Franz Waxman, a German composer in the Hollywood film industry, became close friends with another Los Angeles resident, Jascha Heifetz. When Waxman was engaged by Warner Bros. to score a film called "Humoresque," with John Garfield as a concert violinist, Waxman wanted Heifetz to play on the sound track. That did not happen, but the two men formed a close professional relationship, as well.

The "Humoresque" project involved arranging as mini violin concertos some established classics, such as Bizet's "Carmen" and Enescu's "Roumanian Rhapsody no 1." Whether or not it originated for the film project, this arrangement of music from Wagner's opera "Tristan und Isolde" became a favorite item for Heifetz to play on his concert tours, although he never recorded it. It is based on the Love Duet from Act II of the opera.

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