Charles Camille Saint-Saëns
Camille Saint-Saëns is a French musician who was born in the 9th of October, 1835 in Paris, France. He was raised by his mother and aunt since his father died when he was only two months old. Camille Saint-Saëns began learning how to play piano with his aunt when he was only three, where he can already read and write. Saint-Saëns had his first recital at the age of five when he accompanied a Beethoven violin sonata, although he did not make his formal debut by playing Mozart and Beethoven at Paris Salle Pleyel in 1846.
He got into the Paris Conservatory at the age of 13 and played organ for two churches in his late teens. He has also been the organist for Madeleine, the most prestigious church in Paris between the years 1857 to 1876.
The only school he had taught in was the L’Ecole which his students included Andre Messager and Gabriel Faure. In 1871, he went to England for the first time and played for Queen Victoria for promotion of the new French music. He married a 19 year old girl named Marie Truffot in 1875 and had two sons, but both died at very young age. Saint-Saëns separated with his wife three years later and never saw each other again. In 1886, Saint-Saëns composed the pieces Le Carnaval des Animaux (The Carnival of the Animals) and Symphony No. 3, dedicated to Franz Liszt who died that year, with his mother who died two years later. Saint-Saëns traveled around the world including places around Europe, North Africa, Southeast Asia, and South America. Saint-Saëns spent his late years composing more works and traveled more around the world before spending his last years in Algiers, Algeria. In recognition of his accomplishments, the government of France awarded him the Légion d'honneur. He died of pneumonia on 16 December 1921 at the Hôtel de l'Oasis in Algiers. His body was repatriated to Paris, honored by state funeral at La Madeleine, and interred at Cimetière du Montparnasse in Paris.