Classical Music | Violin Music

Recorded on 01/06/2010, uploaded on 04/06/2010

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso in A minor, Op. 28      Camille Saint-Saëns

Saint-Saens added significantly to the violin repertoire, with three concertos and two sonatas for the instrument, in addition to a number of shorter works. The most popular of these smaller pieces is the Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 28, written in 1863. Saint-Saens dedicated this, as well as his first and third concertos, to the Spanish violin virtuoso Pablo Sarasate who premiered the Capriccioso's version with orchestra in Paris on April 4, 1867.The work makes considerable use of Spanish rhythms and turns of phrase, as Saint-Saens, like many of his French Romantic contemporaries, held a deep interest in the style of Spanish dance music.

The piece opens with the accompaniment supporting the violin with block chord progressions while the soloist plays virtuosic arpeggios and chromatic scale passages. The introduction concludes with a tranquil cadenza in which the violin visits all registers of the instrument.  The syncopated melody of the rondo is introduced by the violin over a rhythmic motion in the piano. The second theme is introduced and both themes are revisited, before a fast-paced extended coda brings the work to a close.    Evgeny Kutik