• Welcome to the Pipe Organ Forum! This is a part of the open community Magle International Music Forums focused on pipe organs (also known as "church organs"), organists, organ music and related topics.

    This forum is intended to be a friendly place where technically advanced organists and beginners (or even non-organists) can feel comfortable having discussions and asking questions. We learn by reading and asking questions, and it is hoped that the beginners (or non-organists) will feel free to ask even the simplest questions, and that the more advanced organists will patiently answer these questions. On the other hand, we encourage complex, technical discussions of technique, music, organ-building, etc. The opinions and observations of a diverse group of people from around the world should prove to be interesting and stimulating to all of us.

    As pipe organ discussions can sometimes become lively, it should be pointed out that this is an open forum. Statements made here are the opinion of the poster, and not necessarily that of the forum itself, its administrator, or its moderators.

    In order to post a new topic - or reply to existing ones - you may join and become a member by clicking on Register New User. It's completely free and only requires a working email address (in order to confirm your registration - it will never be given away!). We strive to make this a friendly and informative forum for anyone interested in pipe organs and organ music.

    (Note: If you wish to link to and promote your own website please read this thread first.)

    Many kind regards
    smile.gif

    Frederik Magle
    Administrator

    Krummhorn
    Co-Administrator

Saint Saens Organ Symphony No. 3 in C minor

Piggy

New member
I heard somewhere that this was originally written in D or some other key, and that Saint Saens transposed it down so that the biggest pipes on the organ were used for the last bit.

Anyone know anything about that?

Many thanks
 

Krummhorn

Administrator
Staff member
ADMINISTRATOR
AFIK, the original work was written (1886) in C minor. In the poco adagio part of the piece it does resolve to D flat major, but returns to C major in the Maestoso movement. Saint-Saens was also an organist for some 20 odd years before the Symphone No 3 was written - Hopefully someone else has some contrary information to offer on this subject.
 

Jeffrey Hall

New member
I saw this thread yesterday but wasn't sure offhand about the answer. I looked around a bit today and can't find any evidence that Saint-Saens didn't originally write it in C minor. It's hard to imagine that as savvy a writer and organist as S-S wouldn't start out in the key that uses the pedalboard to its full extent.
 

Soubasse

New member
Did I also read somewhere that chronologically speaking, this wasn't actually the third Symphony he wrote but the second? Or have I remembered incorrectly and am just hopelessly confusing the issue as usual?

Matt
 
Top