Dedicated to the French cellist Jules Lasserre, the sonata was premiered on 7 December 1872 at the Société nationale de musique in Paris, with Auguste Tolbecque on cello and the composer at the piano.
Known for its dramatic character and emotional depth, the sonata is often interpreted as a reflection of the composer's personal struggles and the historical events of the time, such as the Franco-Prussian War and the Paris Commune.
The demanding and highly virtuosic writing for both instruments quickly earned the sonata a place in the concert repertoire, with numerous notable performances in the years following its premiere.
Saint-Saëns likely drew inspiration for these works from his musician friends, as they are dedicated to well-known French cellists of the day with whom the composer often performed, such as Auguste Tolbecque and Jules Lasserre.
The work's bleak undertone is often interpreted as a reflection of the tumultuous events surrounding its composition, including the war recently lost against Germany, the subsequent turmoil of the Paris Commune, and Saint-Saëns's personal grief over the loss of his beloved great-aunt Charlotte Masson, who passed away in February 1872.
Despite this, the Sonata lacks the audience-pleasing traits found in many of Saint-Saëns's other chamber works, instead presenting a more excitingly dramatic and unusual character for the French composer.
Jules Lasserre, the work's dedicatee, performed the Sonata with Saint-Saëns in London on 6 July 1876, and later with Hans von Bülow on 18 June 1878 at the Musical Union.
Watson Lyle wrote that "the dramatic opening of this impressive sonata, indeed the emotions expressed during the whole of the composition, are surely influenced by the trials through which Saint-Saëns had just passed, from which, in fact, he was hardly free, at the time of its conception.