During his travels in the Caucasus region, Balakirev encountered the folk music of various Turkic-Islamic peoples and composed based on it. One such work is Islamey. It was composed in 1869 and published in 1870.

Islamey is a folk dance performed in the Kabardino and Adyghe regions. It is a type of Lezginka, a dance known in the Dagestan region, characterized by a 6/8-like rhythm and a fast tempo.

This Islamey is technically quite challenging. At the time, the renowned pianist Hans von Bülow is said to have called it "the most difficult of all piano pieces." However, it possesses a very exhilarating and brilliant atmosphere, making it widely popular to the extent that it is considered synonymous with Balakirev.

It is structured in a three-part form. In the first section, the initially presented theme, with its brilliant atmosphere, is developed. In the middle section, a new theme with an oriental drone appears, creating a fantastical atmosphere. In the third section, the initial Islamey theme is recapitulated even more brilliantly, leading to a fervent coda marked Presto furioso.

The work was dedicated to Nikolai Rubinstein. The premiere was also given by Rubinstein in December 1869. In 1902, a revised edition was published as the second edition.