Cesare Sterbini to the music of Francesco Basili in 1820. He died in Rome on 19 January 1831. Cesare Sterbini Cesare Sterbini (born 1784 in Rome – January 19, 1831) was an Italian writer and librettist. Possessing a deep knowledge of classical and contemporary culture, philosophy, linguistics, he was fluent in Greek, Latin, Italian, French and German. He is best known as the librettist for two operas by Gioachino Rossini: "Torvaldo e Dorliska" (1815) and "The Barber of Seville" (1816). An official in the Pontifical Administration, he also set poetry to music as an amateur. He wrote the libretto to the opera
Otello (Rossini) after uncovering the deceit of Jago and the innocence of his wife.” As in Verdi's "Otello", Desdemona's aria ""Salce"" ("Willow Song") is a pivotal moment in the final act. Franz Liszt based the Canzone from the Années de Pèlerinage supplement Venezia e Napoli on the offstage gondolier's song "Nessun maggior dolore" from this opera. Notes Sources Otello (Rossini) Otello () is an opera in three acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Berio di Salsa. The work is based on a French adaptation of the story, not Shakespeare's play "Othello" as neither Rossini nor his librettist