The orchestra and its instruments . d elaborate, is alwaysclear and polished to the last degree. The exquisiteSymphonic Poem, called Le Rouet dOmphale, maybe taken as an example. It is not merely a beau-tiful piece of descriptive writing, but it is beautifullyscored. Camille Saint-Saens is the oldest living Frenchcomposer. He was born in 1835 in Paris and earlyshowed his great talent for music. At the age ofseven he began to study the piano with Stamaty andharmony with Maleden. In 1846, at the age of eleven,he appeared at a concert in the Salle Pleyel; and ayear later entered the Conservatory.
The orchestra and its instruments . d elaborate, is alwaysclear and polished to the last degree. The exquisiteSymphonic Poem, called Le Rouet dOmphale, maybe taken as an example. It is not merely a beau-tiful piece of descriptive writing, but it is beautifullyscored. Camille Saint-Saens is the oldest living Frenchcomposer. He was born in 1835 in Paris and earlyshowed his great talent for music. At the age ofseven he began to study the piano with Stamaty andharmony with Maleden. In 1846, at the age of eleven,he appeared at a concert in the Salle Pleyel; and ayear later entered the Conservatory. Here he madea name for himself. His Symphony, composed atthe age of sixteen, was successfully performed. In1858 he became organist at the Madeleine in Parisand astonished everyone by his feats of improvisa-tion. Meantime, he continued composing. Hehas produced an immense number of works thatinclude every kind of composition from operas tochamber-music, songs and pieces for the harp. Saint-Saens has also been an extensive traveller. H w u z ou vc >—* G\C/) M w «* <en I j-i Z < C/) THE ORCHESTRA 269 and has spent much time in Algiers. He is an in-comparable pianist, a fine musical critic, and an ex-cellent writer. Saint-Saens is another instance ofthe general culture required of the modern musician —the type that came into existence after the Revolutionof 1830 (see page 244). Saint-Saens was made an officer of the Legion dHonneur in 1884. On June 2, 1896, the fiftiethanniversary of his first public appearance was cele-brated in the Salle Pleyel, on which occasion Taffanelconducted the orchestra and Sarasate played a sonataby Saint-Saens (see illustration facing 268), with thecomposer at the piano. At the age of seventy he cameto America and astonished his audiences by playinghis five piano concertos, accompanied by Walter Dam-rosch and the New York Symphony Orchestra, withmarvellous skill and the fire of youth. Debussy is a modern of the moderns; and, more-over, he
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