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Camille Saint-Saëns - Famous Works

Camille Saint-Saëns concert program Salle Pleyel 1896
Program cover from Camille Saint-Saëns’s 1896 concert at Salle Pleyel in Paris, marking fifty years since his debut at the same venue.

Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) was one of the most important figures of French music in the nineteenth century, contributing significantly to symphonic, operatic, and instrumental repertoire. His style is marked by formal clarity, technical mastery, and refined orchestration, combining Romantic expression with classical balance.

His output spans a wide range of genres, including opera, symphonic music, concertos, chamber works, and choral compositions. The following is a representative selection of his most significant works.

Below is a representative selection of Saint-Saëns’s most significant and enduring works.

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Operas

  • The Yellow Princess, Opus 30
  • Samson et Dalila (Samson and Dalila), Opus 47
  • Henry VIII
  • Les Barbares
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Orchestral Works

  • Symphony No. 1 in E flat major, Opus 2
  • Symphony No. 2 in A minor, Opus 55
  • Symphony No. 3 "Organ Symphony" in C minor, Opus 78
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Symphonic Poems

  • Le Rouet d’Omphale, Op. 31
  • Danse macabre, Opus 40
  • Phaéton, Op. 39
  • La jeunesse d’Hercule (The Youth of Hercules), Op. 50
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Other Orchestral Works

  • Le carnaval des animaux
  • Introduction et Rondo capriccioso, Op. 28
  • Havanaise, Op. 83
  • Rhapsodie d’Auvergne, Op. 73
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Concertos

  • Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22
  • Piano Concerto No. 5 in F major, “Egyptian”, Op. 103
  • Violin Concerto No. 3 in B minor, Op. 61
  • Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 33

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Chamber music:

  • Piano Trio No. 1 in F major, Opus 18
  • Allegro appassionato in B minor, Opus 43 
  • Oboe Sonata in D major, Opus 166
  • Clarinet Sonata in E-flat major, Opus 167
  • Bassoon Sonata in G major, Opus 168
  • Violin Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Opus 75
  • Violin Sonata No. 2 in E flat major, Opus 102
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Keyboard/Organ:

  • Fantaisie No. 1 in E-flat Major
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Choral & Sacred Works:

  • Messe (Mass), Opus 4
  • Oratorio de Noël (Christmas Oratorio), Opus 12
  • Le déluge (The Flood), Opus 45
  • Requiem, Opus 54
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🔎 Work Analyses of Camille Saint-Saëns on MusiLLection

You can explore detailed analyses of selected works below:


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