The Carnival of Animals( February 1886 )Camille Saint-Saëns (9 -10-1835 --16-12-1921)The Swan

Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (9 October 1835 -- 16 December 1921) was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist, known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo capriccioso, Cello Concerto No.1 in A minor, and his Symphony No. 3 (Organ Symphony).
Saint-Saëns was born in Paris, France on 9 October 1835. His father, a government clerk, died three months after his birth. Masson introduced Saint-Saëns to the piano, and began giving him lessons on the instrument.
His first composition, a little piece for the piano dated 22 March 1839, is now kept in the Bibliothèque nationale de France. Saint-Saëns's precociousness was not limited to music. He learned to read and write by age three, and had some mastery of Latin by the age of seven. His first public concert appearance occurred when he was five years old, when he accompanied a Beethoven violin sonata. He went on to begin in-depth study of the full score of Don Giovanni. In 1842, Saint-Saëns began piano lessons with Camille-Marie Stamaty, a pupil of Friedrich Kalkbrenner, who had his students play the piano while resting their forearms on a bar situated in front of the keyboard, so that all the pianist's power came from the hands and fingers but not the arms. At ten years of age, Saint-Saëns gave his debut public recital at the Salle Pleyel, with a performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 15 in B-flat major (K. 450), and various pieces by Handel, Kalkbrenner, Hummel, and Bach. As an encore, Saint-Saëns offered to play any of Beethoven's 32 piano sonatas from memory. Word of this incredible concert spread across Europe, and as far as the United States with an article in a Boston newspaper.
In 1908, he had the distinction of being the first celebrated composer to write a musical score to a motion picture, The Assassination of the Duke of Guise (L'assassinat du duc de Guise), directed by Charles Le Bargy and André Calmettes, adapted by Henri Lavedan, featuring actors of the Comédie Française. It was 18 minutes long, a considerable run time for the day.
Saint-Saëns did, however, include a provision which allowed the suite to be published after his death. It was first performed on 26 February 1922, and it has since become one of his most popular works.
XIII Le cygne (The Swan)
Two pianos and cello: This is by far the most famous movement of the suite due to it being a staple of cellists. It is often performed solo and is used to showcase the interpretive skills of the cellist. The lushly romantic cello solo (which evokes the swan elegantly gliding over the water) is played over rippling sixteenths in one piano and rolled chords in the other (representing the swan's feet, hidden from view beneath the water, propelling it along).The Swan Theme has also been played by a double bass that "sings", sounding gracefully similar to the cello in a version conducted by Leonard Bernstein.

The Swan
A ballet, The Dying Swan, was choreographed to this movement and performed by Anna Pavlova.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Carnival_of_the_Animals
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Assassination_of_the_Duke_of_Guise
The Assassination of the Duke of Guise (1908) (original French title: La Mort du duc de Guise; often referred to as L'Assassinat du duc de Guise) is a French historical film directed by Charles Le Bargy and André Calmettes, adapted by Henri Lavedan, and featuring actors of the Comédie Française and prominent set designers. It is one of the first films to feature an original film score, composed by Camille Saint-Saëns.
Lasting longer than was then usual (about 15 minutes), the film more or less accurately depicts the events of the day in 1588 when King Henri III (played by co-director Le Bargy) summoned his powerful rival, Duke Henri de Guise, to his chambers at the Château de Blois and had him brutally murdered.
The première was held at the Salle Charras on 17 November 1908. It was high-toned throughout, befitting such an "art" film. Sponsored and advertised by the Societé under the title "Vision d'Art", the various entertainments mostly combined imagery and live music. There were two other films beside The Assassination, each with an original score of its own: Le Secret de Myrto, depicting ballerina Regina Badet dancing to music of Gaston Berardi; and L'Empreinte, with music by LeBorne contained a series of "picturesque tableaux" using silhouettes of Pierrot and other pantomime figures. The program included color photographs from Asia, described as "fairy-tale views" taken by Gervais-Courtellemont. LeBargy also recited Edmond Rostand's poem "Le Bois sacrée", which was said to be "illustrated by a ballet--or rather, a choreographic vision".
The Assassination of the Duke of Guise was released in the United States by Pathé Frères on February 17, 1909.

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[kotasierota1]

Beautiful music and wonderful performance

[russdurham]

Who are the performers here? Thank you.

[vbmissy15]

Beautiful