Pablo de Sarasate

One of the most gifted violinist-composers of the 19th century, Sarasate’s two most popular works—Zigeunerweisen (“Gypsy Airs”, 1878) and the Carmen Fantasy (1882)—are virtual compendiums of his performing specialities, including ear-ringing harmonics and dazzling ricochet bowings. They also reveal the creative soul of a true Romantic, intoxicated by the sounds of popular Gypsy music and the sultry, flamboyant dancing of his Spanish homeland. Sarasate was born in Pamplona in 1844, and by the time he graduated from the Paris Conservatoire was already a seasoned artist. He was strikingly handsome and always impeccably dressed. Part of his concert allure was the purity of his tone and his aristocratic playing style, which created its own fascination by comparison with the shimmering pyrotechnics and smouldering passion of his music. Of the many pieces written especially for him, most notable are Lalo’s Symphonie espagnole (1874), Saint-Saëns’ Third Violin Concerto (1880) and Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy (1880). Sarasate died in 1908, aged 64.