Product Description

Complete with texts and color illustrations throughout, this edition will appeal not only to both child and adult pianists, but to any music-lover who wishes to get to know these works better.

---

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #495608 in Books
• Brand: Schott
• Published on: 2000-03-01
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .10" h x 8.70" w x 11.70" l, .30 pounds
• Binding: Paperback
• 32 pages

Features

• Published by Schott 32 Pages
• Get to Know Classical Masterpieces Get to Know Classical Masterpieces (Heumann)
• Composer: Camille Saint-Sadns Artist: Brigitte Smith Arranger: Hans-Gnnter Heumann

From Amazon.com
Philip de Vos's carnival of animals is full of malcontents and fiercely independent types: tortoises who waltz and cancan--but only in their dreams; lions who disdain sauerkraut and brussels sprouts; and rowdy, honky-tonker pianists. Fourteen poems document this motley crew, with a generous helping of Ogden Nash-esque nonsense and de Vos's own brand of quirky humor. Donkeys are immortalized thus:

Consider now
the donkey's lot.
He'd love to be
what he is
not:
wild and lusty,
not so dusty,
with a song
that's not so
rusty.
Donkey
hasn't any choice
and mocks the world
with his
hee-haw voice.

Each verse is complemented wittily by Piet Grobler's unique etchings in blues, golds, and rusts that, framed, could easily grace an offbeat nursery wall. The poems will most likely be enjoyed on two levels, as sophisticated humor often is: younger readers will delight in the silliness, while urbane adults will be drawn by the cultural references (19th-century composer Camille Saint-Saens is the "music man") and darker undertones (hints of death play around the edges of several of the verses--the tortoise "plods along, he plods along/ until his tortoise days are gone"). All in all, a captivating and memorable book. (Ages 5 and older) --Emilie Coulter

From School Library Journal
Grade 3-5-An unusual and quirky collection of poetry and art that seeks to put verbal and visual expression to Saint-Sa'ns's famous musical composition, with results that are varied at best. The illustrations, etchings with yellow, blue, and brown watercolor, feature elongated and stylized figures that will probably appeal more to adults than children. Kangaroo wears overalls and a farmer's hat. The swan sits atop the head of a blue-faced lady who is dining, seemingly oblivious to the bird. The tortoises are dancing girls, of a sort, with fishnet stockings, feathers, and cigarette holders. It's not necessary to listen to the music to understand the poetry with the exception of the can-can reference in the tortoise poem. However, one may wonder, without knowing the musical work, why a "pianist" is considered "the dreaded beast," and the humor may be lost on both nonmusicians and children. Uncertain in its target audience, this collection never really hits its mark.
Jane Marino, Scarsdale Public Library, NY
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Inspired by the composer Camille Saint-Saens, De Vos, a South African writer, composes sophisticated verse for each of the sections of Saint-Saens' musical fantasy. There's a darkly witty sense of humor, too, as De Vos mourns the chickens "lying on a dinner plate" and the fish waiting for time to pass "locked up in a cage of glass." He includes pianists and fossils, just as the composer did: "Many beasts / are in the zoo / and pianists / belong there too." The nervous squiggles and dreamlike edginess of Grobler's etchings, rendered in a palette of brown, gold, and blue, recall the work of Paul Klee. This will be an excellent choice for children being introduced to the music, but youngsters might otherwise need a little more coaxing to appreciate the book's slightly surreal charms. GraceAnne A. DeCandido
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved