Overshadowed by the well-known 1st Symphony by Camille Saint-Saëns, and undiscovered until recently is a youthful composition by the French composer, a “Grande symphonie triomphale” which has now been published.
Until recently, Camille Saint-Saëns’s catalogue of works contained five complete symphonic orchestral works, three of which were published during the composer’s lifetime: the Symphony no. 1 in E flat major op. 2 (1855), the Symphony no. 2 in A minor op. 55 (1859) and the famous Symphony no. 3 in C minor op. 78 (1886), known as the “Organ Symphony”; by comparison, two early orchestral works were published posthumously: the Symphony in A major (1850) and the Symphony in F major (1856), which has the nickname “Urbs Roma”. The latest research as part of the editorial project aiming to publish the Complete Edition of Saint-Saëns’ instrumental works has now led to the discovery of a work overshadowed by Symphony no. 1 and is still unknown by the general public or scholars: the “Grande symphonie triomphale”.
Saint-Saëns composed this work in summer 1853. It is a masterpiece, the stroke of genius of a young man of only seventeen who had already achieved the highest level of skill in his art. As a pianist and organist Saint-Saëns already enjoyed a certain reputation, but although he had composed since early childhood, he was unable to make a name in this area. The year before he had failed in the competition for the Prix de Rome, which would have brought him commissions from national theatres. He then took part in various composition competitions, such as the one organised by the Académie royale de Belgique on the occasion of the wedding of the future King Léopold II. But here, too, he had no success: his score was discarded as it was found to be too modern and its scoring too large. As a result, Saint-Saëns decided to send the score anonymously to the Société Sainte-Cécile in Paris, where the work was performed on 11 December 1853, conducted by François Seghers. The Symphony was received with unanimous approval, and Saint-Saëns was now recognized as a composer and publicly acknowledged. A few days later Charles Gounod wrote to him perceptively: “Keep marching onwards, and remember that on Sunday 11 December 1853, you took on the obligation to become a great master.”
Of this previously unpublished “Grande symphonie triomphale”, the full score and performance material are now available on hire. The Critical Edition is based on the original manuscript, which was recently found in the Archives of the Académie royale de Belgique. The work is in classical form with four movements (I. Adagio. Allegro – II. Marche-Scherzo. Allegretto scherzando – III. Adagio – IV. Allegro maestoso), with the two last movements linked together; and it does indeed surprise through its modernity. This is revealed in the unusual dimensions for its time, above all in the use of instruments which had hardly been used in a symphony before (harp, cor anglais) or had just been invented (saxhorns); in addition, in the last movement an additional wind orchestra is employed which gives the work its “triumphal” character. Although Saint-Saëns acknowledged his models (Haydn, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Berlioz, Reber), his musical identity is at the same time clearly recognisable: he plays with forms, orchestrates with subtlety and originality and displays a masterly approach to the orchestral forces.
The full score and performance material also contain the Critical Edition of Symphony op. 2. This is an arrangement of the “Grande symphonie triomphale” which Saint-Saëns arranged in 1855 for a pure symphony orchestra. The first three movements of both works are identical.
Fabien Guilloux
(from [t]akte 2/2025)
(translation: Elizabeth Robinson)