Editing Gioachino Rossini (section)

===Vienna and London: 1820–1824===
By the early 1820s, Rossini was beginning to tire of Naples. The failure of his operatic tragedy ''[[Ermione]]'' the previous year convinced him that he and the Neapolitan audiences had had enough of each other.{{sfn|Osborne|2007|p=66}} An insurrection in Naples against the monarchy, though [[Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies#1820 revolution|quickly crushed]], unsettled Rossini;{{sfn|Kendall|1992|p=99}} when Barbaia signed a contract to take the company to Vienna, Rossini was glad to join them, but did not reveal to Barbaia that he had no intention of returning to Naples afterwards.{{sfn|Osborne|2007|p=70}} He travelled with Colbran, in March 1822, breaking their journey at Bologna, where they were married in the presence of his parents in a small church in [[Castenaso]] a few miles from the city.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=92}} The bride was thirty-seven, the groom thirty.{{refn|[[Stendhal]], whose dislike of Colbran is undisguised in his 1824 biography of Rossini, put the bride's age at 40 to 50, and suggested that Rossini married her for her (considerable) money.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=106}}|group= n}}

In Vienna, Rossini received a hero's welcome; his biographers describe it as "unprecedentedly feverish enthusiasm",{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=95}} "Rossini fever",{{sfn|Osborne|2007|p=75}} and "near hysteria".{{sfn|Osborne|2004|p=17}} The authoritarian chancellor of the [[Austrian Empire]], [[Klemens von Metternich|Metternich]], liked Rossini's music, and thought it free of all potential revolutionary or republican associations. He was therefore happy to permit the San Carlo company to perform the composer's operas.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|pp=97–98}} In a three-month season they played six of them, to audiences so enthusiastic that [[Ludwig van Beethoven|Beethoven]]'s assistant, [[Anton Schindler]], described it as "an idolatrous orgy".{{sfn|Osborne|2007|p=75}}

[[File:Charles Motte - Rossini et Georges IV - la soirée de Brighton.jpg|thumb|left|alt=drawing of plump man in court dress greeting a slimmer, balding one, also in formal court dress| [[George IV of the United Kingdom|George IV]] (left) greeting Rossini at the [[Brighton Pavilion]], 1823]]While in Vienna Rossini heard Beethoven's ''[[Symphony No. 3 (Beethoven)|Eroica]]'' symphony, and was so moved that he determined to meet the reclusive composer. He finally managed to do so, and later described the encounter to many people, including [[Eduard Hanslick]] and [[Richard Wagner]]. He recalled that although conversation was hampered by Beethoven's deafness and Rossini's ignorance of German, Beethoven made it plain that he thought Rossini's talents were not for serious opera,{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=100}} and that "above all" he should "do more ''Barbiere''" ''(Barbers)''.{{sfn|Osborne|2007|p=76}}{{refn|"Vor allem machen Sie noch viele Barbiere".{{sfn|Caeyers|2012|p=667}}|group= n}}

After the Vienna season Rossini returned to Castenaso to work with his librettist, [[Gaetano Rossi]], on ''[[Semiramide]]'', commissioned by La Fenice. It was premiered in February 1823, his last work for the Italian theatre. Colbran starred, but it was clear to everyone that her voice was in serious decline, and ''Semiramide'' ended her career in Italy.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=109}} The work survived that one major disadvantage, and entered the international operatic repertory, remaining popular throughout the 19th century;{{sfn|Gossett & Brauner|1997|p=343}} in Richard Osborne's words, it brought "[Rossini's] Italian career to a spectacular close."{{sfn|Osborne|2002d}}

In November 1823 Rossini and Colbran set off for London, where a lucrative contract had been offered. They stopped for four weeks ''en route'' in Paris. Although he was not as feverishly acclaimed by the Parisians as he had been in Vienna, he nevertheless had an exceptionally welcoming reception from the musical establishment and the public. When he attended a performance of ''Il barbiere'' at the Théâtre-Italien he was applauded, dragged onto the stage, and serenaded by the musicians. A banquet was given for him and his wife, attended by leading French composers and artists, and he found the cultural climate of Paris congenial.{{sfn|Prod'homme|1931|p=118}}

At the end of the year Rossini arrived in London, where he was received and made much of by the king, [[George IV of the United Kingdom|George IV]], although the composer was by now unimpressed by royalty and aristocracy.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=119}} Rossini and Colbran had signed contracts for an opera season at the [[Her Majesty's Theatre#Second theatre: 1791–1867|King's Theatre]] in the [[Haymarket, London|Haymarket]]. Her vocal shortcomings were a serious liability, and she reluctantly retired from performing. Public opinion was not improved by Rossini's failure to provide a new opera, as promised.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=121}} The impresario Vincenzo Benelli defaulted on his contract with the composer, but this was not known to the London press and public, who blamed Rossini.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=121}}{{sfn|Osborne|2007|p=90}}

In a 2003 biography of the composer, [[Gaia Servadio]] comments that Rossini and England were not made for each other. He was prostrated by the [[English Channel|Channel]] crossing and was unlikely to be enthused by the English weather or English cooking.{{sfn|Servadio|2003|p=123}} Although his stay in London was financially rewarding – the British press reported disapprovingly that he had earned over £30,000{{refn|A sum equal to £{{Inflation|UK|30000|1824|fmt=c}} today|group=n}} – he was happy to sign a contract at the French embassy in London to return to Paris, where he had felt much more at home.{{sfn|Blanning|2008|p=46}}{{sfn|Kendall|1992|pp=125–126}}