Music TheoryPrint

Camille Saint-Saëns

Havanaise (Saint-Saëns)

The Havanaise in E major (), Op. 83, is a composition for violin and orchestra based on the habanera rhythm, written in 1887 by French composer, Camille Saint-Saëns for Cuban violinist Rafael Díaz

Structure#

The composition consists of a single multi-tempo movement marked Allegretto lusinghiero – Allegro – Tempo primo – Allegretto – Allegro non troppo – Più Allegro – Allegretto – Lento and lasts around ten minutes in performance. :

A minor variation on “Havanaise”, as well as the original piece, make up the main theme of the film The Ninth Gate. A brief segment is played many times on the soundtrack of Rainer Fassbinder’s film Effi Briest. The initial phrase also supplies the melody to the popular song Sugartime by Charles Phillips and Odis Echols.

  • Saint-Saëns, Havanaise, Op. 83. Performed by Mohamed Harb and the Cairo Symphony Orchestra.
  • Saint-Saëns, Havanaise, Op. 83. Performed by Liviu Prunaru and an unnamed pianist.
Composer
Camille Saint-Saëns