The comedies of Pierre Beaumarchais “The Barber of Seville” and “The Marriage of Figaro,” according to historians, were the forerunners of the French Revolution, as they were extremely relevant and written on the topic of the day. Therefore, it is not surprising that, for example, the plot of the first of these plays repeatedly became the basis of the libretto for operas. In particular, in 1816, a similar work was written by the Italian composer Gioacchino Rossini. The “Barber of Seville” in its version failed during the premiere. However, today some arias from this work can be heard at many concerts of popular opera music.
Rossini biography before 1816
Before telling how the opera The Barber of Seville was written, a summary of which is presented below, it is worth recalling who its author was. So, Gioacchino Rossini was born in 1792 in the Italian city of Pesaro, in the family of a singer and trumpeter. His musical abilities were discovered very early, and his parents immediately sent the boy to study in Bologna.
The very first opera of the young composer (The Marriage Bill, 1810) attracted the attention of the public, and over the next 2 years Rossini had no shortage of orders. Then he wrote the works “Tancred” and “Italian in Algeria”, followed by an invitation to work for the theater “La Scala”.
Background of the “Barber of Seville”
In 1816, Gioacchino Rossini entered into an agreement with the Roman Theater of Argentino, according to which he undertook to write a new opera for the carnival. According to the existing practice at that time, the libretto had to be submitted to censors for approval, however, none of the options received approval. When there was almost no time left for the carnival, the composer remembered Beaumarchais's comedy “The Barber of Seville”, which had already become the basis of the plot of opera performances on the Italian scene three times before, and decided to go the beaten path, just so as not to disrupt the contract.
The process of creating an opera and premiere
Immediately after receiving permission from the censors, Rossini began work and completed it in record time, amounting to only 13 days. As for the libretto, according to which, the scene of the opera is Seville, and the time is the end of the 18th century, it was written by Cesare Sterbino.
This is how the opera The Barber of Seville appeared, which in almost 200 years of its existence has survived hundreds of productions. However, the premiere of the creation of Rossini was extremely unsuccessful. The fact is that in 1782 a work with the same plot was written by the coryphaeus of the Italian opera Giovanni Paisiello, who had a lot of fans. The appearance of the new version seemed the last disrespect for the personality of the elderly master, and they booed the actors performing Rossini's arias. Despite the failure during the premiere, the second performance still took place, and it was conducted not by the upset author, but by the genius Paganini himself. The result was just the opposite, and admiring spectators even staged a torchlight procession in honor of Rossini.
Overture
Not many people know that Rossini’s opera The Barber of Seville, in the form in which it is known today, is different from the original. In particular, instead of the familiar overture that precedes the appearance of the heroes of the performance, during the premiere, the audience was offered a kind of potpourri of Spanish folk dance tunes, which was supposed to recreate the atmosphere of Seville. Then a simple detective story happened: before the second performance, it turned out that the score mysteriously disappeared. Then Rossini, whose laziness in Italy was a byword, just rummaged through his papers and found an overture written for an unfinished work. Since then, it began to sound every time when the next performance-production of the opera “The Barber of Seville” began. Moreover, the same melody in different variations, and before that, was used by the composer during musical performances.
The Barber of Seville. Summary of action I: picture I
In the house of Dr. Bartolo, Rosina lives, with whom Count Almaviva falls in love at first sight. He invites musicians to sing a serenade under her windows. However, the girl does not go to the balcony, and the young man is disappointed. Then Figaro appears - a local jovial and barber, who is familiar to the count as a famous crook. Almaviva enters into a conversation with him and asks for a fee to help him marry Rosina. Figaro happily agrees. The men begin to make a plan, but then Bartolo comes out of the house, talking to himself and giving out his intention to immediately marry his pupil. He leaves, and the count, convinced that this time nothing will hinder him from seeing his beloved, again sings a serenade on behalf of singer Lindor. Rosina first answers him from the balcony, but then suddenly runs away. Figaro advises Almaviva to change into a soldier and go to Bartolo. There, the count should portray a drunk who is sure that he was sent to billets precisely in this house.
Summary of II picture I action
Events take place at Bartolo's house. The second picture begins (Act I, the opera The Barber of Seville), Rozina’s aria, in which the girl sings about her love for Leander. Then Bartolo comes home and a little later, Basilio is the music teacher of the girl. He tells the doctor that in the city they gossip about Rosina and Almaviva, as lovers. Bartolo is outraged, and Basilio sings the famous aria about libel. In the next scene, Figaro tells the girl about Leander's love and advises her to write a letter to the young man. It turns out that Rosina has already done this, and the barber is pleased to assume the duties of a postman. Bartolo guesses everything and puts the girl under lock and key.
Almaviva appears, dressed as a soldier. Despite the doctor’s assurances that his house was vacated, the count refuses to leave and quietly makes it clear to Rosina that he is her admirer, Lindor. Bartolo is trying to kick out the “soldier,” who is starting to get into a scandal. Basilio, Figaro and the servant girl also join the verbal skirmish. The noise attracts the attention of the city guard, but Almaviva is not arrested, as he gives his name and title to the officer.
The Barber of Seville: Content of Scene I of Act II
Almaviva comes to Bartolo in the guise of a music teacher, who supposedly came to replace the sick Basilio. Thanks to this deception, he “gives a lesson” to Rosina. Their duet does not like Bartolo, who decides to show the student and the “teacher” which songs and how to sing.
Figaro comes and offers to shave Bartolo. While the doctor is sitting with a soapy face, the count agrees with his beloved about the escape. Basilio suddenly appears, but Figaro, Almaviva and Rosina begin to convince him that he has a fever. The count manages to foist a wallet on a real teacher - and he goes home, "to be healed." Bartolo begins to guess that he is being fooled, and expels everyone except Rosina and the maid.
The content of II paintings II actions
The orchestra performs a fragment from Rossini's “Test Stone”. Further, the opera “The Barber of Seville” continues on the second floor of Bartolo’s house. The window dissolves and the count and Figaro penetrate the room. Almaviva reveals to Rosina his real name, as the girl had previously considered him singer Lindor. Together with Figaro, he convinces her to escape. But at the last minute, it turns out that the stairs along which the young people entered the house disappeared. As it turns out later, she was carried away by Bartolo, who went for a notary public.
Here comes the notary and Basilio, summoned by Bartolo in order to register a marriage between him and Rosina. Almaviva bribes both and persuades him to marry him and the girl until Bartolo returns. The notary certifies the prenuptial agreement, and then a doctor appears accompanied by a guard. Bartolo is told that nothing can be changed, and he has to come to terms with his fate, especially since Almaviva refuses his dowry. All together perform the final aria of reconciliation.
The first production of “The Barber of Seville” in Russia
Throughout the 19th century, opera in Russia was extremely popular. Moreover, specialized theaters existed not only in the capitals, but also in the provinces. For example, the first production of the “Barber of Seville” in our country was carried out in Odessa in 1821. The performance was in Italian and was a great success. A year later, the Barber of Seville, a brief summary of which is known to all opera lovers, was staged in St. Petersburg. Since that time, he was constantly present in the repertoire of the Italian opera troupe of the Northern capital, and for several seasons Rosina’s aria was performed by the famous Polina Viardo.
The Barber of Seville at the Mariinsky Theater
In 1783, Catherine the Second ordered the founding of the Bolshoi Theater in St. Petersburg, which was later renamed in honor of Empress Maria Alexandrovna. In October 1882, the Seville Barber was erected there. The Mariinsky Theater involved its best actors in this performance. So, the part of Bartolo was performed by F.I. Stravinsky (father of the famous composer Stravinsky), the Almaviva - P.A. Lodiy, Rozins - M.A. Slavin, and Figaro - Pryanishnikov. The “Barber of Seville” the Mariinsky Theater staged for the second time in March 1918, with the participation of Rostov, Volevach, Karakash, Serebryakov, Losev, Denisov and Stepanov. In addition, there were two more productions - in 1940 and 1958. And in October 2014, the premiere of The Barber of Seville took place with the participation of I. Selivanov, E. Umerov, O. Pudova, V. Korotich, F. Kuznetsov and E. Sommer.
Famous performers of the aria Rosina
It so happened that among fans of classical music, female arias are more popular. In particular, the song that Rozina sings (The Barber of Seville, Rossini) at the beginning of Scene II of Act I is one of the most frequently performed. One of the best performers is considered Maria Callas, who managed to perfectly convey the whole comic of the situation. After all, the content of the aria is as follows: Rosina is not averse to getting married and promises to be a submissive wife, but only if her husband does not contradict her. If he does not want to indulge her whims, then she promises to become a real vixen and turn his life into hell.
As for the Russian performers of this aria from the opera The Barber of Seville, among them one can note A. V. Nezhdanova, V. V. Barsova, V. Firsova. In addition, this work brought fame to one of the brightest opera divas of our time - Anna Netrebko. By the way, the aria of Rosina was also performed by the actress with the undoubted singing talent of Ekaterina Savinova in the film “Come Tomorrow”. This picture was a great success, and the main character - Frosy Burlakova - was remembered by everyone.
Aria of Figaro
Rossini’s opera The Barber of Seville (a summary is presented above) is also known for interesting parts for male voices. For example, one of the most popular is Figaro’s aria. It is written for baritone, and in it the cheerful barber boasts of its indispensability for the townspeople and lavishes praises on its own, shouting “Bravo, Figaro! Bravo, bravissimo! ”Many connoisseurs of classical music even believe that it was this aria that contributed to the fact that dozens of opera houses around the world annually stage the play“ The Barber of Seville ”. Figaro was embodied on stage by many famous artists. Among them, one cannot but mention Muslim Magomayev, and from foreign performers - the great Italian baritone Titta Ruffo.
Other parties
Another interesting party that adorns the opera The Barber of Seville, reviews of which were performed by Fedor Chaliapin exclusively admired, belongs to Basilio. She was also performed by such famous basses as Ruggiero Raimondi, Laszlo Polgar, Ferruccio Furlanetto and Paolo Montarsolo.
The Barber of Seville is one of the most fun and positive operas that even people who are far from classical music enjoy listening to.