Camille Saint-Saëns was something of an anomaly among
French composers of the nineteenth century in that he
wrote in virtually all genres, including opera,
symphonies, concertos, songs, sacred and secular choral
music, solo piano, and chamber music. He was generally
not a pioneer, though he did help to revive some
earlier and largely forgotten dance forms, like the
bourée and gavotte. He was a conservative who wrote
many popular scores scattered throughout the various
genres: the Piano Concert...(+)
Camille Saint-Saëns was something of an anomaly among
French composers of the nineteenth century in that he
wrote in virtually all genres, including opera,
symphonies, concertos, songs, sacred and secular choral
music, solo piano, and chamber music. He was generally
not a pioneer, though he did help to revive some
earlier and largely forgotten dance forms, like the
bourée and gavotte. He was a conservative who wrote
many popular scores scattered throughout the various
genres: the Piano Concerto No. 2, Symphony No. 3
("Organ"), the symphonic poem Danse macabre, the opera
Samson et Dalila, and probably his most widely
performed work, The Carnival of The Animals. While he
remained a composer closely tied to tradition and
traditional forms in his later years, he did develop a
more arid style, less colorful and, in the end, less
appealing. He was also a poet and playwright of some
distinction.
Saint-Saëns was born in Paris on October 9, 1835. He
was one of the most precocious musicians ever,
beginning piano lessons with his aunt at two-and-a-half
and composing his first work at three. At age seven he
studied composition with Pierre Maledin. When he was
ten, he gave a concert that included Beethoven's Third
Piano Concerto, Mozart's B flat Concerto, K. 460, along
with works by Bach, Handel, and Hummel. In his academic
studies, he displayed the same genius, learning
languages and advanced mathematics with ease and
celerity. He would also develop keen, lifelong
interests in geology and astronomy.
In 1848, he entered the Paris Conservatory and studied
organ and composition, the latter with Halévy. By his
early twenties, following the composition of two
symphonies, he had won the admiration and support of
Berlioz, Liszt, Gounod, Rossini, and other notable
figures. From 1853 to 1876, he held church organist
posts; he also taught at the École Niedermeyer
(1861-1865). He composed much throughout his early
years, turning out the 1853 Symphony in F ("Urbs
Roma"), a Mass (1855) and several concertos, including
the popular second, for piano (1868).
This is a transcription of his Opus 104 waltz "Valse
Mignonne" (The Lovers Waltz) written for Piano in
1896.
