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
The Devil's Carnival is in the Carnival. Ticket-Keeper admonishes him for attempting to break the rules, and explains all the 666 laws of the Carnival ("666"). They are welcomed in. Tamara, wandering in the back of the Carnival, finds The Scorpion, who resembles a typical "bad boy". She releases him from a cage, and he woos her over with his deadly knife-throwing act. Meanwhile, John, in search for his son, finds himself in the Big-Top tent. He is harassed by Wick and her three cohorts, the Woe-Maidens, as the circus band. The Hellharmonic, led by The Major, play a tune ("Kiss the Girls").