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Donald Macleod follows Saint-Saëns through the 1860s, from popular teacher with a growing circle of friends to the chaos of war which forces him in new directions.

Donald Macleod finds Saint Saëns in a decade of growing commitments and shifting pressures. He explores the composer’s early life as a teacher, the emerging partnership with the young Fauré and the first steps towards the stage, all unfolding against a backdrop of rising political tension in Paris.

Album pour piano, Op. 72 – Prelude poco allegro, tempo rubato
Geoffrey Burleson, piano

Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22 – I. Andante sostenuto
Bertrand Chamayou, piano
Orchestre National de France
Emmanuel Krivine, conductor

Le timbre d’argent, Act I – Mélodie “Humble et pauvre… demande à l’oiseau”
Cyrille Dubois, tenor (Bénédict)
Orchestre National de Lille
Pierre Dumoussaud, conductor

La princesse jaune – I. Ouverture; III. Air
Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse
Leo Hussain, conductor

Marche héroïque, Op. 34
Orchestre National de Lille
Jun Märkl, conductor

La jeunesse d’Hercule, Op. 50
Orchestre National de Lille
Jun Märkl, conductor

Produced by Ellie Ajao for BBC Audio Wales and West.

Release date:

59 minutes

Broadcast

  • Wed 29 Apr 202616:00

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