener & Co.
'L'Espirit de la danse' -  valse  Op.6
Fantasia on a favourite Russian air  Op.7  1852
'Eugenie' - mazurka de salon  Op.8'
Brillante polonaise - also version with orchestra  Op.9
Allegretto grazioso  Op.10  pub. by Brewer & Co.
'Le Carnaval de Venice'  piano duet  Op.11
Two Romances, in B flat and F  Op.12
Four mazurkas de salon, in G minor, E flat, C minor, A flat   Op.13 1855  pub. by Augener & Co.available ISMLP
Two characteristic reveries  Op.14
Five characteristic pieces  Op.15 :Trinklied in A Major, An die Geliebte in G major, Verlassen in B minor, Barcarole in A flat major, Landliches Fest in G major.  pub. by Augener & Co.available ISMLP
Deaux polkas de salon  Op.17  17/1 'Fairy Lilian'   pub by Ashdown & Parry
'Souvenir d'Italie'  Op.19  /3 'Bon Matin' bluette. /4 'Sur les lagunes', /5 'L'Allegrasse', /6  'Reve d'une villageoise',  /7 'Dors, mon enfant', /8 'Fete Napolitane'   1857 available ISMLP
'Les Clochettes du traineu'  Op.20
'Feu Follet'  - second grand galop brillante  Op.23
'La Penserosa et Allegra  Op.24
'Souvenirs de Torquay' Op.26    /2 'Pierre de jeunne
Barcarolle
Two polkas; in E and E flat
'Consolidation' - etude for piano
'Two duets for his little brothers'  pub. by Augener & Co.
'Envant' - fanfare militaire  1855
'L'espirit de la danse' -  valse brillante  1852
Spring-tide Faith
Sur le boulevard - march Parisienne
The Last Rose of Summer'
'The Zephyr's Song'm - etude
'The Harp that once thro' Tara's bells - Irish melody
Fantasia on 'Il balen di suo sorriso'  from Verdi's 'Il Trovotore'
Fantasia on Scottish melody 'Bonnie Dundee'
Fantasia on a favourite Russian air
Fantasia on Rossini's air, 'Non piu mesta'
Fantasia on a melody by Melesville, 'The Evening Bells'

Songs

Six songs to words by J L Uhland  Op.16
Drinking Song
The Absent
Friendship in Sorrow
Parting
The Invitation
Beloved
Forsaken
Fortunio's Song  words by A de Musset pub. by Augener & Co.
Childhood's Joy  words by E H Blyth
Farewell  words by J P Simpson pub. by Hutchings & Romer
Parted  words by R Burns
Reverie  words by G Rey
Vie ni barca e pronta  words by Metastasio
Wanderer's Nachtlied  words by Goethe

Vocal

Kyrie Elesian  for choir and organ pub. by Novello & Co.
Litany words by F E Bache
Glad was my heart - hymn

Organ

Introduction and allegro - two short variations. available from ISMLP
Three movements for organ

Opera

'Which is Which'  1851
'Rubezahl'  1852


Constance Bache - 2 songs in the British Library

'The Rain is Falling'  words by B Cornwall  pub. by Stanley Lucas, Weber
'To my Love'  words by R Burns  pub. by Stanley Lucas, Weber


*
Francis Edward Bache 14.9.1833 - 24.8.1858
Alfred Bache 5.8.1835 - 6.9.1907  Engineer and amateur organist  (trained under Stimpson)
Margaret Emily Bache 1837 - 7.12.1922
William H. Bache 1839 - 1876
Walter Bache 19.6.1842 - 26.3.1888  Concert pianist.
John Kentish Bache 1844 - 1916
Constance Bache  11.3.1846 - 28.6.1903  Writer and lecturer about music and also composed a few songs.

[eschiss1]

I see the piano trio (posthumously published by Kistner in 1865) listed by Worldcat at a few libraries. IMSLP has Opp.13 and 15.

[thalbergmad]

In the collection of the CPS there is also a piano concerto in G minor and a Morceau de Concert for Piano & Orchestra Op.22.

Thal

[giles.enders]

Thank you, I have amended the list.  Do you happen to know their dates or if they were ever performed?  There is a report that Bache played an Allegro from one of his unpublished piano concertos in 1851.

[thalbergmad]

The Morceaux manuscript tells us nothing regretfully.

As for the Concerto in G, I appear to have temporarily lost the disk it came on.

Sorry.

Thal

[giles.enders]

I have checked the Piano Trio in The British Library and also looked again in New Grove and the both have a designation of Op.25

[Martin Eastick]

I, too, have examined the extant concertos held in the Royal Academy Library - although I did not request copies at the time (some years ago now), I noted (to the best of my recollections) that the G minor concerto existed in two copies, but with different last movements, so can only presume that Bache rewrote this at some time. Having had Hyperion do the E major concerto, surely the G minor could be prepared, perhaps even offered with both alternative 3rd movements. Then the version of the Polonaise Op9 with orchestra & the Morceau Op22 might almost make a complete CD!

I can also here clear up one or two missing opus number in Giles' list as follows: Op2 is Reve d'Amour, Op3 is La Belle Capricieuse, Op4 is Reverie du Soir, Op7 is Fantasia on a favorite Russian Air. The 2 Polkas de Salon would seem to be one and the same as the 2 Polkas in e & E flat. Op24 is La Penserosa e L'Allegra - ie 2 separate pieces! There is also a piece entitled "Fairy Lillian" Etude Caprice, with the title page showing Op17 No1, but this has been crossed out (in pencil), most probably by Bache himself. bearing in mind the provenance of the copy (I have first editions of nearly all Bache's works with opus number, some of which bear his signed dedication - all from one collection). Also to go into the instrumental list would be a hitherto unpublished Romance for flute and piano dated July 12th 1855, the ms.of which also comes from the same collection (this is currently in the process of being published by Rosewood Publications including also an arrangement for clarinet & piano).

[giles.enders]

It would be good if the other Bache pieces for piano and orchestra could be recorded.  Hopefully it wont be too long before Sterndale-Bennet's sixth concerto becomes available which might make a good coupling

[redieze]

the slow movement of the Bache concerto (Hypérion RPC)is the most stirring one between Mozart 23d and Shosta 2nd !

[Alan Howe]

Really? Could you say why?

[redieze]

It was just an aural feeling, hard to define !

[Alan Howe]

Do try!

[redieze]

romantic melancholy ?