Sitt was the son of Anton Sitt, a well-known Hungarian-born violin builder, and was born in Prague. Sitt's musical ability was evident from an early age, and from all means, he might have had a traditional "wunderkind" future if his parents had wanted to exploit him, but they wisely declined. Instead of being sent to the Prague Conservatory, he was able to live a typical life and obtain a daily education at a gymnasium (high school). Sitt was Professor of Violin at the Leipzig Conservatory from 1884 to 1921, and he wrote many significant violin and viola studies, several of which are still used today. From 1885 to 1903, he was the conductor of the Leipzig Bach Society (Bach-Verein Leipzig). Sitt composed many compositions for violin and orchestra, including six concertos and a selection of sonatas for different instruments, in addition to his pedagogical activities. Two piano trios from the 1880s are the only pieces of chamber music we have from him. Sitt is widely known for orchestrating Edvard Grieg's Norwegian Dances, Op.35, a piano duet composed in 1881.