Hélène
Music by Camille Saint-Saëns · at Opéra de Monte-Carlo
Hélène is a poème lyrique or opera in one act by composer Camille Saint-Saëns. It is the first opera for which Saint-Saëns wrote his own French libretto, which is based on the classic story of Helen of Troy and Paris from Greek mythology. The opera premiered at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo in Monaco on 18 February 1904. Moderately successful, the opera enjoyed a handful of revivals up through 1919, after which it fell out of the performance repertoire. The work was resurrected in 2008 for its world premiere recording by the Australian music label Melba.
Text from the Wikipedia article "Hélène (opera)", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
About the Composer
Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (UK: , US: , French: [ʃaʁl kamij sɛ̃sɑ̃(s)] 9 October 1835 – 16 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Second Piano Concerto (1868), the First Cello Concerto (1872), Danse macabre (1874), the opera Samson and Delilah (1877), the Third Violin Concerto (1880), the Third ("Organ") Symphony (1886) and The Carnival of the Animals (1886). Saint-Saëns was a musical prodigy; he made his concert debut at the age of ten. After studying at the Paris Conservatoire he followed a conventional career as a church organist, first at Saint-Merri, Paris…
Text from the Wikipedia article "Camille Saint-Saëns", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Other Operas by Camille Saint-Saëns
- Henry VIII (1627)
- Ascanio (1852)
- Déjanire (1898)
- L'ancêtre (1905)