Pablo de Sarasate (1844-1908) was a Spanish violinist and composer. As a feted virtuoso he travelled the world for a decade giving concerts, and in 1886 he performed in Budapest. He composed many works for himself with piano or orchestral accompaniment, to enrich his repertoire. These virtuoso pieces most often contain typical Spanish melodies and rhythms. The Spanish Dances were commissioned from him by the German publisher Fritz Simrock, a few years after Brahms' Hungarian Dances. The set of Spanish Dances consists of eight pieces, published two at a time in four volumes from 1878 to 1882. The first volume contained the Malague?a (published here) and the Habanera, and was dedicated by Sarasate to the Hungarian violinist living in Germany Joseph Joachim.