Alberto Zedda, Symfonisch Orkest van de Vlaamse Opera - Gioacchino Rossini: Semiramide (2015)
NTSC 16:9 (720x480) | Italiano (LinearPCM, 2 ch) | (Dolby AC3, 6 ch) | 238 min | 7.35+6.38 Gb (2xDVD9)
Classical | Label: Dynamic | Sub: Italiano, English, Deutsch, Francais, Japanese | Recorded: 2011
NTSC 16:9 (720x480) | Italiano (LinearPCM, 2 ch) | (Dolby AC3, 6 ch) | 238 min | 7.35+6.38 Gb (2xDVD9)
Classical | Label: Dynamic | Sub: Italiano, English, Deutsch, Francais, Japanese | Recorded: 2011
The composition of Semiramide took approximately four months, which is an unusually long span for Rossini. The premiere took place on the 3rd of February of 1823. The opera’s libretto is based on Voltaire’s drama Sémiramis, written by the French philosopher and scholar in 1748. For some respects a conclusive work, Semiramide contains, like all masterpieces, traditional elements alongside innovative ones. Rossini accentuated the role of the orchestra, compared to his previous serious operas: the Sinfonia, the longest and most elaborate Rossini ever wrote, immediately suggests Rossini endeavoured to give the instrumental part a more important role yet than usual. At the same time, the bel canto dimension is probably more developed than in any other previous Rossinian serious opera.