Rossini Editionpart 14

“What a pleasure to listen to Demetrio e Polibio”, wrote major Italian daily La Stampa after the premiere of Rossini‘s very first opera at the 2010 Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, attributing it „an undeniable fascination“. The work was given its first performance in Rome in 1812. It is still unclear whether Rossini was 14 or 18 when he wrote it; what is beyond doubt, however, is the anticipation of great things to come.

“What a pleasure to listen to Demetrio e Polibio”, wrote major Italian daily “La Stampa” after the premiere of Rossini‘s very first opera at the 2010 Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, attributing it “an undeniable fascination“. The work was given its first performance in Rome in 1812.

“What a pleasure to listen to Demetrio e Polibio”, wrote major Italian daily “La Stampa” after the premiere of Rossini‘s very first opera at the 2010 Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, attributing it “an undeniable fascination“. The work was given its first performance in Rome in 1812. It is still unclear whether Rossini was 14 or 18 when he wrote it; what is beyond doubt, however, is the anticipation of great things to come…Making Of Demetrio e Polibio

As part of Deutsche Grammophon’s release of a limited and numbered edition of Claudio Abbado’s complete recordings for DG, Decca and Philips, you can now enjoy Volume 10 in a series of 16 digital albums, which are organised in alphabetical order of composer name. This twelfth digital album presents music by Gioachino Rossini.

Recordings of Rossini’s first full-length comic opera are coming thick and fast at present. Already this year Sony has re-issued, in the Opera House series, their 1979 recording featuring Lucia Valentini-Terrani. There is also a new live recording for review from Naxos. Recorded at Bad Wildbad in 2008 it features the new tenor find Lawrence Brownlee, making waves in Rossini at New York’s Metropolitan, alongside the admired Italian diva Marianna Pizzolato in the title role; Rossini scholar and conductor Alberto Zedda is on the rostrum.
Robert J Farr

More than 25 years after his first EMI album, Antonio Pappano has established himself as a leading figure of conducting, particularly in music from his native Italy. This collection includes excerpts from all his EMI and Warner Italian recordings, from the famous Verdi and Puccini cycles with Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu to the recent praised versions of Turandot and Rossini’s sacred works.

The most comprehensive edition devoted to Gioachino Rossini marking his 150th anniversary. Born in 1792, Rossini was the most popular opera composer of his time. Although he retired from the Opera scene in 1829, he continued to compose in other genres, including sacred music, piano and chamber works. He did gather his late works under the ironic title Péchés de vieillesse (Sins of Old Age), which veils a true collection of masterworks.