Reto Muller of the German Rossini Society suggested this work along with the observation: ” An outstanding composition during the great ‘silence’, the main sacral composition between Stabat and Petite Messe. Incredible how Rossini renewed himself and gives his composition a breath of Risorgimento!
The slow beginning and the very fast conclusion corresponds to Rossini’s metronome indication.”

Carla Di Carlo who suggested this, comments: “The most emotional piece [by Rossini] in my opinion, lies in the finale of Stabat Mater conducted by Alberto [Zedda], in particular. It has always given me a feeling of infinte peace “In Sempiterna Saecula”.

We’ve posted the entire work, but the finale ( at about 51:38) is truely transcendent.

This delightful sequence conveys the joy that arises when two artists with very different public personas collaborate.

Thanks to Sergio Ragni for sharing this with us.

While not denying that recordings ( both audio and visual) and live streaming are such a valuable resource for opera lovers, there is NOTHING that replaces the additional rush of joy from fellow audience members when they “almost” bring down the house at the conclusion of an incredible performance. It was actually this performance which made some of us vow to make the trip to ROF to hear her in person. We were not disappointed.  Listen to the end.

Looking back on this year’s Rossini events, one of the most anticipated was the opening on Rossini’s birthday of  the renovated Scavolini theatre in Pesaro. Paolo Bordogna arrived  just in time to give Rossini a special gift, which he shares with us here.

This delightful concoction reminds us that even when we are apart we can be together. And Rossini makes it fun with these artists. A memory from the height of the Covid pandemic.

Nicola Alaimo, Simone Alberghini, Roberto De Candia, Alfonso Antoniozzi, Antonino Siragusa, Paolo Bordogna, Cecilia Pastawski, Chiara Amarù, Chiara Tirotta, Francesco Tuppo, Gezim Myshketa, Teresa Iervolino, Francisco Brito, Lara Lagni ,Larry Brownlee Manuel Amati ,Marco Filippo Romano, Marianna Pizzolato, Mattia Olivieri, Michele Pertusi, Cecilia Molinari ,Pietro Spagnoli, Daniela Pellegrino (pianoforte)

Rossini is “more” than opera, though that would have been enough. Again, from the legendary performance at Versailles, Marilyn Horne delights with this seductive masterpiece.

Rossini’s reemergence (in the late 1900’s) into the public conscience are due in large part to the scholars Philip Gossett, Bruno Cagli, Alberto Zedda (who is featured in other calendar items), and artists like Rockwell Blake.

Here are some  lovely moments  from an evening in Naples in 1988. (Be patient with the intro if you don’t understand Italian!)

This excerpt is taken from the historic (almost legendary) event “Rossini at Versailles” with Ruggiero Raimondi entertaining “Rossini” and Claudio Abbado at the helm.

This was suggested by the music critic Jurgen Gahre with the comment:

“The music describes perfectly how a rumor creeps from person to person. And in an age of social media this is both uncannily true and dangerous.”

This month the American Rossini Society will again feature a Rossini Advent Calendar. What makes this one different from the previous one is that we have invited members and supporters to contribute selections that illustrate something special about Rossini. The purpose is to lift our spirits during this dark period and to inspire us to let Russini joy into our lives.

We start with a popular excerpt from last year’s calendar.