Beethoven and his contemporaries the third movement of Beethoven's 5th Symphony has an opening theme that is very similar to the one in Mozart's 40th Symphony. Beethoven wrote cadenzas (WoO 58) to the first and third movements of Mozart's Piano Concerto in D minor. Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868) was an Italian composer known for his numerous operas including "The Barber of Seville" and "William Tell". When Rossini visited Vienna, he made several attempts to meet Beethoven, who was then 51 and in failing health. Finally, Rossini was able to arrange a meeting with Beethoven through the help of Giuseppe Carpani, an Italian poet living in
The Lady of the Lake (poem) Nation".) But, the Fiery cross or "Crann Tara" was a device for rallying people in Scotland and did not carry racist connotations. Gioachino Rossini composed an opera, "La Donna del Lago", based on the poem. The opera downplays the other plots in favor of the love story. In the opera, James Douglas tells Ellen that she must marry Roderick Dhu. Some of the characters' names are changed slightly: Roderick Dhu becomes Rodrigo, Ellen becomes Elena, and James Fitz-James becomes Uberto. Walter Scott's poem, in the German translation by Adam Storck, was set to music by Franz Schubert in his work