Overture to Semiramide
Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868)

THE STORY

     Gioachino Rossini wrote an astounding 39 operas by the age of 37; he achieved his prolific output by aiming for simple melody and clear rhythm rather than musical complexity. Semiramide, a serious opera coming after a run of comic operas, tells the story of the Babylonian Queen Semiramis who kills her husband to overtake the throne, falls in love with a young man she doesn’t know is her son, and ultimately is killed by her other lover.
     The quiet, flowing introduction is followed by one of Rossini’s most famous devices, a gradual crescendo created by the entire orchestra, nicknamed the “Rossini crescendo.” A forceful chord sets up a slow section, introduced by a quartet of horns with a melody that comes from the first act of the opera. The brisk conclusion of the overture is taken from the second act.

INSTRUMENTATION

Piccolo, flute, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, timpani, percussion, strings