Paganini composed his remarkable variations called “Le Streghe” ("The Witches”) at Milan in 1813.  In this composition, the air of which was taken from a ballet by Sussmayer, called “Il Noce de Benevento,” at the part where the witches appear in the piece as performed on the stage, the violinist introduced many of his most remarkable effects.  He played this piece for the first time at La Scala theatre, and he was honored with the most tumultuous enthusiasm, which for a long time prevented the progress of the programme.  Paganini always had a predilection for Milan afterward, and said he enjoyed giving concerts there more than at any other city in Europe.  He gave no less than thirty-seven concerts here in 1813.  In this city, three years afterward, occurred his interesting musical duel with Lafont, the well-known French violinist.  Paganini was then at Genoa, and, hearing of Lafont’s presence at Milan, at once hastened to that city to hear him play.  “His performance,” said Pagani-ni, “pleased me exceedingly.”  When the Italian violinist, a week later, gave a concert at La Scala, Lafont was in the audience, and the very next day he proposed that Paganini and himself should play together at the same concert.  “I excused myself,” said Paganini, “alleging that such experiments were impolitic, as the public invariably looked upon these matters as duels, in which there must be a victim, and that it would be so in this case; for, as he was acknowledged to be the best of the French violinists, so the public indulgently considered me to be the best player in Italy.  Lafont not looking at it in this light, I was obliged to accept the challenge.  I allowed him to arrange the programme.  We each played a concerto of our own composition, after which we played together a duo concertante by Kreutzer.  In this I did not deviate in the least from the composer’s text while we played together, but in the solo parts I yielded freely to my own imagination, and introduced several novelties, which seemed to annoy my adversary.  Then followed a ’Russian Air,’ with variations, by Lafont, and I finished the concert with my variations called ‘Le Streghe.’  Lafont probably surpassed me in tone; but the applause which followed my efforts convinced me that I did not suffer by comparison.”  There seems to be no question that the victory remained with Paganini.  A few years later Paganini played in a similar contest with the Polish violinist Lipinski, at Placentia.  The two artists, however, were intimate friends, and there was not a spark of rivalry or jealousy in their generous emulation.  In fact, Paganini appears to have been utterly without that conceit in his own extraordinary powers which is so common in musical artists.  Heine gives an amusing illustration of this.  He writes:  “Once, after listening to a concert by Paganini, as I was addressing him with the most impassioned eulogies on his violin-playing, he interrupted me with the words, ’But how were you pleased to-day with my compliments and reverences?’” The musician thought more of his genuflexions than of his musical talent.