A Musical Zoo!
Carnival of the Animals is a fun musical suite composed by Camille Saint-Saens, a French composer, in 1886. Unlike Peter and the Wolf which tells one story, Carnival of the Animals is like a musical zoo. Each short piece portrays a different animal using clever musical tricks!
Saint-Saens used the natural sounds and qualities of instruments to make each animal come alive. Fast, prancing notes become a kangaroo hopping. Slow, heavy notes become an elephant lumbering. Gentle, flowing notes become a swan gliding across a lake.
The suite has 14 movements (short pieces), each featuring a different animal or group of animals. Some are serious and beautiful. Some are hilarious and silly. Saint-Saens had a wonderful sense of humor and loved making people laugh with music.
Let us meet some of the animals!