front cover of Armida
Armida
Dramma per musica in Three Acts by Giovanni Schmidt
Gioachino Rossini
University of Chicago Press, 1998
Rossini's third opera seria for Naples, Armida, first performed November 9, 1817 and among his most unusual and beautiful stage works, is based on Tasso's epic poem Gerusalemme liberata. From the performer playing Armida, Rossini demands singing of both spectacular virtuosity and great dramatic power. Some of his most sensual music occurs in Armida's duets, two of which feature prominent introductions for solo violin and solo violoncello. Included in the large cast are six tenor roles (although they can be taken by four tenors, as they were at Naples). A highlight of Act III is the stirring trio for three tenors. Armida also requires two basses and gives conspicuous parts to men's and women's choruses. Unique among Rossini's Italian operas is a large ballet, which occupies much of Act II, and the magical scenic effects called for in the staging.

The critical edition presents Armida in its original form, reintegrating passages missing from the autograph score and restoring cuts made in printed editions.
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front cover of Ermione
Ermione
Dramma per musica in Two Acts by Andrea Leone Tottola
Gioachino Rossini
University of Chicago Press, 1996
Ermione is one of the extraordinary serious operas that Rossini composed while artistic director of the royal theaters of Naples. Although it was not originally successful, Rossini treasured Ermione as his "little William Tell." Its revival at the Rossini Opera Festival's production in 1987—the first since the original staging in 1819—revealed its beauty to modern audiences and has spurred many additional performances.

This critical edition is the first publication of Ermione in full score.

The originality and power of Rossini's score lie in the musical realization of the four principal characters in Tottola's libretto—four survivors of the Trojan war—based on Racine's tragedy Andromaque. Rossini's Ermione was one of the most fully developed characters in nineteenth-century opera. The work's musical structure also was unconventional for its day. All the solo numbers involve other characters, and there is only one scene for a single protagonist.
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front cover of La Riconoscenza / Il vero omaggio
La Riconoscenza / Il vero omaggio
Gioachino Rossini
University of Chicago Press, 2003

front cover of L'occasione fa il ladro, ossia Il cambio della valigia
L'occasione fa il ladro, ossia Il cambio della valigia
Burletta per musica in One Act by Luigi Prividali
Gioachino Rossini
University of Chicago Press, 1995


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