The debut of the distinguished violinist and conductor Augustin Dumay on Onyx.

Saint-Saëns’s popular First Cello Concerto is coupled with his superb but neglected First Symphony and the late and rare double concerto for cello and violin ‘La Muse et le Poète’.

Dumay is music director of the Kansai Philharmonic Orchestra in Japan, making their debut recording with Dumay. They are joined by cellist Pavel Gomziakov in ‘La Muse et le Poète’ and the famous first cello concerto.

The First Symphony was praised by Berlioz and Gounod when it was premiered in 1853. Both composers were amazed that such an assured symphony could be the work of an 18-year-old. Saint-Saëns’s use of the large orchestra is extraordinary and the work has all the hallmarks associated with this composer: flair, good taste and a gift for wonderful tunes that remain with the listener. Its neglect in the concert hall is hard to understand.