Written in the late 1880s, Saint-Saëns’ Symphony no. 3, nicknamed the ‘Organ’ Symphony, is one of the composer’s most recognisable and enduringly popular works – in fact, you may know it already from Walt Disney’s 1995 film Babe.
Whether you’re new to the piece or already a fan, here’s all you need to know about Saint-Saëns’ ‘Organ’ Symphony.
Featured in concert at Huddersfield Town Hall on Thursday 22 January conducted by Sora Elisabeth Lee
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What’s the music like?
Huddersfield Town Hall organist David Pipe, who will be playing at the concert, explains:
“Camille Saint-Saëns is undoubtedly best known for this symphony and The Carnival of the Animals nowadays, but he was a musician of formidable ability: a virtuoso pianist in his own right. You only have to listen to his fifth piano concerto, nicknamed ’The Egyptian’, to hear the extraordinary sound-worlds he could create.
“Symphony No. 3 – affectionately known as the ‘Organ Symphony’, owing to its then unusual inclusion of a pipe organ within the orchestral texture – reflects a vast range of moods. Its evocative string and woodwind opening couldn’t be more different from the organ blast we all know and love that heralds the final ‘Maestoso’ section. Through this musical journey, we hear wonderful sweeping melodies, such as in the string writing of the D flat major ‘Poco adagio’ that closes the first movement, gently underpinned by the organ.
“Huddersfield Town Hall is blessed with a ‘Father’ Willis concert organ, which is suited just as well for orchestral playing as it is the solo repertoire. Its installation in the Hall in the 1880s makes it an ideal vehicle for Saint-Saëns’ mighty symphony of 1886.”
Listen to the music
The composer Saint-Saëns
Who was the composer?
Born in Paris on 9 October 1835 and brought up by his mother and great-aunt after his father’s early death, Camille Saint-Saëns’ musical talent was obvious from a very early age. He started to perform at prestigious music salons from the age of 6, making his first public concert appearance when he was just 10 years old. By then, he could already play all 32 of Beethoven’s sonatas from memory! Appointed organist at La Madeleine Church in Paris in 1857, he only stepped down from the position 20 years later to pursue his career as a concert pianist.
Perhaps not surprisingly for someone so musically inclined, Saint-Saëns composed his first work when he was 3 years old and was already penning larger-scale pieces by the age of 15. It took many years however before he composed a symphony that gained a lasting foothold in the classical canon.
Alongside his own playing and composing, Saint-Saëns founded the Société nationale de musique in 1871 to promote contemporary French music and support up-and-coming French composers. Following his death in Algiers in 1921, his body was returned to Paris where he was given a state funeral.
The famous 'Father' Willis organ at Huddersfield Town Hall. Photography by Tom Arber
When was the ‘Organ’ Symphony written?
Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 3 in C Minor rapidly became known as the ‘Organ’ Symphony as, unusually for the time, it prominently featured the organ alongside piano – perhaps acknowledging the composer’s own expertise on both instruments.
The third, and last, of his symphonies, was written at the height of Saint-Saëns’ powers and was, he acknowledged, the crowning glory of his work: “I gave everything to it I was able to give. What I have here accomplished, I will never achieve again.” The piece was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society whose orchestra, conducted by the composer himself, performed the premiere in St. James’s Hall in London in 1886. Saint-Saëns dedicated the symphony to fellow composer Liszt whose work had inspired him during its creation.
The Orchestra of Opera North at Huddersfield Town Hall. Photography by Tom Arber
Did you know?
— Saint-Saëns also composed Danse macabre which was chosen as the theme tune for the BBC series Jonathan Creek with its evocation of creaking skeletons dancing among the gravestones. You can hear this piece performed by the Orchestra of Opera North in the same concert as the ‘Organ’ Symphony
— After composing a coronation march for Edward VII in 1902, Saint-Saëns was made a Commander of the Victorian Order
— The ‘Organ’ Symphony was adapted in the ‘70s for the top 10 hit ‘If I Had Words’ sung by Scott Fitzgerald and Yvonne Keeley with the St Thomas Moore RC School choir
The Orchestra of Opera North perform Saint-Saëns’ ‘Organ’ Symphony with David Pipe on the organ at Huddersfield Town Hall as part of the Kirklees Concert Season on Thursday 22 January. The programme also features Ravel, Holmès and Chabrier.
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