The Carnival of the Animals cello solo (which evokes the swan elegantly gliding over the water) is played over rippling sixteenths in one piano and rolled chords in the other (said to represent the swan's feet, hidden from view beneath the water, propelling it along). A staple of the cello repertoire, this is one of the most well-known movements of the suite, usually in the version for cello with solo piano which was the only publication of this work in Saint-Saëns's lifetime. More than twenty other arrangements of this movement have also been published, with solo instruments ranging from flute to alto saxophone. A short
Carnival in the Netherlands and Vorarlberg (Western Austria). It traditionally represents the time of year when the reign of the cold, grim winter spirits is over and these spirits are being driven out and expelled by the Carnaval rituals. Also the ritual re-enactment of the Wild Hunt was a cultural phenomenon among many Gallic and Germanic peoples. There is evidence that the ancient Roman festivals of Saturnalia and Bacchanalia may have been absorbed into the Italian carnival, while other scholars say that there is insufficient evidence to draw any connection between these festivals and the modern Christian Carnival. The Saturnalia, in turn, may be