Home > The Barber of Seville Rossini, G. (1792-1868) Il barbiere di Siviglia The Barber of Seville Composed 1816. First performed February 20, 1816. Libretto by Cesare Sterbini (in Itarian), after Beaumarchais. A Summary of “The Barber of Seville” Act 1 In the 18th century, at the house of a doctor, Bartolo, keeps Rosina, confined in his house. He is her guardian. Rosina inherited a great deal of money from her parents. Bartolo attempts to get both the beautiful girl and extensive inheritance by getting her to marry him. Count Almaviva, an aristocrat in Spain, falls in love with Rosina. Almaviva calls himself “Lindoro”, a poor student, to conceal his high status, and he serenades her. But he can’t meet her for Bartolo’s stringent control. Count Almaviva asks Figaro, a barber in Siviglia, to help with the success of his love. Figaro as the barber enters Bartolo’s house, and he suggests to Almaviva to disguise himself as a drunken soldier billeted to Bartolo’s house. But Bartolo is skeptical about Almaviva disguised as a soldier. This plan doesn’t go well. Act 2 The following plan becomes successful. Almaviva disguises himself as a pupil of a music teacher, Basilio. Basilio is Bartolo’s right hand man. Almaviva can enter Bartolo’s house, and during a music lesson is able to make promise with Rosina to run away and marry. Then, Figaro steals the key of the balcony window while he shaves Bartolo. After Almaviva and Figaro leave Bartolo’s house, Bartolo tells Rosina that Lindoro attempts to sell her to Count Almaviva. Rosina gets angry, and says she will marry Bartolo or any man. Bartolo is pleased, and calls a public notary over. That same night, Almaviva and Figaro steal into Bartolo’s house through the balcony window. At first Rosina rebuffs “Lindoro,” but when Almaviva explains that Lindoro and Almaviva are one and the same person, her confusion is cleared up. At that moment, the notary arrives, so Almaviva marrys Rosina in the room. Bartolo enters the room, but it is too late now. Almaviva tells Bartolo to take Rosina’s extensive inheritance for himself. So Bartolo is satisfied with the outcome, too. A Comment on “The Barber of Seville” Many operas around the world cover on the subjects of love, sorrow, and death, that is to say, they are tragic dramas. If you are not good at such negative stories, I recommend you see this opera-“The Barber of Seville.” I’m sure we will burst into laughter many times, because there are some comical points in this opera. You should especially pay attention to the dialogue between Bartolo and Almaviva. Almaviva disguises himself as Bartolo’s right hand man in Act 2. The audience frequently burst into laughter. Gioachino Rossini who composed this opera is a musical genius. The overture of this opera is very famous. And Rossini’s melodies are bright and smooth, so the opera’s story flows freely. Do you know the “Rossini Crescendo”? This is Rossini’s unique method of composition to increase sound volume gradually in steps. The Rossini Crescendo probably excites both orchestra and audience at the same time. Do you suspect that Figaro, the barber in Siviglia, is the Figaro in Mozart’s opera “The Marriage of Figaro”? Well, you are right! Actually, “The Marriage of Figaro” is a sequel to “The Barber of Seville.” You should see both operas. You would enjoy opera twice over. Gluck, C. W. (1714-1787) 　- Orpheus and Eurydice Mozart, W. A. (1756-1791) 　- The Marriage of Figaro 　- Don Giovanni 　- Cosi fan tutte 　- The Magic Flute Beethoven, L. v. (1770-1827) 　- Fidelio Weber, C. M. v. (1786-1826) 　- The Magic Bullets Rossini, G. (1792-1868) 　- The Barber of Seville Donizetti, G. (1797-1848) 　- The Elixir of Love Verdi, G. (1813-1901) 　- Macbeth 　- Rigoletto 　- Il trovatore 　- La Traviata 　- Un ballo in maschera 　- Don Carlo 　- Aida 　- Otello 　- Falstaff Wagner, R. (1813-1883) 　- The Flying Dutchman 　- Tannhauser 　- Lohengrin 　- Tristan und Isolde 　- Die Meistersinger von Nuernberg 　- The Rhinegold 　- Die Walkure 　- Siegfried 　- Twilight of the Gods 　- Parsifal Offenbach, J. (1819-1880) 　- The Tales of Hoffmann Strauss, J. (1825-1899) 　- Die Fledermaus (The Bat) Bizet, G. (1838-1875) 　- Carmen Tchaikovsky, P. J. (1840-1893) 　- Eugene Onegin Massenet, J. (1842-1912) 　- Werther Humperdinck, E. (1854-1921) 　- Hansel and Gretel Puccini, G. (1858-1924) 　- La Boheme 　- Tosca 　- Madama Butterfly 　- Turandot Leoncavallo, R. (1858-1919) 　- Pagliacci Mascagni, P. (1863-1945) 　- Cavalleria Rusticana Debussy, C. (1862-1918) 　- Pelleas et Melisande Strauss, R. (1864-1949) 　- Salome 　- The Cavalier of the Rose Copyright (C) 2005-2022 Yusuke Kamiki. All Rights Reserved.