Guillaume Tell

Information about Guillaume Tell

Guillaume Tell (William Tell) is an opera in four acts by Gioacchino Rossini to a French libretto by Etienne de Jouy and Hippolyte Bis, based on Friedrich Schiller's play Wilhelm Tell. It was first performed at the Paris Opéra on August 3, 1829.

The opera, based on the legend of William Tell, was Rossini's last, even though the composer lived for nearly forty more years. There are several recordings of it, but its length (roughly four hours of music) and casting requirements contribute to the difficulty of producing it. When it is performed, it is often heavily cut. Today, the opera is known mostly for its overture.

Characters

  • Principal roles
  • Guillame Tell - Baritone
  • Arnold Melcthal - Tenor
  • Mathilde, daughter of Gesler - Soprano
  • Minor roles
  • Ruodi, a fisherman - Tenor
  • Hedwige, Tell's Wife - Mezzo-soprano
  • Jemmy, Tell's Son - Soprano
  • Melcthal, Arnold's Father - Bass
  • Leuthold, A Shepard- Bass
  • Rodolphe, Captain of Gesler's guard - Tenor
  • Walter Fürst - Bass
  • Gessler, The Austrian Governor - Bass
  • Other
  • Hunter - Baritone
  • Peasants, shepherds, knights, pages, ladies, soldiers - Chorus

Setting

Time: The early 14th century.
Place: Switzerland.

Noted arias

  • "Asile héréditaire" (Arnold)
  • "Sois immobile" (Tell)
  • "Sombre forêt" (Mathilde)

Overture

The opera's overture, especially its high-energy finale, is a very familiar work, written in four parts, each segueing into the next:
  • Prelude - a slow passage starting with a passage for five cellos
  • Storm - a dynamic section played by full orchestra
  • Ranz des vaches (call to the dairy cows) - featuring the Cor anglais (English horn)
  • Finale - ultra-dynamic "cavalry charge" galop heralded by trumpets and played by full orchestra.

Recordings

  • Philips 422 391-2: Giorgio Zancanaro, Chris Merritt, Giorgio Surjan, Franco de Grandis, Amelia Felle, Luciana d'Intino, Vittorio Terranova, Alberto Noli, Luigi Roni, Cheryl Studer, Ernesto Gavazzi, Ernesto Panariello; Chorus and Orchestra of the Teatro alla Scala, Milan; Riccardo Muti, conductor[1]

References

1. ^ Hamilton, David (1991). "Guillaume Tell. Gioachino Rossini". The Opera Quarterly 8 (1): 117-121. Retrieved on 2007-10-20. 
Opera is a form of musical and dramatic work in which singers convey the drama.[1] Opera is part of the Western classical music tradition.[2] An opera performance incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery and costumes and
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Gioachino Antonio Rossini [1] (Pesaro, February 29, 1792 – Passy, November 13, 1868) was an Italian composer who wrote 39 operas as well as sacred music and chamber music.
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libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, sacred or secular oratorio and cantata, musical, and ballet. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass and requiem.
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Victor-Joseph Étienne de Jouy (October 19, 1764 - September 4, 1846), French dramatist, was born at Versailles.

At the age of eighteen he received a commission in the army, and sailed for South America in the company of the governor of Guiana.
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Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (Marbach am Neckar, November 10, 1759 – May 9, 1805 in Weimar) was a German poet, philosopher, historian, and dramatist. During the last several years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller struck a productive, if complicated,
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William Tell, (German: Wilhelm Tell), Friedrich Schiller's 1804 eponymous play about the legendary marksman William Tell, plays an important part in the modern history of Europe, dealing with the political question of tyrannicide.
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Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique was the official theatre of the French theatrical institution known as the Académie Royale de Musique from 1821 until 1873, and was principal venue of the Parisian opera (from 1822) and ballet companies until its destruction by fire
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August 3 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

Events

  • 8 - Roman Empire general Tiberius defeats Dalmatians on the river Bathinus.

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18th century - 19th century - 20th century
1790s  1800s  1810s  - 1820s -  1830s  1840s  1850s
1826 1827 1828 - 1829 - 1830 1831 1832

:
Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
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William Tell (German: Wilhelm Tell; French: Guillaume Tell; Italian: Guglielmo Tell
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Overture (French ouverture, meaning opening) in music is the instrumental introduction to a dramatic, choral or, occasionally, instrumental composition.

Frequently an opening to a larger dramatic work such as an opera, earlier usage of the word also referred to
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Baritone (French: baryton; German: Bariton; Italian: baritono) is most commonly the type of male voice that lies between bass and tenor.
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tenor is a singer with a voice range from approximately C3 (one octave below middle C) to A4 (above middle C) in choral music, or up to "tenor C" (C5, one octave above middle C) or higher in operatic music (see voice type).
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soprano is a singer with a voice range from approximately middle C (C4) to "high A" (A5) in choral music, or to "soprano C" (C6, two octaves above middle C) or higher in operatic music.
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tenor is a singer with a voice range from approximately C3 (one octave below middle C) to A4 (above middle C) in choral music, or up to "tenor C" (C5, one octave above middle C) or higher in operatic music (see voice type).
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A mezzo-soprano (meaning "medium" or "middle" "soprano" in Italian) is a female singer whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above (i.e.
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soprano is a singer with a voice range from approximately middle C (C4) to "high A" (A5) in choral music, or to "soprano C" (C6, two octaves above middle C) or higher in operatic music.
..... Click the link for more information.
A bass (or basso in Italian) is a male singer who sings in the deepest vocal range of the human voice. According to Grove Music Online, a bass has a range extending from around the F below low C to the E above middle C (i.e., F2–E4).
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A bass (or basso in Italian) is a male singer who sings in the deepest vocal range of the human voice. According to Grove Music Online, a bass has a range extending from around the F below low C to the E above middle C (i.e., F2–E4).
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tenor is a singer with a voice range from approximately C3 (one octave below middle C) to A4 (above middle C) in choral music, or up to "tenor C" (C5, one octave above middle C) or higher in operatic music (see voice type).
..... Click the link for more information.
A bass (or basso in Italian) is a male singer who sings in the deepest vocal range of the human voice. According to Grove Music Online, a bass has a range extending from around the F below low C to the E above middle C (i.e., F2–E4).
..... Click the link for more information.
A bass (or basso in Italian) is a male singer who sings in the deepest vocal range of the human voice. According to Grove Music Online, a bass has a range extending from around the F below low C to the E above middle C (i.e., F2–E4).
..... Click the link for more information.
Baritone (French: baryton; German: Bariton; Italian: baritono) is most commonly the type of male voice that lies between bass and tenor.
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A choir, chorale, or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers.

A body of singers who perform together is called a choir or chorus. The former term is very often applied to groups affiliated with a church (whether or not they actually occupy the quire) and the
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14th century was that century which lasted from 1301 to 1400.

Events

  • The transition from the Medieval Warm Period to the Little Ice Age
  • Beginning of the Ottoman Empire, early expansion into the Balkans

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Motto
Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno (Latin) (traditional)[1]
"One for all, all for one"
Anthem
"Swiss Psalm"
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The overture to the opera William Tell, especially its high-energy finale, is a very familiar work composed by Gioachino Rossini. There has been repeated use (and sometimes parody) of this overture in the popular media, most famously for being the theme music for the
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violoncello, usually abbreviated to cello, or 'cello (the c is pronounced [tʃ] as in the ch of "check"), is a bowed stringed instrument, a member of the violin family.
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The cor anglais, or English horn, is a double reed woodwind musical instrument in the woodwind family.

It is a transposing instrument pitched in F, a fifth lower than the oboe (a C instrument), and is consequently approximately one-third longer.
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In dance, the galop, named for the fastest running gait of a horse (see gallop), a shortened version of the original term galoppade, is a lively country dance, introduced in the late 1820s to Parisian society by the duchesse de Berry and popular in Vienna, Berlin and London.
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