The Carnival of the animals

the Carnival of the animals is a musical continuation of 15 movements, composed by Camille Saint-Saëns in February 1886.

History

Saint-Saëns composed work during its holidays in an Austrian small village . Its goal was to make laugh, without falling into puerility, which was reproached to him, because one regarded it as a serious type-setter. Created by a group which Lebouc at the time of the fatty Tuesday directed, it was rejoué by the company “the Trumpet” to celebrate the mid-Lent. The type-setter prohibits then the public execution of this work of alive sound, it was necessary to await the reading of his will so that work is rejouée in public. Only the piece entitled Cygne was excluded from this censure, and was so readily played that it became the “tube” of generations of violoncellists.

One took the practice to compare in the same recording the Carnival of the animals and Pierre and the wolf of Sergueï Prokofiev. This “zoological imagination” is only one bracket in the career of the musician who, the same year, completed his symphony n°3 with organ, his chief of work.

Analyzes

Francis Blanche wrote briefs texts being able to be read by one reciting during the execution. The word games of the humorist awake all the mischievousness of the musical work.

Note: All the quotations are extracted from the text of Francis Blanche.

Introduction . Trille S of Piano and rises of Violin S and Violoncello S.

With the botanical garden, thus named besides because of the animals that one gathered there, a strange heat seems to reign…

royal Walk of the Lion . Very majestic, in major C for the first agreements, in the for the continuation, on a very strict rate/rhythm. Some assembled chromatic of piano, then others with the string instruments which imitate howlings of the Lion, in a manner which is hardly terrifying, but which plays a little on the table of concern. The movement finishes on a chromatic Gamme ascending then downward of the minor. The general atmosphere is that of a Ballet.

One sees entering the Lion, very British, the proud mine… Vêtu of silk trade with let us tons chatoyants, silk trade of Lyon obviously.

Hens and Coqs . Extremely rare example of purely imitative music, this concerting cackle, to which comes to be added the Clarinette, is a purple passage. Very ironic, with notes whose arrival is almost incoherent with the cords, imitating the cackles; this passage always amuses smallest by its imitative character.

the ones shout cock-a-doodle-doo, very high, the others gloussent and caquettent, very animals.

Hémiones (or Animal swift ). Only with the piano, very fast, containing ranges carried out beating drum, that makes the race swift of these ass S savages of the Tibet.

a hémione it is a horse, hémiones they are horses. It has like any animal, they have like all the animals their place in our carnival, as in all the carnavaux ones!

Tortoises . The topic, obviously slow, is interpreted by the violoncellos and the violas. Saint-Saëns sets up a rhythmic opposition between the binary piano and the topic comprising triplets sometimes. This passage is a pastiche of famous the edge-edge of Orphée to the Hells , whose Saint-Saëns retained only the topic. The absence of ryhtme (dishevelled at Jacques Offenbach, voluntarily destroyed for the needs for the Carnival ) is particularly tasty.

the Elephant . This movement is him also comic in a very direct way. The topic, slow, is held by the Contrebasse, supported by agreements of piano. One notes a big number of modulations starting from major E flat . This piece is a parody of the Danse of the sylphs of Hector Berlioz (extracted from the Damnation of Faust), which passes from very air in its original version, with thick-skinned in the piece of Saint-Saëns.

Kangaroos . The piano joyeusement alternates agreements with ascending appoggiaturas then downward, and of the slower passages, where undoubtedly the animal is it on the ground…

Aquarium . Celebrate topic, whirling and scintillating, evoking to perfection the marine world of our imaginary, with notes of Xylophone and downward arpeggios of piano.

Of the whale to sardine and red fish to anchovy in the content of water each one dines on smaller than oneself…

Characters with long ears . Very representative, with the violin, it uses the acute Harmonique S and of the low behaviors . According to the interpretations one would swear to hear the braiements ass, interpreted by the Violon S.

the Ass put on a bonnet of man!

the Cuckoo at the bottom of wood . It is a very satirical movement, where the Clarinette has the privilege to repeat 21 times the same reason, on same the two notes, whereas the piano carries out the melody only by slow agreements…

Each one sighs besides oneself: How the sound of the cuckoo is sad, at the bottom of wood!

Birdcage . Very gracious movement, where the topic is held almost exclusively by the flute, supported by discrete Tremolo S of the cords and Pizzicato S. Following interpretations, the Tempo varies much, going sometimes until virtuosity.

Nobody in the world will condemn you for blackmail or vol.

Pianists . Another passage, very humorous, which also gives him in the caricature. The pianists make only ranges, ascending and downward, in the major tonalities starting from C , intersected by agreements with the cords.

This mammal concertivore digitigrade… Game amateurs, do not shoot at the pianist!

Fossil . Parodic passage evoking, in addition to the disappeared animals, the old airs of time. The clarinet begins again celebrates it topic of the Barbier of Seville of Gioacchino Rossini una voce poco F and joke even with its clean Macabre Danse , made merry for the occasion! The topic is held with the beginning by the xylophone and the piano, with pizzicatos of the cords. One hears there very clearly a fragment of To the moonlight , by the clarinet, as well as the merry notes of Ah I would tell you mom , two childish counting rhymes. One recognizes moreover, connected with the Aria of the Barbiere , a passage of While leaving for Syria , popular song of Napoleonean time. The text of Blanche brings this movement closer to the Macabre Danse of the same type-setter, which is included/understood by the similarity of tonality ( minor ground ) and strength, the aspect curiously enjoué (in apparent contradiction with the aforementioned tonality).

Dinosaurs, brontosaurs, Nabuchodonosors and other treasures…

the Swan . Perhaps the movement most known of all the part, in any case the only one which with the honor to be sometimes played only, it is splendid a Solo of violoncello supported by the piano, very poetic and undoubtedly without humor nor caricatures any excess of lyricism specific to the cords.

Final . This last piece is equivalent to the parade of the ends of review. Started by the resumption of the trilles of the pianos of the 1st movement, it develops to him also a topic taken again many times later on other supports. The aforementioned topic is based on a basic descent by figure of walk. One sees there more or less briefly reappearing the animals in the following order: hémiones (with agreements stressed by the cords), fossils (in particular by the more important use of the xylophone), hens and cocks, kangaroos, asses and implicitly by the tonality, the lion.

One dances, one fraternizes: the wolf with the lamb, the fox with the corbel…

Anecdote

the piece Aquarium was included many times in Publicité S, in particular for Décathlon and in the introduction of the cartoon the Beautiful one and the Animal of the studios Disney. It is in addition present before each film diffusion in the room of the Palate of the Festivals in Cannes during the cinema festival organized in the city.
the finale was taken again for a sequence with pink flamingos in the Cartoon Fantasia 2000.

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