Rossini, G :: The Barber of Seville

Musicians Publications presents Gioacchino Rossini's The Barber of Seville arranged for woodwind quintet by Bill Holcombe.

To say that the premiere of Rossini s Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) was an unmitigated failure, would in no way be an exaggeration. There seems an unending litany to the blunders that took place that fateful evening in 1816 at the Teatro Argentina in Rome. Rossini s first complication was perhaps of his own making: he based his opera on the already popular French play by Pierre Beaumarchais, which had already been set popularly in opera form by the senior composer, Giovanni Paisiello. Paisiello had his allies in the audience and their only purpose seemed to be to disrupt the production. That was just the beginning of Rossini s woes.

There were well-documented instances of a main character tripping over a prop during his entrance and falling flat on his face, having to sing his aria with a bloodied nose; another singer had the misfortune of plummeting through a trap door that had accidentally been left open; a character in the midst of his serenade broke a string on his accompanying instrument; and another poor sop didn t adequately find his mark, instead turning the wrong way and walking into some already precariously placed scenery. One might imagine this could be enough buffoonery for one evening, but sadly, no. During one of the opera s most climactic scenes, a stray cat strode across the stage, eliciting giggles from the audience, as well as Rossini s cast. (It was never proven if one of Paisiello s cohorts engineered the feline s entrance, or if it was just another in a string of remarkably unlucky events of the premiere.) Rossini could bear no more and left the theater before the opera s curtain calls.

Luckily for Rossini, Italian opera-goers of the time were both fickle, and in possession of very short memories. The second performance, completely devoid of the first night s high jinks, allowed the audience to truly recognize the genius of The Barber of Seville . Rossini chose not to attend the second performance, fearing the same types of disasters as the previous night s. While he was at home worrying about what was happening during the second performance of Seville , he heard an uproar in the street. When he looked out his window, he saw a large group of people shouting and carrying torches approaching his dwelling. At first, he feared they were coming to harm him, until he heard the words, Vivat Rossini ( Long live Rossini ). Apparently Rossini s memory was better than the audience s, because when he realized they wanted him to come out and accept their accolades, he muttered something unprintable and stayed indoors, refusing to acknowledge their tribute.

In true opera buffa style, Rossini s Il barbiere is filled with the requisite loves, villains, disguises, pseudonyms, misunderstandings, shenanigans, and in traditional buffa form, the good guys almost always win.

The overture follows many of Rossini s opera overture formats, this one beginning with a slow introduction in E Major with a marking of Andante maestoso. The introduction vacillates between forte chords involving the whole orchestra, and softer and smaller complements of instruments for its often reflective and introspective moments. In typical Rossini format the introduction is followed by a sprightly allegro in e minor, an allegro that once stated, treats the listener to the true ambience of the action to follow. With this, comes the recognition that this overture could never again be attached to another work other than The Barber of Seville . This is one of the more recognizable opera overtures in popular culture, familiar to both opera lovers and the reluctant and nescient opera detractors. Lest us forget the cartoon s contribution to Seville s popularity Woody Woodpecker s The Barber of Seville (1944) and Bugs Bunny s creative The Rabbit of Seville (1949). Even the seminal sitcom, Seinfeld (1993) used the allegro of the overture during one of its most farcical plot lines involving a barber and an infidelity scandal. -Lori Newman, 2013