The Journey to Rheims

Composer: ROSSINI, Gioachino
  • Il viaggio a Reims, ossia L’albergo del giglio d’oro (The Journey to Rheims, or The Hotel of the Golden Lily) was composed in 1825, the year after Rossini moved to Paris.1
  • It premiered at the Théâtre Italien in Paris on June 19, 1825.2
  • This opera was based partly upon material from Mademe de Staël’s novel Corinne, out L’Italie.3
  • Il viaggio a Reims was composed as a one-act entertainment for celebrations surrounding the coronation of Charles X.4
    • The opera features an international cast of characters who are all gathered at the eponymous hotel, preparing to attend a coronation in Reims.
    • The opera’s main theme is international harmony: colorful characters from many nations interact (and sing in literal harmony in several massive ensemble numbers). 

Sources

  1.  Philip Gossett and Richard Osborne, “Rossini, Gioachino (opera),” Grove Music Online (2002), accessed January 9, 2020, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-5000004337.
  2. Richard Osborne, “Viaggio a Reims, Il,” Grove Music Online (2002), accessed January 9, 2020,  https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-5000008943. 
  3. Ibid.
  4. Ibid.

Cut IDs

42545