Pietro Spagnoli

An opera buffa by Gioachino Rossini. The libretto was by Giuseppe Palomba after Carlo Goldoni's play Il matrimonio per concorso of 1763. The opera satirizes the influence of newspapers on people's lives. There is critical disagreement as to its success, although the New England Conservatory's notes for their April 2013 production state that the opera "was an immediate hit, and showed Rossini at his comic best."

Director Werner Herzog, one of the most highly acclaimed German film makers, joins forces with the great Italian conductor Riccardo Chailly to effect a masterful rendition of this rarely-performed opera involving spectacular scenes of alternating light and dark, pageantry and intimacy. Staged and recorded at Teatro Comunale di Bologna in Bologna, Italy.

The writer Dario Fo applies his inventive genius to Rossini's comic opera in its premiere DVD release. Recorded in 2005 under the musical direction of Maurizio Barbacini, Fo's production brings fresh vitality and colour to the story of Lisetta, and of her father Don Pomponio's increasingly ridiculous attempts to find a husband for her through an advertisement in the newspaper LA GAZZETTA. Filmed using high definition cameras with multitrack sound.

23-year-old Gioachino Rossini completed his masterpiece IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA incredibly quickly – legend has it in just 13 days – which Rossini attributed to ‘facility and lots of instinct’. The opera, characterized by youthful energy and bold wit, has all the ingredients for comic chaos: an imprisoned young woman, her lecherous guardian and a young noble suitor. Skilfully plotting behind the scenes is Figaro, an irrepressible and inventive character in whom many have seen a resemblance to the young Rossini himself. The score fizzes with musical brilliance, from Figaro’s famous entrance aria to the frenzy of the Act I finale. This recording sees Joyce DiDonato (Rosina) bring literal meaning to the old theatrical motto Break a leg! She did just that in an earlier show but was determined to finish her commitment and was re-staged into the production to allow for the additional challenges that come when a leading lady in a lively physical role must wheel around the other performers...

In the bright sunlight of opera buffa, a handsome Turkish prince (with an agile bass voice) lands on the coast of Naples looking for amorous adventures. In no time at all he meets a vivacious Italian girl (a coquettish virtuoso soprano), who is accustomed to flitting between admirers, much to the displeasure of her elderly husband. This little group carries on its flirtations, rivalries and quarrels under the delighted eyes of the poet Prosdocimo, who, as it happens, has been seeking inspiration for a dramma buffo.

Live from La Scala Sunday 03 February 1991

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Lorenzo da Ponte's renowned opera "Don Giovanni" -- based on the legend of lothario Don Juan -- springs to life in this witty production by De Nederlandse Opera under the baton of maestro Ingo Metzmacher. As Don Giovanni (Pietro Spagnoli) pursues numerous women, a recent conquest tries to thwart his efforts. The outstanding cast also includes soprano Charlotte Margiono, bass Mario Luperi and tenor Marcel Reijans.

Diana Damrau, Ildebrando D'Arcangelo, Pietro Spagnoli, Marcella Orsatti Talamanca, and Monica Bacelli star in this La Scala production of the Mozart opera conducted by Gerard Korsten and directed by Giorgio Strehler.

Mozart opera.

Si jamais un compositeur est né pour mettre en musique le conte de fées enchanteur de Cendrillon, c'est bien Rossini. Son héroïne très appréciée Angelina (Elīna Garanča) doit faire face non seulement à de méchantes demi-sœurs, mais aussi à un père extravagant et farfelu, Don Magnifico (Alessandro Corbelli). Et dans cette version, le prince (Lawrence Brownlee) et son valet (Simone Alberghini) échangent leurs identités, ce qui provoque une délicieuse confusion sans fin. Avec la délicieuse production de contes de Cesare Lievi et la direction experte de Maurizio Benini, tout est aussi léger et délicieux qu'un merveilleux soufflé musical.

In the Summer of 2009, the British director Nigel Lowery and the Iranian choreographer Amir Hosseinpour brought to the stage of the Berlin State Opera Unter den Linden, with colour and full of humour, the fantastic and imaginative adventures of "Racing Roland". On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the death of Joseph Haydn, the composer's most renowned opera during his lifetime,Orlando Paladino, was performed, a heroic-comical stage piece based on Ariost's famous Versepos. Singers such as Marlis Petersen (Angelica), Tom Randle (Orlando), Alexandrina Pendatchanska (Alcina), Pietro Spagnoli (Rodomonte), Sunhae Im (Eurilla) and Victor Torres (Pasquale) performed under the musical direction of period-music specialist René Jacobs. The Freiburg Baroque Orchestra completed this high-class production giving the music a beautiful sound and lively swing.