The Carnival of the Animals and xylophone. From the beginning, Saint-Saëns regarded the work as a piece of fun. On 9 February 1886 he wrote to his publishers Durand in Paris that he was composing a work for the coming Shrove Tuesday, and confessing that he knew he should be working on his Third Symphony, but that this work was "such fun" (). He had apparently intended to write the work for his students at the École Niedermeyer, but it was first performed at a private concert given by the cellist Charles Lebouc on Shrove Tuesday, 9 March 1886. A second (private) performance was given
Carnival in Mexico 300,000 visitors including many from California. It has had performances by Joan Sebastián, Alejandra Guzmán, Magneto, Caló, Polo Polo and others. The modern La Paz Carnival was begun in 1898, making it one of the oldest in the country. Before that, celebration of Carnival was limited to formal affairs at the houses of the rich. It includes concerts such as those by Espinoza Paz, Sonora Santanera and Ha*Ash. On the Yucatán Peninsula, major Carnival celebrations are held in Mérida, Cozumel and the city of Campeche. Mérida celebrates Carnival for a full week with various events. The preferred music for this