Camille Saint-Saëns completed the Allegro appassionato for piano, op. 70 in C# minor, on 2 May 1884 in Barcelona, Spain, as a competition piece for the piano class of the Paris Conservatory. The work, based on a solid formal structure, is at once rondo, variation, and rhythmic study, all these elements being associated with an almost omnipresent virtuosity. This edition, which is part of the series “Musique française”, offers a historical introduction by Edmond Lemaître and performance notes by Florence Ribot.