Gioachino Rossini. La Veuve andalouse = The Andalusian Widow = La viuda del náufrago: for voice and piano = para voz y piano. Antoni Pizà and María Luisa Martínez, eds. Kassel: Reichenberger, 2022.

Abstract

In 1855, Rossini returned to France and settled in Passy (Paris). He had abruptly abandoned the theater in 1829 and undergone a long period of inactivity. However, this new phase of his life reignited his passion for composing, leading to several small pieces for piano, voice and piano, or small ensembles. Such compositions, which Rossini ironically dubbed as Péchés de vieillesse, were not meant for public release but mainly for private concerts held at his residence. Thus, they remained manuscripts until after Rossini’s death, when his widow, Olympe Pélissier, sold most of them, with the result that they were eventually published in various volumes over time.La Veuve andalouse (The Andalusian Widow) is one of Rossini’s “sins of old age” that was not part of Pélissier’s sale. Published in 1864 under unforeseen circumstances, potentially without Rossini’s consent, La Veuve serves as an example of the alluring vocal repertoire with an exotic flair that fascinated the salons of Europe during the nineteenth century.