Camille Saint-Saens - L'Aquarium - Guitar Tab

Saint-Saëns: Le Carnaval des Animaux; Phaéton; Danse Macabre etc.

1980 2:31

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About L'Aquarium

Arranging an orchestral piece like "L'Aquarium" for guitar is a rewarding but careful exercise in texture and touch. Originally written for piano, flute, and strings, the piece lives and dies on its shimmering, flowing lines, so on guitar you are essentially hunting for that same glassy, legato feel. In G major at 120 BPM, the tempo is moderate, but sustaining the melody cleanly over a gentle arpeggiated accompaniment demands real right-hand control and a light attack. Fingerstyle is the natural approach here, keeping the melodic voice floating above the inner movement. The trickiest moments are where the melodic line shifts register mid-phrase while the accompaniment keeps rolling underneath, so use the Practice Toolbar to loop those transitions slowed down until each voice stays independent. Camille Saint-Saens wrote the original with a very specific watery shimmer in mind, and that spirit transfers well to guitar when you let the notes ring and resist any temptation to rush. This sits comfortably within the broader Classical fingerstyle repertoire.

• The piece works best fingerstyle, with the melody carried on the treble strings while arpeggiated inner voices flow beneath it.
• Playing in G major keeps most of the melodic phrases in comfortable fretboard positions, making it accessible for intermediate classical guitarists.
• The greatest technical challenge is voice independence: keeping a sustained, even melody separate from the moving accompaniment at 120 BPM.