William Tell and Pictures at an Exhibition

Gioachino Rossini was born in Pesaro, the only child of Giuseppe, the town trumpeter and inspector of slaughterhouses, and Anna, a talented singer. He received enough musical training by the age of 10 to accompany and play church music. After some formal studying between the ages of 15-18 Rossini composed his first one act opera buffa (comic opera). By the time he was 37, he'd written 38 operas. (Best known is Barber of Seville). His William Tell Overture tells the tale of a man named (obviously) William Tell, a legendary 14th century Swiss hero during the time the Swiss were fighting for their independence from Austria. When Tell, a noted marksman with the crossbow, refuses to bow to Gessler, the Austrian governer, Gessler arrests him but says if Tell can shoot an apple off the head of his son, he would be freed. Tell succeeds in the apple shooting, but turns around and tells Gessler that had he failed, he'd have shot Gessler himself. Which in turn leads him to be chained again. Tell eventually is freed long enough to kill Gessler which leads to a revolt by the Swiss.

The full opera takes SIX hours to perfom, but has been pared down time and again.

You'll notice the audience chuckling when we get to the "High Ho Silver" theme. I sort of wish the conductor grabbed the microphone and like a spokesperson at a horse race said "AND THEY'RE OFF! Theviolins areinthe leadbut WAIT nowthecellosarecomingupfrombehind AND WAIT nowthetrumpetplayerpassesthelead....

The second video is one clip from Modest Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition". He was so impressed by the artwork by Victor Hartmann he wrote a piece of music for each illustration. My favorite (the video I posted) is titled "La Cabane sur des pattes de poule" (Baba Yaga). The Hut on Fowl's Legs. Hartmann's sketch is a design for an elaborate clock suggested by Baba Yaga, the fearsome witch of Russian folklore who eats human bones she has ground into paste with her mortar and pestle. She also can fly through the air on her fantastic pestle, and Mussorgksy's music suggests a wild midnight ride. You can hear the brass play "Uh Ohhhh Here she comes".