Description
While touring in autumn 1885, the composer Camille Saint-Saëns was inspired to write the main theme of his piece Havanaise by the crackling fireplace in a hotel. The work was later dedicated to violinist Rafael Diaz Albertini. It's unclear whether Saint-Saëns intentionally incorporated the characteristic two-beat dance rhythms of the Habanera (the French term for Havanaise) as an allusion to the Cuban heritage of his violinist friend, when he composed the work two years later. Nonetheless, the Havanaise was extremely well-received in both its original solo violin version and the later orchestral arrangement. Violinist Ingolf Turban generously provided the bowings for the virtuosic violin part.
