Gioachino Rossini common practice among deadline-pressed opera composers of the time. Few of his operas are without such admixtures, frankly introduced in the form of arias or overtures. For example, in "Il Barbiere" there is an aria for the Count (often omitted) "Cessa di più resistere", which Rossini used (with minor changes) in the cantata "Le Nozze di Teti e di Peleo" and in "La Cenerentola" (the cabaletta for Angelina's rondo is almost unchanged). Moreover, four of his best known overtures ("La cambiale di matrimonio", "Tancredi", "La Cenerentola" and "The Barber of Seville") share operas apart from those with which they are
La pietra del paragone La pietra del paragone La pietra del paragone (The Touchstone) is an opera, or melodramma giocoso, in two acts by Gioachino Rossini, to an original Italian libretto by Luigi Romanelli. "La pietra del paragone" was first performed at La Scala, Milan, on 26 September 1812. It was the composer's first commission from a major opera house and was an instant success, being performed 53 times during its first season. Napoleon's Viceroy in Milan, Eugène de Beauharnais, was so impressed by the opera that he wrote to the Minister of the Interior, "You will kindly arrange for Maestro Joachin Rossini to