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LISTENING TO TCHAIKOVSKY: Béla Hartmann uses his knowledge of Eastern Europe to argue against the banning of all Russian culture following Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
Rossini's two act lyric opera Sigismondo, with an Italian libretto by Giuseppe Maria Foppa, was first performed in Venice at La Fenice on 26 December 1814, achieving little success. Rossini later reused some of the material in other operas, including The Barber of Seville.
Sigismondo's complicated plot is set in Poland's ancient capital Gesna, and in mountainous locations nearby, and involves the King, Sigismondo, his wife Aldimira (daughter of the king of Bohemia and Hungary) and Sigismondo's prime minister, Ladislao, who has an insane desire for Aldimira.
In 1819 the opera was revived in Cremona, Reggio Emilia, Padua and Senogallia, then in 1820 in Florence and Siena and in 1927 in Bologna. After that, it was completely forgotten, until its modern revival in 1992.