Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso Op. 28, Saint-Saëns

The ‘Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso Op. 28’ video is part of the ‘All the World is a Stage’ project, initiated by Wysinfo in order to encourage international cooperation through culture.

To watch other performances that are part of this project, follow this link
Wysinfo – ‘All the World is a Stage Project’ Front Page.

Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 28, Saint-Saëns – Performed by Or Nakash & The Raanana Youth Symphony Orchestra

About the music

The Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 28, is a composition for violin and orchestra written in 1863 by Camille Saint-Saëns.

About the composer

Camille Saint- Saëns was born in Paris in 1835 and died in Algiers, Algeria in 1921. As both a composer and a musician he was highly regarded in his own lifetime. One of his best known works is ‘Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso’ which he composed in 1863.

Among his other works are his Symphony no 3 (with organ) Piano Concerto no 2, the opera Samson and Delilah and the Dance of Death (Dance Macabre).

Camille Saint-Saens was 3 months old when he lost his father. His mother and aunt raised him. Although weak and an unhealthy child that suffered from tuberculosis throughout his life, it seems that his condition did not hold him back in his quest for answers in sciences and philosophy. At the age of two his aunt taught him to play piano. At the age of 10 he already played concertos by Beethoven, Mozart and other composers, in public, playing all from memory.

He learned music at Conservatoire de Paris and was a talented student. He soon became known as a composer, pianist and organist. Saint-Saëns was often very kind to other composers and helped them by playing and conducting their music.

By the 1860s he was already well known. He taught music at the ‘École Niedermeyer’ which educated young musicians and he also founded the ‘Société Nationale de Musique’ which helped to introduce new music.

For many years Saint-Saëns traveled all over the world as a famous musician. He was well recognized and appreciated in the United States and in England where he was honored with a Victorian Order as a result of his composition of a march for the coronation of King Edward VII in 1902.

After Saint- Saëns died in Algiers, his body was brought back to Paris where he was buried.

About the performers

Or Nakash is a young violinist who, at the time of this performance, was seventeen years old.

Or is studying music with Professor Haim Taub and performs with chamber ensembles and in concerts in Israel and abroad. Or has participated in the Perlman Music Program for a number of years. She was selected to serve in the IDF, following high school, as an outstanding musician.

The Raanana Youth Symphony Orchestra is comprised of high school students who are enrolled in the RMC Center as part of an extracurricular program. This orchestra includes about 70 outstanding young musicians, many of whom are prize-winners in competitions in Israel and abroad.
Prof. Guy Porat led the orchestra members who participated in the performance in this video.

About the location

The video was recorded at the RMC Raanana Music Center, located in the city of Raanana. Currently this is Israel’s largest music center, with over 1.000 students coming from Raanana and adjacent cities to learn music appreciation and to play instruments of their choice.

Raanana is a small city, located in the Sharon area of Israel, just north of Tel Aviv. It was founded in 1922 by a group of New York immigrants. After purchasing the land for a farming venture in 1912, the group from America eventually managed to settle on the land only after the First World War. In the beginning it was an agricultural village and today, it is one of the high tech centers of Israel.