Camille Saint-Saëns

Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) – French composer, organist, pianist and conductor. As a child, he showed a musical talent comparable with that of Mozart, and at the age of ten he made his debut at the Salle Pleyel. From 1848, he studied at the Paris Conservatory: organ with François Benoist and composition with Jacques Halévy. As a composer, he also remained under the distinct influence of Liszt, whom he greatly admired. Saint-Saëns’s numerous talents soon brought him popularity within the Parisian artistic milieu, and his admirers and friends included Pauline Viardot, Rossini and Berlioz. During the 1850s, Saint-Säens worked as an organist in Parisian churches – first St Merri’s, then the Madeleine. His rich compositional output includes operas, symphonies, instrumental concertos, chamber and solo music, with his most recognisable works including the opera Samson et Dalila and the cycle Le carnaval des animaux.