Сен-Санс: Лебедь — шедевр романтизма | Миша Майский, виолончель

The perfect melody for dreaming. The Swan (Le cygne) from the suite 'The Carnival of the Animals' (Le Carnaval des animaux) by Camille Saint-Saëns. This enchanting piece of music is one of the most popular works of the Romantic period. Cellist Mischa Maisky played 'The Swan' with the Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra conducted by Gábor Takács-Nagy as an encore at his concert at the Verbier Festival on 27 July 2015.

Camille Saint-Saëns (1835 - 1921) composed the symphonic poem 'The Carnival of the Animals' in 1886, but never published it. He feared that the subtitled “Grande fantaisie zoologique” could damage his reputation as a serious composer because of the animal imitations it contained. The self-critical composer felt that only 'The Swan', the 13th movement of the suite, was good enough to be published. And its success proved him right. The Swan became a public favorite and Saint-Saëns continued to work on it. While he had orchestrated it for solo cello and two pianos in the symphonic poem, he later arranged it for other instruments - paving the way for a multitude of performances with different instrumentation and the piece's growing popularity. In this video, the cello is accompanied by harp and subdued string sounds.

The Swan is in G major and has a catchy melody. Despite its apparent simplicity, the piece is technically demanding. It gains its depth and expressiveness from the long legato phrases and the vibrato used throughout. This creates a gentle, flowing atmosphere. It doesn't take much to imagine a swan elegantly gliding across the glistening water to the sounds of 'The Swan'. This programmatic piece of music is inspired by the myth of the swan song, according to which swans sing one last beautiful song before they die.

The complete suite for chamber orchestra by Camille Saint-Saëns was published shortly after the composer’s death in 1921. And as popular as 'The Swan' was during the composer's lifetime, 'Carnival of the Animals' also became a classical hit and is still one of Saint-Saëns' best-known works.

Born in Riga in 1948, when it was still part of the Soviet Union, Mischa Maisky is a highly sought-after cellist. He studied with both the great cello virtuoso Mstislav Rostropovich and also with Gregor Piatigorsky. At the time, Rostropovich said he was "one of the most extraordinary talents of the younger generation.

His playing combines poetry and exquisite delicacy with great temperament and brilliant technique." Today, the cellist sees himself as a citizen of the world through and through: "I play an Italian cello, with French and German bows and Austrian and German strings, my 6 children were born in 4 different countries, my second wife is half Sri Lankan – half Italian... I feel at home wherever people enjoy and appreciate classical music." Mischa Maisky has played with the world's most prestigious orchestras and received numerous awards.

© 2015 IDÉALE AUDIENCE

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