Three Operas, an Oratorio and a Recital
- Good balance of art and music.
- Recital with Joyce DiDonato
- Some remarkably unspoilt and attractive landscapes.
Gioachino Rossini is commemorated in his birthplace, the coastal resort of Pesaro, by an annual summer festival devoted to his music. Devoted to a single composer in an appropriate location and attaining the highest artistic standards it well merits its epithet ‘the Italian Bayreuth’. The mix of well-known and little known works from Rossini’s vast oeuvre and the participation of some of the world’s greatest bel canto singers make this festival one of the most significant musical events in Italy.
The heart of the little city of Pesaro retains its ancient walls – much of the Roman structure is evident – and a compact mass of fine buildings and picturesque streets. The hotels are located beyond the seaward walls, stretched along the magnificent beach, leaving the old city virtually untouched by the adjacent resort.
The historic Teatro Rossini provides settings with an appropriate historical embrace for Rossini’s works, while the larger, modern Adriatic Arena allows for some spectacular stagings.
This tour includes excursions to other enchanting mediaeval and Renaissance towns and we see some remarkable works of art tucked away in hilltop fastnesses.