The Piano Concerto No. 5 in F major, Op. 103, popularly known as ''The Egyptian'', was Camille Saint-Saëns' last

piano concerto A piano concerto, a type of concerto, is a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for piano accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuosic showpieces which require an advance ...

. He wrote it in 1896, 20 years after his Fourth Piano Concerto, to play himself at his own Jubilee Concert on May 6 of that year. This concert celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of his début at the

Salle Pleyel The Salle Pleyel (, meaning "Pleyel Hall") is a concert hall in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, designed by the acoustician Gustave Lyon together with the architect Jacques Marcel Auburtin, who died in 1926, and the work was completed i ...

in 1846. This concerto is nicknamed "The Egyptian" for two reasons. Firstly, Saint-Saëns composed it in the temple town of

Luxor Luxor is a city in Upper Egypt. Luxor had a population of 263,109 in 2020, with an area of approximately and is the capital of the Luxor Governorate. It is among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited c ...

while on one of his frequent winter vacations to

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

, and secondly, the music is among his most exotic, displaying influences from Javanese and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

as well as Middle-eastern music. Saint-Saëns said that the piece represented a sea voyage. Saint-Saëns himself was the soloist at the première, which was a popular and critical success.

Structure

Instrumentation

The concerto is scored for solo

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

piccolo The piccolo ( ; ) is a smaller version of the western concert flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" or piccolo flute, the modern piccolo has the same type of fingerings as the ...

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flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

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oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double-reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common type of oboe, the soprano oboe pitched in C, ...

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clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

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bassoon The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuosity ...

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horn Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family ...

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trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

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trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the Standing wave, air c ...

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion instrument, percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a Membranophone, membrane called a drumhead, ...

, tam tam, and strings.IMSLP details
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Recordings

Classic recordings of this work by

Hisatada Odaka Hisatada Otaka (Japanese: 尾高尚忠; 26 September 1911 – 16 February 1951) was a Japanese composer and conductor. He was the conductor of the NHK Symphony Orchestra from 1942 to 1951. Otaka was born in Japan and studied in musical arts ear ...

and Kazuko Yasukawa are not currently available. Selected recordings presently available include: *

Magda Tagliaferro Magdalena Maria Yvonne Tagliaferro (19 January 18939 September 1986) was a Brazilian pianist of French parentage. Magdalena Tagliaferro was born in Petrópolis, Brazil. Her father, who had studied piano with Raoul Pugno in Paris, was a voice a ...

and the Orchestre Lamoureux, conducted by

Jean Fournet Jean Fournet (14 April 1913 – 3 November 2008) was a French flautist and conducting, conductor. Biography Fournet was born in Rouen in 1913. His father was a flutist who gave him some instruction on the flute and music theory. Fournet was t ...

. Recorded 1954. Reported on 3 CD set with other composers APR 2021. Diapason d’or * Jeanne-Marie Darré and the Orchestre National de la Radiodiffusion Française, conducted by Louis Fouretier. Recorded 1957. Reported on a 2-CD set with all 5 Saint-Saëns piano concertos (Emi classics 1996) *

Philippe Entremont Philippe Entremont (born 7 June 1934) is a French classical pianist and conducting, conductor. His recordings as a pianist include concertos by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Tchaikovsky, Maurice Ravel, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninoff, Camille Sain ...

and the Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse conducted by

Michel Plasson Michel Plasson (born 2 October 1933, Paris, France) is a French conductor. Plasson was a student of Lazare Lévy at the Conservatoire de Paris. In 1962, he was a prize-winner at the International Besançon Competition for Young Conductors. ...

. (Columbia Masterworks) on a 2-CD set with all 5 Saint-Saëns piano concertos. recorded 1976 *

Gabriel Tacchino Gabriel Tacchino (; 4 August 1934 – 29 January 2023) was a French classical pianist and teacher. Life and career Tacchino was born in Cannes on 4 August 1934. He studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, Paris Conservatoire from 1947 to 1953, whe ...

, piano, Orchestra Of Radio Luxembourg, conducted by Louis De Froment "Complete Works For Piano And Orchestra" 3 LP Vox 1976 / reprint: CD Brilliant Classics *

Jean-Philippe Collard Collard at the ''Flâneries musicales'', Reims (6 June 2014) Jean-Philippe Henri Collard (born 27 January 1948) is a French pianist known for his interpretations of the works of Gabriel Fauré and Camille Saint-Saëns. Career Collard was born ...

and the

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, England. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable recording contracts and important engagemen ...

conducted by

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

. (EMI 86245), on a 2-CD set with all 5 Saint-Saëns piano concertos. Recorded 1987 *

Aldo Ciccolini Aldo Ciccolini (; 15 August 1925 – 1 February 2015) was an Italian pianist who became a naturalized French citizen in 1971. Biography Aldo Ciccolini was born in Naples. His father, whose family bore the title of Marquis in the city of Macera ...

and the

Orchestre de Paris The Orchestre de Paris () is a French orchestra based in Paris. The orchestra currently performs most of its concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris. History In 1967, following the dissolution of the Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du ...

conducted by

Serge Baudo Serge Baudo (born 16 July 1927) is a French conductor, the son of the oboist Étienne Baudo. He is the nephew of the cellist Paul Tortelier. Baudo was conductor of the Orchestra of Radio Nice from 1959 to 1962. He then served as permanent conduct ...

EMI 585183, on a 2-CD set with all 5 Saint-Saëns piano concertos. Recorded 1971 * Idil Biret, piano, Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Jean Fournet. CD IBA BMP. Recorded 1999 * Anna Malikova and the WDR Symphony Orchestra conducted by Thomas Sanderling, Cologne (Audite 92.510), on a 2-SACD set with all 5 Saint-Saëns piano concertos. Recorded 2010 * Pascal Rogé and the

conducted by

Charles Dutoit Charles Édouard Dutoit is a Swiss conductor. He is the principal guest conductor for the Saint Petersburg Philharmonia. In 2017, he became the 103rd recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Society Gold Medal Award. Dutoit held previous positions ...

. Decca 443 865–2 (2 cd set with all 5 Saint-Saëns piano concertos). Recorded 1981 * Sviatoslaw Richter and the Moscow Youth Orchestra, conducted by

Kirill Kondrashin Kirill Petrovich Kondrashin (; – 7 March 1981) was a Soviet and Russian conductor. People's Artist of the USSR (1972). Early life Kondrashin was born in Moscow to a family of orchestral musicians. Having spent many hours at rehearsals, he ma ...

. LP Le Chant du Monde, 1955 (reported on CD 2008) *Sviatoslaw Richter and the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR, conducted by

Christoph Eschenbach Christoph Eschenbach (; born 20 February 1940) is a German pianist and conductor. Early life Eschenbach was born on 20 February 1940 in Breslau, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland) as Christoph Ringmann. His parents were Margarethe (née Jaross), a ...

. CD Schwetzingen SWR Festspiele. Recorded 1993 *

Stephen Hough Sir Stephen Andrew Gill Hough (; born 22 November 1961) is a British-Australian classical pianist, composer and writer. Biography Hough was born in Heswall (then in Cheshire) on the Wirral Peninsula, and grew up in Thelwall, where he began pi ...

and the

City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) is a British orchestra based in Birmingham, England. It is the resident orchestra at Symphony Hall, Birmingham in Birmingham, which has been its principal performance venue since 1991. Its adminis ...

conducted by

Sakari Oramo Sakari Markus Oramo, (born 26 October 1965) is a Finnish conductor. He is chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Biography and career Born in Helsinki, Oramo is the son of two music academics who taught at the Sibelius Academy, Ilk ...

. Hyperion CDA67331/2 (2 CD set with all 5 Saint-Saëns piano concertos and other works). Recorded 2000. Diapason d'or, Choc Le Monde de la Musique * Mūza Rubackyté and the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Hans Martin Schneidt (with Piano concerto n°2, conducted by

Alain Pâris Alain Pâris (born 22 November 1947) is a French conductor and musicologist. Biography Born in Paris, Alain Pâris was trained as a pianist and has a law degree. He studied conducting with Pierre Dervaux, Paul Paray and Georg Solti and won the ...

). Live record. CD Doron music 2014 *

Louis Lortie Louis Lortie (born 27 April 1959) is a Canadian pianist. Education Born in Montreal, Lortie made his debut with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra at the age of thirteen and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra three years later. Soon after he tour ...

and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra ''(complete piano concertos n°1, n°2, n°3, n°4, n°5''), conducted by Edward Gardner (en). 2 CD Chandos 2018-2019 *

Bertrand Chamayou Bertrand Chamayou (born 23 March 1981) is a French pianist. Career Born in Toulouse, Chamayou studied at the Conservatoire de Toulouse under the tutelage of Claudine Willoth, making his first forays into contemporary music and composition. At th ...

and the Orchestre National de France, conducted by

Emmanuel Krivine Emmanuel Krivine (born 7 May 1947, Grenoble) is a French conductor. Biography The son of a Polish mother and a Russian father, Krivine studied the violin as a youth. He was a winner of the ''Premier Prix'' at the Paris Conservatoire, at age 16. ...

. CD Erato 2019 -

Gramophone Award The Gramophone Classical Music Awards, launched in 1977, are one of the most significant honours bestowed on recordings in the classical record industry. The British awards are often viewed as equivalent to or surpassing the American Grammy ...

, Choc de Classica * Alexandre Kantorow and the Tapiola Sinfonietta, conducted by Jean-Jacques Kantorow. SACD Bis 2019 - Diapason d'or, Choc de Classica * Clélia Iruzum, piano, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Jac Van Steen. CD Somm recordings 2020 * Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, conducted by

. CD Decca 2007

References

External links

*
Camille Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No. 5, "Egyptian"
program notes by Barbara Heninger for the Redwood Symphony {{DEFAULTSORT:Piano Concerto No. 5 (Saint-Saens) Piano concerto 5 1896 compositions Compositions in F major