Quirky, flexible arrangement of Saint-Saens' humorous suite depicting animals.
1. Introduction et marche royale du lion 7. Aquarium 12. Fossiles 14. Final 5:47
[Part 1] Picclo, Flute, Oboe, Eb Clarinet, Bb Clarinet, Bb Soprano Saxophone
[Part 2] Flute, Oboe, Eb Clarinet, Bb Clarinet, Bb Soprano Saxophone, Eb Alto Saxophone, Bb Trumpet
[Part 3] Bb Clarinet, Eb Alto Saxophone, Bb Tenor Saxophone, F Horn
[Part 4] Bb Clarinet, Eb Alto Saxophone, Bb Tenor Saxophone, F Horn
[Part 5] Eb Alto Clarinet, Bassoon, Bb Bass Clarinet, Eb Baritone Saxophone, Trombone, Euphonium
[Part 6] Bassoon, Bb Bass Clarinet, Eb Baritone Saxophone, Tuba, String Bass
[Percussion 1] Glockenspiel, Timpani, Suspended Cymbal, 2 Wood Blocks, Ratchet
[Percussion 2] Vibraphone, Suspended Cymbal, Snare Drum, Xylophone, Glockenspiel
[Percussion 3(optional)] Suspended Cymbal, Crash Cymbals, Bass Drum, Snare Drum, Triangle, Wind Chimes, Glockenspiel
[Piano (optional)]
Saint-Saens'(1835-1921) "Le Carnaval des Animaux (The Carnival of Animals)" was from the composer's mature period, age 51 (1886), and is probably the best known of his works. This suite of 14 songs will entertain the listener as if each song were a gem with a different glow.
In 1886, after being attacked by Wagner critics and banned from playing outside of Prague and Vienna, Saint-Saens spent carnival week in the small city of Kurdim, Austria to heal his tired mind. He was staying at the house of friend and cellist Lubouque. For the concert Lubuque held on the last day of Carnival, he invented the "Le Carnaval des Animaux". It's a quirky suite with the feeling of trying to annoy the critics of Saint-Saens. Various animals are humorously drawn using famous melodies and folk songs in parody.
This arrangement was originally edited for woodwind/percussion octet as commissioned by Asaka Daiichi Junior High School in Saitama Prefecture (Sankichi Tozaki, director), and rearranged for flexible instrumentation for this publication.
The basic structure is an ensemble octet of flexible sextet plus two percussion. The six wind instruments are arranged so that they can be played from octet to small band by adding more instruments and optional percussion and piano.
(Makoto Onodera)
