Carnival of the Animals

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The Worlds of Gilbert and Sullivan

One of ' best loved compositions was his Le Carnaval des Animaux (The Carnival of the Animals) (Der Karneval der Tiere). Intended as a musical joke, the original 1886 version was dashed off on holiday and scored for two pianos, string quartet, flute, clarinet, and xylophone; and kept under wraps (except to a few trusted friends). Later it was arranged for two pianos and orchestra.

Published finally in 1892, it showed his great love of animals. The piece has 14 movements, the most famous being number 13, The Swan: However, The Elephant (also performed here) is one of his best loved pieces. In the meantime here is our arrangement of some snippets of Camille's Summer Visit to the Zoo!

A Frenchman in the Gilbert & Sullivan story . . .? Mais oui bien sur, c'est vrais! (You bet!) French experts please feel free to comment.

Introduction et Marche royale du Lion

	(Royal March of the Lion)
	(Einleitung und königlicher Marsch des Löwen)

Poules et coqs

	(Hens and Cockerels)
	(Hühner und Hähner)

Hémiones

	(Wild Asses)
	(Wilde Esel)

Tortues

	(Tortoises) using Offenbach's can-can from his Orpheus in the Underworld at a painfully slow tempo.
	(Schildkröten)

L'Eléphant

	(The Elephant) represented by double basses in a funereal paced Dance of the Sylphs).
	(Der Elefant)

Kangourous

	(Kangaroos)
	(Känguruhs)

Aquarium

Personnages à longues oreilles

	(Persons with Long Ears)
	(Persönlichkeiten mit langen Ohren)

Le Coucou au fond des bois

	(The Cuckoo in the Depths of the Woods)
	(Der Kuckuck im tiefen Wald)

Volière

	(Aviary)
	(Vogelhaus)

Pianistes

	(Pianists) Depicted by Camille as a dangerous malice to the listener!
	(Pianisten)

Fossiles

	(Fossils) Uses Camille's own Danse macabre, Rossini operas and nursery tunes.
	(Fossilien)

Le Cygne

	(The Swan)
	(Der Schwan)

Finale

Except for 'The Swan', which Pavlova choreographed for her famous ballet solo, he forbid any public performances during his lifetime, in case it should detract from his more serious works! We have included The Royal March of the Lion, plus The Swan, and also The Elephant in the MusicSmiles website.

When Camille died, the public heard this superb piece for the first time on 25 February 1922. It was a wow! We have enjoyed many years of listening to this suite. Each part has its delights - our family favourite is probably Aquarium. Try and obtain a CD to listen to the whole work, (or better still go to a live performance) you'll love it.

We hope you like our arrangements of these snippets of Camille's genius . They really do entice the creative imagination, come on dancers and artists don't be shy . . .

Now how about a river trip with Lewis Carroll on a Golden Afternoon . . .

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