🇫🇷Charles Camille Saint-Saëns ： Souvenir dIsmailia Op.100

A character piece for solo piano by Saint-Saëns, centered on a graceful and flowing melody, with refined harmony and light, lively rhythms woven throughout. Its elegance is balanced by a sense of animation. The music is shaped around the presentation of the melody, while changes in the accompaniment’s character and in the register add color; the shifting character of each section is one of its main attractions. In performance, it is important to keep the singing line clear while maintaining a restrained accompaniment. Shaping the direction of each phrase and handling the smaller figurations with nimble fingers and natural dynamic gradations will bring out the work’s elegance.