Gioachino Rossini Magpie" ("La gazza ladra") features one of his most celebrated overtures. Rossini moved to Paris in 1824 where he began to set French librettos to music. His last opera was the epic "William Tell" ("Guillaume Tell"), featuring its iconic overture which helped to usher in grand opera in France. A tendency for inspired, song-like melodies is evident throughout his scores, which earned him the nickname "the Italian Mozart." He was a rapid and prolific composer, quoted as joking, "Give me the laundress' bill and I will even set that to music." He also earned the nickname "Signor Crescendo" for his
Philadelphia La Scala Opera Company the 1925-1926 season including Gaetano Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor" (with Rosalinda Rudko-Morini in the title role, Giuseppe Reschiglian as Edgardo, and Emanuel Nugnez as Enrico), Giuseppe Verdi's "Aida" (with Alice Eversman in the title role and Bernardo de Muro as Radames), Verdi's "Rigoletto", "Cavalleria rusticana" (with Emilia Vergeri as Santuzza), and "Pagliacci" (with Nicola Zerola as Canio) among others. After its first season, Francesco Pelosi was appointed General Manager and Artistic Director of the company in 1926. For the second season the company was renamed the Philadelphia La Scala Grand Opera Company which it performed under until 1938 when the