CCMusic.com

Martha Argerich and Antonio Pappano (as pianist rather than conductor) lead the fun in Saint-Saëns' Carnival of the Animals with members of the Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. The entire orchestra assembles under Pappano's baton for another of Saint-Saëns' most celebrated works, the magnificent 'Organ' Symphony, No 3. The pianists are perhaps the most exotic of all the creatures in the Carnival of the Animals. A very rare and treasurable pairing has been made by Warner Classics for this new recording of Saint-Saëns' enchantingly witty suite: Martha Argerich, often described as the world's finest example of the pianist species, and Antonio Pappano, a particularly fine specimen of the conductor-pianist.