Rossini’s mammoth opera about the freedom-fighting, sharp-shooting hero William Tell is rarely staged. Working on a new Covent Garden production, Gerald Finley is grappling with ‘clever dirt’, archery ...

Some authorities believe that Rossini always intended Guillaume Tell to be his final opera – that the attractions of early retirement at the age of 37 were too much to resist. Others maintain that it ...

I've always had a soft spot for Gioacchino Rossini's overtures. Their slow introductions and sprightly melodies invariably lead to a big crescendo passage, in which Rossini repeats a motif several ...

If you attend Rossini’s opera Otello (1813) expecting something close to the structure and poetry of Shakepeare’s original – as Lord Byron did when he went to a performance in Venice in 1818 – you ...

In the process of the popularization of Christmas in Japan, I believe certain dishes played a major role. Roast chicken and cake have been Christmas dinner staples for decades, but there is also ...

Why is Christian Science in our name? Our name is about honesty. The Monitor is owned by The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and we’ve always been transparent about that. The church publishes the ...

Rossini’s The Barber of Seville may have a predominantly male cast, but that has not put American mezzo-soprano Stephanie Lauricella off taking part in this popular opera. Far from feeling intimidated ...