Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims may be the first postmodern opera in terms of the self-referentiality of its libretto: it was written about a future event -- the coronation of Charles X of France in 1825 -- to be performed as part of the celebration surrounding the coronation itself. The libretto, by Luigi Balocchi, is one of the silliest and most convoluted, but genuinely wittiest, Rossini ever set (which is saying something!) and the composer responded with an outpouring of inspiration that's fully appropriate to the ...
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Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims may be the first postmodern opera in terms of the self-referentiality of its libretto: it was written about a future event -- the coronation of Charles X of France in 1825 -- to be performed as part of the celebration surrounding the coronation itself. The libretto, by Luigi Balocchi, is one of the silliest and most convoluted, but genuinely wittiest, Rossini ever set (which is saying something!) and the composer responded with an outpouring of inspiration that's fully appropriate to the giddiness of the story. The plot concerns a group of various European aristocrats on the way to the coronation in Rheims who are stranded in a hotel a day's journey away because of a lack of horses to transport them. Various romances and rivalries transpire while they try to sort out the dilemma, which they eventually resolve by pooling their resources and having a big party. Rossini was able to capitalize on the wealth of opera stars who would be in Paris for the festivities following the...
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Add this copy of Rossini: Il Viaggio a Reims to cart. $48.33, new condition, Sold by AJA Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Venice, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1993 by Sony Music.
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