If you’ve ever read any of Jean de Brunhoff’s children’s story “Babar,” you won’t want to miss this live reading with piano accompaniment! Bring your child and your copy of the original story and watch David Saslav act out the story with specially-designed props while local Great Falls pianist Melissa Smith plays French composer Poulenc’s evocative score. (30 minute program. CDs available, benefitting the museum by donation.)

Image description: Melissa and David seated beside the concrete sculpture of Avalanche the mountain goat. David holds a cutout of Babar the elephant who has a sign reading: “L’Histoire de Babar le petit éléphant”

One Summer in 1933, French composer Poulenc was visiting his sister and six-year-old niece, shortly after she had received her copy of the original French children’s book, “L’Histoire du Babar.” The girl, bored by her uncle’s modernist composing at their family piano, took her Babar book, handed it to him and said, “Uncle Francis, play this instead!” 

Fortunately, Poulenc was every bit as gifted as an improviser at the piano as he was a composer, and he magnanimously complied by composing music for each page of her storybook. So enamored was his niece by her uncle’s scenic sound painting, that she insisted every Summer thereafter that he repeat the performance, note for note (which, thankfully, he was also able to do). Eventually, she insisted he publish it for other children to enjoy, and Babar was born again, this time as a work of classical music, recorded several times by many different pianists and narrators.

Image description: David is standing outside The History Museum with a funny facial expression while he holds two elephant puppets

You can purchase a copy of The Story of Babar at your local bookstore (link to purchase from Cassiopeia Books can be found here: https://bit.ly/3oCcmRF) or check it out from your local library.