Gioachino Rossini

29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868

Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868) was an Italian composer who wrote 39 operas, including The Barber of Seville, La Cenerentola, and William Tell, and dominated European opera in the early 19th century. He famously retired from opera composition at age 37 and spent his final decades mainly in Paris.

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Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Gioachino Rossini.

Life events

Born in Pesaro on a leap day
29 February 1792

Rossini was born on 29 February 1792 in Pesaro, on the Adriatic coast of the Papal States, to musician parents.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Birth ✓
Studied at the Liceo Musicale in Bologna
1806 – 1810

Rossini entered Bologna's conservatory, where he studied counterpoint and cello and absorbed the music of Haydn and Mozart.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Education ✓
First international successes with Tancredi and L'italiana in Algeri
6 February 1813

The premieres of Tancredi and L'italiana in Algeri in Venice made the 21-year-old Rossini famous across Europe.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Became music director of the royal opera houses in Naples
1815 – 1822

Impresario Domenico Barbaia engaged Rossini for the Naples opera houses, where he composed a series of serious operas.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Premiere of The Barber of Seville in Rome
20 February 1816

Il barbiere di Siviglia premiered at the Teatro Argentina in Rome; despite a chaotic first night, it became his most enduring work.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Married soprano Isabella Colbran
16 March 1822

Rossini married the Spanish soprano Isabella Colbran, the leading lady of many of his Naples operas.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Settled in Paris
1824

Rossini moved to Paris, where he directed the Théâtre-Italien and composed operas for the French stage.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Relocation ✓
Premiere of William Tell, his final opera
3 August 1829

Guillaume Tell premiered at the Paris Opéra, after which Rossini, aged 37, retired from opera composition for the remaining 39 years of his life.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Married Olympe Pélissier
16 August 1846

After Isabella Colbran's death, Rossini married Olympe Pélissier, who cared for him through his years of ill health.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Died in Passy, near Paris
13 November 1868

Rossini died at his villa in Passy at age 76; his remains were later transferred to the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Death ✓