1. Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868)

2. Biography 1792-Born in Pesaro, Italy Musical parents
Daddy played horn
Mama sang (tenor?)
Moved often to advance musical careers
Carnival seasons
Lugo
Bologna

3. “School Days” 1806-Studied music privately at Liceo Musicale Voice
Cello
Piano
Counterpoint: how to ‘properly’ construct music of multiple, independent melodic lines

4. Early Compositions Few instrumental pieces Sacred music Cantata
Mass commissioned by cathedral of Rimini (1809)
Cantata
“award-winning” (1808)

5. Working World 1804- appeared professionally as singer
Also worked in local theatres, inserting his own arias into operas
1810- first opera commissioned
Patron Teatro S Moisè of Venice

6. Great decline in productivity follows.
Compositional Output
Three new operas a year from 1811 to 1819
One a year from 1820 to 1823
Great decline in productivity follows.

7. For soloists, four-part mixed chorus and orchestra (1831-32, 1842)
Stabat Mater
For soloists, four-part mixed chorus and orchestra
( , 1842)

8. Poietical Analysis Commission for Fernandez Varela “Reluctant Rossini”
Priest and state counsellor in Spain
Friend of a friend
Performed Good Friday, Madrid, 1833
“Reluctant Rossini”
1830- Released of post in French court [Charles X of France]
Poor health
Vacationing with banker friend in Spain
Stabat Mater recently composed by Pergolesi
Composed six of twelve movements before handing project to Giovanni Tadolini

9. Rossini picks up where he left off
10 years later
Rossini picks up where he left off

10. The Scoop with The Stabat
Valera dies in 1837
Stabat Mater ends up in the hands of a Parisian publisher
1841-Rossini rewrites the movements by Tadolini
Re-orchestrated
A HUGE success!

11. Sequence for B.V. Mary
Latin poem believed to be work of anonymous 13th century Franciscan monk
At the Cross her station keeping,
Stood the mournful Mother, weeping,
Close to Jesus at the last. . .

12. No. 2 Cujus animam Cujust animam gementem Contristatam et dolentem,
Pertransivit gladius.
O quam tristis et afflicta
Fuit illa benedicta
Mater unigeniti!
Quae moerebat et dolebat,
Et tremebat, cum videbat,
Nati poenas inclyti.
Through her soul, of joy bereaved,
Bowed with anguish, deeply grieved,
Now at length the sword hath passed.
O, that blessed one, grief-laiden,
Blessed Mother, blessed Maiden,
Mother of the all-holy One.
O that silent, ceaseless mourning,
O those dim eyes, never turning
From that wondrous, suffering Son.

17. Esthetical Analysis Significant work of the composer
Operatic style, but toned down from his actual operas
Performed in concert settings
i.e. Paris & Bologna, 1842
Critics and Audiences loved it!

18. Thoughts of a listener
“Cool! Sounds like the latest hit opera. Is this really church music?”
“Love bouncy, dance-like character.”
“Catchy tune, quite lovely if you ask me.”
“Too perky for the text about the Virgin Mary mourning over her dying son.”
“Great instrumental dialogue.”

19. Neutral Analysis
Little relevance between pitches and duration with text/ritual setting
Melody dominates and the words fit in
Volume increases with repetition of the text
Instrumental timbres enhance ‘dialogue’ or exchange between vocalist and orchestra

20. And harmonic language for my fellow geeky music majors
Texture and Form
And harmonic language
for my fellow geeky music majors

21. Bibliography
Anderson, Robert: ‘Review’The Musical Times, Vol. 123, No. 1678, 250 Years of Covent Garden. (Dec., 1982), p. 865, JSTOR.
Gosset, Phillip: ‘Rossini, Gioachino (Antonio)', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed [18 April 2006]),
Deutsche Grammophon: Rossini: Stabat Mater: Richard Osborne, 1996 (sound recording).
Rossini: Stabat Mater, Belwin Mills Publishing Corp. Melville, N.Y. (6398 Kalmus Vocal Scores).