He composed The Barber of Seville in just twelve days: Who is Gioacchino Rossini?
Monsieur Crescendo: Rossini was born into a family devoted to music. He was a child prodigy and started playing triangle in his father's band when he was six. Rossini had a direct relationship with this world, as both his parents were involved in operas.
He composed his first opera "La cambiale di matrimonio" at the age of 18. He produced some outstanding operas, such as “La Pietra del Paragone and Il Signor Bruschino”, notable for their musical excellence. “The Barber of Seville” is considered his masterpiece, immortalizing him in the minds of music lovers around the world. He was a fast composer and also inexhaustible! “The Barber of Seville” is said to have been composed in just twelve days. His compositions required the skill of the opera singers of his time. He is known for being innovative and influencing generations of opera composers.
Who is Gioacchino Rossini?
Gioacchino Rossini, (b. 29 February 1792, Pesaro-Italy – d. 13 November 1868, France). Italian opera composer. He is known by the nickname "Monsieur Crescendo".
Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards for both comic and serious opera before retiring from large-scale composition while still in his thirties, at the height of his popularity.
He was born in a small town called Pesaro on the east coast of Italy. His mother was an opera singer and his father played the horn. He started singing and playing the cello and horn as a child. When he turned 15, he was enrolled in a music school and learned to compose.
His first opera, La Cambiale di Matrimonio, was staged in Venice at the age of 18, he gained fame with his fourth work, the serious opera Tancredi, and his fifth work, the comic opera L'Italiana in Algeri (An Italian Girl in Algeria), and his masterpiece, the opera The Barber of Seville, at the age of 24. He staged it in Rome. He wrote the opera La Cenerentola, inspired by the Cinderella tale, in the same year (1816). He composed 39 operas between the ages of 18 and 37. His last opera was William Tell, famous for its overture, storm scene, and ballet music. He stopped composing operas at the age of 37. He was a very popular composer during his lifetime. Some of his works are still frequently staged today.
Birthday: March 1, 1792
Nationality: Italian
Birthplace: Pesaro
Profession: Composer
Date of Death: November 13, 1868
Place of Death: Passy
He was the music director of several places such as the San Carlo Theater in Naples and the Italian Opera in Paris. He worked as a composer for King Charles 10 before the French Revolution of 1830.
Rossini was married twice. His wife, Isabella Colbran, whom he married in 1822, was an opera singer who played the leading role in many of his works. After the death of his first wife, he married opera singer Olympe Pélissier in 1846. Rossini returned and settled in France in 1855, where he lived between 1824 and 1836. His house became a meeting point for artists. During this period, he composed what he called "the sins of old age" and performed them in his own hall. He died on November 13, 1868. Rossini found success with his comic operas. Guillaume Tell, Tancredi, and Semiramide are considered his most important works. Although Othello is Verdi's masterpiece, Rossini's Othello is also worth listening to. The string sonatas he composed in his youth show that he studied in depth the works of classical period composers such as Haydn and Mozart.