LE CARNAVAL DES ANIMAUX

Carnaval des animaux - Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)

Transcription : Pierre Rémondière

Following a disastrous concert tour of Germany in 1885–86, Saint-Saëns withdrew to a small Austrian village, where he composed The Carnival of the Animals in February 1886. It is scored for two pianos, two violins, viola, cello, double bass, flute (and piccolo), clarinet (C and B♭), glass harmonica, and xylophone.

From the beginning, Saint-Saëns regarded the work as a piece of fun. On 9 February 1886 he wrote to his publishers Durand in Paris that he was composing a work for the coming Shrove Tuesday, and confessing that he knew he should be working on his Third Symphony, but that this work was 'such fun' ('... mais c'est si amusant!'). He had apparently intended to write the work for his students at the École Niedermeyer, but in the event it was first performed at a private concert given by the cellist Charles Lebouc on Shrove Tuesday, 9 March 1886.

flute, oboe, clarinet, french horn, bassoon

Score and parts

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