It was on this day in 1863 that Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso made its world debut. The first performance was given by Spanish virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate.Saint-Saëns was a French-born organist, pianist, conductor and composer wrote this piece for Sarasate.

Saint-Saëns was a music prodigy himself and made his performance debut at the tender age of 10. Of the 3 Violin concertos he wrote, this one is the most popular.

This version is performed by Itzhak Pearlman and is considered to be one of the best performances ever recorded. I tend to agree.